Pentagon invites hackers to 'Hack the Pentagon'

Defense Department invites hackers to ‘Hack the Pentagon’

The Defense Department is calling on ethical hackers to "Hack the Pentagon"
The long-running program awards money to those who can identify bugs
It is cost-effective and also helps the DOD recruit technical talent

Updated: Apr 5, 2023 / 06:42 AM CDT

(NewsNation) — The U.S. Department of Defense is calling on hackers to be a part of their Hack the Pentagon initiative with the launch of a new website.

The website, www.hackthepentagon.mil, accompanies the program launched in 2016 and serves as an educational tool and a resource hub for those who wish to help the DOD with what they call “Bug Bounties.”

“When it comes to information and technology, the defense establishment usually relies on closed systems,” said Obama-era Secretary of Defense Ash Carter when the program launched in 2016. “But the more friendly eyes we have on some of our systems and websites, the more gaps we can find, the more vulnerabilities we can fix, and the greater security we can provide to our warfighters.”

The concept is simple: “Ethical hackers,” also known as “white-hat hackers,” will get rewarded with money for helping the Pentagon identify issues with its systems.

“The ability to have confidence in your networks and understand what your vulnerabilities are, means that you have to be able to take scrutiny from outside sources and not just be a self-licking ice cream cone,” said retired Adm. Danelle Barrett, former deputy chief information officer of the Navy and former director of operations at U.S. Cyber Command, in 2022 on “T he Defense Scoop Podcast.”

Aside from being incredibly cost-effective, the program also helps the Pentagon recruit technical talent.

“Through Hack the Pentagon, we’re building a global talent pipeline for cybersecurity experts to contribute to our national defense outside of traditional government career paths,” said Jinyoung Englund, acting deputy chief digital and artificial intelligence officer, Directorate for Digital Services, in a press release.

The Chief Digital and Artificial Intelligence Office’s highly experienced software engineers, data scientists, product managers, and user research designers have run more than 40 bug bounties with over 1,400 ethical hackers since the Hack the Pentagon initiative began. They have collectively flagged more than 2,100 vulnerabilities.

Anyone who thinks they have found a bug to report can visit the DOD’s Vulnerability Disclosure Program (VDP) page on the new website. The VDP does not offer monetary rewards as the bug bounties do.