Experts see NSA nominee's Pacific experience as a boost to US cyber posture on China

"President Donald Trump's nominee to lead the NSA and U.S. Cyber Command comes from a less traditional background than past military leaders who have held the dual-hatted role, though former officials and China experts say his experience operating in the Indo-Pacific can benefit U.S. cyber operations focused on Beijing. Army Lt. Gen. Joshua Rudd was nominated last month to lead the foreign eavesdropping giant and digital combatant command. He is currently deputy commander of Indo-Pacific Command, and is scheduled to testify before the Senate Armed Services Committee on Thursday morning."

"Rudd's official biography shows a career spent largely in special operations and joint command roles, including past senior positions at U.S. Indo-Pacific Command. The geographic region of INDOPACOM includes China, as well as major U.S. allies like Japan and Australia. Despite not having direct cybersecurity or signals intelligence experience, Rudd has almost certainly consumed China-linked cyber intelligence produced by the NSA, said retired Lt. Gen. Charlie "Tuna" Moore, a former deputy commander at U.S. Cyber Command, who is now a distinguished visiting professor at Vanderbilt University's Institute of National Security."

""While at INDOPACOM, [Rudd] got to clearly see that adversaries like China target civilian infrastructure precisely because it supports military operations, from ports and power to communications and transportation," he said. "I'm confident [Rudd] has a good sense of China's cyber capabilities and intentions as well as their cyber weaknesses." In mid-2024, investigators uncovered sweeping Chinese intrusions into telecom firms in the U.S. and around the world. During their hacking campaign, the cyberspies accessed "lawful intercept" systems that allow the FBI to obtain targets' communications with a court warrant."

Lieutenant General Joshua Rudd, currently deputy commander of Indo-Pacific Command, was nominated to lead the NSA and U.S. Cyber Command and is slated to testify before the Senate Armed Services Committee. His career centers on special operations and joint command roles with significant INDOPACOM experience covering China and key U.S. allies. Rudd lacks direct cybersecurity or signals intelligence billets but likely consumed China-linked cyber intelligence. Former officials and experts say his operational view of how adversaries target civilian infrastructure could aid U.S. cyber operations focused on Beijing amid recent revelations of sweeping Chinese intrusions into telecom systems.

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