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How the MOD can achieve decision superiority against cyber threats

AI as a force multiplier for cyber resilience in defence

By

Crossley McEwen

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Military leaders are well-acquainted with the expansion of conventional warfare into digital battlefields. The recent attack and breach of a UK Ministry of Defence (MoD) supplier exposed data of 270,000 service personnel,1 representing not an isolated incident but a pattern in an escalating cyber conflict. When the threat is sophisticated nation-state actors who want to penetrate military networks and could remain undetected for months or longer, it signals a need for change in the nature of defence priorities.

With UK military networks enduring over 90,000 cyber attacks in a two-year span,2 the question becomes not whether attacks will occur, or how sophisticated they will be, but how we can, on the worst day, quickly identify and neutralise them. And do this while managing tightening defence budgets and cybersecurity talent shortages.

Legacy systems and the cybersecurity talent gap on modern battlefields

The defence sector's digital architecture presents unique complexities: Legacy systems — critical for operations but designed in an era before sophisticated cyber threats — must function alongside cutting-edge technologies. This creates an environment where security teams must protect assets across multiple classification levels while maintaining operational readiness. The strategic advantage once provided by physical isolation has evaporated as connected systems become operational necessities. Each new digital capability integrated into the command structure potentially creates new vulnerabilities that adversaries actively seek to exploit. In this domain, asymmetric advantage often goes to attackers who need only find a single vulnerability, while defenders must protect expansive digital territories with limited personnel.

Despite recognition of the threat, resource constraints frequently limit comprehensive security implementation. The traditional security operations model is reaching its limits — security analysts simply cannot process the volume of alerts generated across complex military networks, especially when defence establishments face pressure to reduce costs while maintaining robust security. This creates a tactical vulnerability, where significant threats can be lost amongst thousands of lower-priority alerts.

Rapid response through comprehensive visibility

Defence operations require both comprehensive visibility and rapid response capabilities. A unified security approach addresses these challenges by consolidating multiple functions — threat detection, orchestration, endpoint security, and cloud protection — into a single platform. This integration not only provides essential situational awareness but can halve operational costs. Defense teams managing complex infrastructures benefit from interoperability that connects disparate systems without disruption. This enables secure bridging between legacy databases and NATO partner networks while maintaining workflow continuity.

A unified, AI-enhanced security platform empowers defence teams with a decision advantage, offering robust capabilities for protecting and integrating sensitive military data across complex environments:
Retrieval augmented generation (RAG) combines search with text generation. First it finds relevant information from proprietary data, and then it uses this to create accurate, informed responses via generative AI. It’s a secure approach that offers  defence-specific security insights without the resource-intensive process of retraining custom large language models (LLMs) on continuously changing internal data.

  • AI-empowered attack detection can reduce investigation processes from days to minutes. Rather than drowning teams in alerts, AI-driven analysis distills numerous notifications into actionable intelligence with a single click — providing immediate clarity during potential breach scenarios.

  • AI Assistant can work as a force multiplier for SOC teams, helping users to write previously complex queries. This lowers the barrier to entry for new analysts, who become productive faster, and allows skilled personnel to focus on strategic response rather than routine administration — addressing the persistent shortage of specialised security personnel in the defence sector. 

  • Retrieval augmented generation (RAG) combines search with text generation. First it finds relevant information from proprietary data, and then it uses this to create accurate, informed responses via generative AI. It’s a secure approach that offers  defence-specific security insights without the resource-intensive process of retraining custom large language models (LLMs) on continuously changing internal data.

Decision superiority through connected systems

The Elastic’s Search AI Platform can integrate with legacy military systems (even those dating back to the 1980s)3 and operate across all security classification levels. Our platform eliminates the need for costly infrastructure replacements by acting as a bridge that enables communication and interoperability between systems by ingesting, normalising, and analysing all data. This approach preserves your existing infrastructure while enhancing it with new and emerging technologies. Additionally, our security and search capabilities provide a unified view across networks and their components, allowing teams to focus on meaningful threats rather than piecing together information from isolated sources.

These kinds of capabilities help defence organisations achieve enhanced security and improved efficiency, as well as reduce costs. By streamlining data management across previously siloed systems, Defence can see remarkable financial benefits, whilst ensuring compliance with UK and NATO standards. It’s intelligence sharing without duplicating infrastructure.

The result is decision superiority with information that is actionable and relevant. 

Join Mission Advantage: Strategic Conversations with Defence Leaders, a virtual series on AI, cyber resilience, data, and decision-making in defence. Gain insights from top industry leaders on turning challenges into opportunities.

Explore additional resources:

Sources:
1. Security Daily Review, “UK’s MOD Data Breached: China Hacked Ministry of Defence, UK Armed Forces’ Personal Data Exposed,” 2024.

2. The Independent, “Military to fast-track recruitment of ‘cyber warriors’ as online threat grows,” 2025.

3. PublicTechnology.net, “MoD’s arsenal-management hampered by ageing IT and data siloes, report finds,” 2023.

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