COVID-19 pandemic hit. Our shipmates throughout the Reserve Component surged to staff the DoD Commercial Virtual Remote (CVR) Teams help desk, assist with the expedited migration of email services of DoD365, and deploy new mobile and remote access technologies to alleviate the unprecedented demand on virtual desktop interface (VDI) resources. Our efforts ensured the service could continue critical mission execution, with thousands of new remote users, despite quarantine or lockdown circumstances. CGCYBER’s reservists have been tightly integrated into daily command operations to a degree I have not experienced before in my career, with an unprecedented level of access to the command cadre. We have worked alongside our active duty counterparts during cyber operations in both the prevention and response sides of the domain, including Cyber Protection Team (CPT) missions, joint cyber exercises, and command cyber readiness inspections. CGCYBER recently established the 1941 CPT, entirely staffed by reservists, as one of four Coast Guard CPTs that support assess, hunt and incident response missions. Cyber Mission Specialist becomes newest rating available to reservists Story by Cmdr. Frank Puzzini Cybersecurity is one of the fastest growing occupations in the United States, and that growth is also being seen in the Coast Guard. Excitement is building with the recent establishment of the cyber mission specialist (CMS) rating and the cyber mission management (CMM) warrant officer specialty; this paves the way for the change- in-rating process for Reserve members into CMS and CMM roles. The accelerated lateral process, coming one year ahead of schedule, is due to the urgent need for experienced Reserve cyber operators to meet the high Coast Guard demand signal and support a wide spectrum of cyber missions. Opportunities abound for qualified Reserve members. The Coast Guard is seeking technical specialists and out-of-the-box thinkers to take on the new CMS enlisted and CMM warrant officer roles that will work to protect and defend the Coast Guard’s cyber terrain. The 24/7 protection of the Coast Guard mission platform is directly supported by reservists, and their roles will grow as CGCYBER’s Reserve Division (and supporting elements) expands to more than 150 members over the next several years. These members will directly support missions that align with the Coast Guard’s vision for cyber operations in support of several strategies, including defense of Coast Guard enterprise mission platform; protection of the Maritime Transportation System; and operations in cyberspace. To help quickly grow this new career path, we need to leverage the extraordinary civilian cyber skill sets of Reserve members with leading-edge cyber expertise. The Coast Guard is seeking members with civilian sector training (like CompTIA Sec+, CompTIA CySA+, CISSP, and CCNA), as well as degrees in cybersecurity from an accredited university—all of which can be used to qualify for CMS and CMM positions. Career progression may include billets as CGCYBER Reserve Division representatives at areas, districts, or sectors. These reserve cyber advisors will guide the operational commands and work on missions at U. S. Cyber Command supporting active defense of the Coast Guard’s portion of the Department of Defense Information Network with blue team/red team operations. The growth of the positions continues; new rating performance qualifications (RPQs) are expected in late Summer of 2023 and the service wide exam question bank will be ready for 2024. Member selection into reserve CMS rating and CMM specialty is slated for the end of Spring 2023. If you have the drive and motivation to be part of a fast- growing, highly skilled new Coast Guard mission, we’d love to talk with you! Email us at [email protected]. Issue 1 • 2023 . ReseRvist 19 CELEBRATING CELEBRATING 70 70 YEARS OF THE RESERVIST YEARS OF THE RESERVIST
