The dangers posed by cyber conflict are significant and require preparation by the joint force to counter such threats, according to a senior Defense Department expert on the topic during the Space Force's Space Systems Command Cyber Expo 2025.
Director for Cyber Warfare John Garstka delivered keynote remarks at the event today virtually from the Pentagon. Garstka, who works in the Office of the Deputy Assistant Secretary of Defense for Platform and Weapon Portfolio Management, said real-world cyberattacks on commercial critical infrastructure are on the rise.
Likening cyberspace to the fifth warfighting domain, with air, land, sea and space being the others, he said many people have a hard time grasping the impact of cyber conflict because they don't have access to simulations of such attacks and the subsequent effects.
"What we have learned [from our wargaming] is that this is a significant threat that we have to prepare the joint force to deal with," Garstka said.
He added that to prepare for such threats, DOD is focusing on the infrastructure necessary for supporting space systems missions.
"If you shut down the water or the power or the fuel, and you can't provide a space system ground segment with power, then you [just] have a static display," Garstka said.
"And so, it's super important that when we think about cybersecurity for space systems … we factor in DOD installation-critical infrastructure, and we also factor in commercial-critical infrastructure when we have space systems dependent on that infrastructure," he added.
Garstka said proper risk assessment is also an essential element of dealing with cyberthreats, and that such assessments must cover the entire life cycle of the system rather than just the operation and sustainment phases.
Regarding which systems are most at risk of cyberattack, Garstka said America's adversaries — including China — often focus on the defense industrial base.
"What's important to point out is that cyberattacks can impact production lines; they can shut a production line down," Garstka said, noting that such attacks on the DIB can impact real-world DOD missions.
"We're not talking about hypotheticals here. If you're dependent on the DIB for operations of your space systems, you have to treat protecting the DIB as important as protecting the space system, space segment or ground segment," he added.
Garstka also said it's crucial the services view the DIB as a key mission partner and that DOD gives industry the requirements necessary to meet the designs of next-generation space systems rather than having them fall victim to adversarial espionage campaigns in cyberspace.
"We've got to figure out how to close the cost equation to make that a reality," he said.
Garstka said having the motivation necessary to achieve the level of cybersecurity required, despite financial challenges, is essential for countering these threats.
"The most important thing you can bring to the fight is motivation — the ability to identify the type of requirements that these space systems need to meet — and then you've got to be able to [fund them]," Garstka said.
Now in its seventh year and held at Los Angeles Air Force Base in El Segundo, California, Space Systems Command's annual cyber expo spends two days covering "all things cyber," including strategy and operations, cybersecurity, data and artificial intelligence.