New Commander Takes Helm Amid Ongoing Iran Conflict

The Senate has confirmed Lt. Gen. Joshua Rudd as the next commander of U.S. Cyber Command and director of the National Security Agency, despite concerns over his limited direct experience in signals intelligence and cyber. Rudd, a career special operations officer, will take over during active combat operations in Iran, where cyber capabilities are expected to play a significant role. The confirmation vote was 71-29, with Sen. Ron Wyden objecting to Rudd’s appointment, citing his lack of qualifications for the job. Rudd will have two experienced deputies to lean on, Lt. Gen. Lorna Mahlock at CYBERCOM and Tim Kosiba at NSA. This development was first reported by Breaking Defense.