Senate confirms first-ever Pentagon cyber policy chief

The Senate on Thursday confirmed Michael Sulmeyer to be assistant secretary of defense for cyber policy at the Pentagon, the first individual to hold the position.

Sulmeyer has served as the principal cyber advisor to the secretary of the Army, where he supported cyber readiness and strategy matters. He previously served in the Office of the Secretary of Defense, the National Security Council and Cyber Command.

Sulmeyer’s experience also includes working as director of the Cybersecurity Project at the Harvard Kennedy School’s Belfer Center for Science and International Affairs, and he has teaching and fellowship experience with the University of Texas School of Law and Georgetown University’s Center for Security and Emerging Technology.

The FY2023 defense policy bill required the creation of a presidentially appointed cyber policy position amid concerns that the Pentagon wasn’t focused enough on tapping a civilian lead to focus on such policy.

The Pentagon unit Sulmeyer is set to manage was stood up in March with Ashley Manning — the former acting deputy assistant secretary of defense — leading the office on an acting basis.

The new office is responsible for coordinating the Pentagon’s cyber strategies, overseeing the military’s cyber operational budget, cyber workforce development and private sector outreach, among other areas.

The Pentagon in late March unveiled a new Defense Industrial Base cybersecurity strategy to help centralize the agency’s cyber resources and improve outreach with defense firms that contract with the U.S. armed forces’ cyber institutions.

The U.S. military’s cyberspace oversight is currently anchored to CYBERCOM, one of several unified combatant commands that amalgamates service staff across several branches. The head of the cyber operation also has joint command of the National Security Agency, focusing on defending Pentagon networks and offensive military operations in cyberspace.