The United States Coast Guard has a rare opportunity to make wholesale upgrades to its cybersecurity defenses, a fellow at the Center for Strategic and International Studies (CSIS) proposed in an October 2025 opinion article for the nonprofit think tank in Washington, D.C. Joel Coito, a CSIS defense fellow and U.S. Coast Guard commander, said the window of opportunity has been boosted by $25 billion in congressional funding, the result of rare political consensus among federal lawmakers on the importance of cybersecurity at the nation’s ports and maritime approaches. That consensus should be seized by policymakers to strengthen cyber defenses through bolstering the Coast Guard’s cybersecurity, Coito wrote.
As the U.S. strengthens its cyber defenses, the U.S. Department of Homeland Security (DHS) shouldn’t be left behind. Instead, Coast Guard technology and training should effectively integrate into a military-wide system, Coito wrote. A whole-of-government approach is necessary to monitor, detect and counter threats to maritime infrastructure and utilities, a primary mission of the Coast Guard. “Major cyberattacks, including Colonial Pipeline and NotPetya, have illustrated the damage that state and nonstate cyber actors can cause to maritime infrastructure and utilities,” Coito wrote, referring to a 2021 cyberattack on a Texas oil pipeline and a 2017 cyber assault on banks, newspapers, government agencies and utilities in Ukraine and other countries.
The Coast Guard is uniquely positioned to contribute to homeland defense through upgrading cybersecurity protocols and enforcing minimum cybersecurity requirements for U.S.-flagged vessels. The maritime force in charge of protecting U.S. waters should collaborate with key regional partners to increase interoperability between national cybersecurity systems, Coito wrote. The 2025 DHS budget includes about $2.2 billion for enhanced cybersecurity measures. The execution plan includes modernizing legacy Coast Guard cyber systems, improving the Coast Guard’s cybersecurity by adopting the U.S. Department of Defense “zero trust architecture” and establishing priority command posts for its implementation, Coito wrote.
Those steps have been complemented by Coast Guard cyber operators being assigned to U.S. Cyber Command. In June 2025, the command included the Coast Guard in a joint task force to defend maritime infrastructure. Coito argues that such efforts should continue: “To do so successfully, defense- and intelligence-related cyber legislation must not inadvertently exclude the (Coast Guard) by virtue of its place within the DHS. The (Coast Guard) should be fiscally resourced to increase the size and proficiency of its cyber workforce. While recent reconciliation funding for cyber tools is a positive start, it is no panacea. Optimizing the (Coast Guard’s) role in whole-of-government cybersecurity will require sustained investment,” he wrote.
The Coast Guard also should increase incentives to attract and retain cybersecurity experts with elevated pay and promotion opportunities, Coito wrote. Equally important for recruitment and retention, he added, is keeping cyber operators up to date with the latest technology. The Coast Guard’s newly created RAPTOR — a rapid prototype team to quickly identify and deliver technology capabilities — promises greater agility and leading-edge tools.