ASSOCIATION OF THE UNITED STATES ARMY

Family members, retirees and other eligible personnel can now skip the badge office and renew their military ID cards online under an expansion of a DoD pilot program.

The pilot program, which was launched last February, previously was open only to sponsors with a common access card. Now, most retirees and non-CAC holders are eligible for the online service, DoD announced.

Originally created to advise Afghan security forces, the Army’s security force assistance brigades are evolving to operate on a multidomain operations battlefield.

“The adviser teams of today are purposely designed to advise at the tactical level and at the kandak level,” Maj. Gen. Donn Hill, commanding general of the Security Force Assistance Command, said, using the term used to describe Afghan battalions. “We were all about counterinsurgency and stability operations, but the world has changed. The Army is changing.”

Army efforts to improve the resilience and security of its installations require close cooperation with contractors and communities, Lt. Gen. Jason Evans, deputy Army chief of staff for installations, said April 13.

Installations “are no longer a sanctuary,” Evans said. Instead, they would be considered part of the front line of future warfare. Preparing for this culture change requires a new breed of installation commander and staff who will need ongoing and up-to-date training, he said.

Army installations need to step up defenses against a combination of new and emerging threats, according to a new Rand Corp. report that warns traditional physical security, antiterrorism and emergency preparedness won’t be enough to provide safe outposts.

A new report from the Defense Department Inspector General calls for security improvements at military treatment facilities to better protect troops, employees and infrastructure.

Inspectors from the IG’s office visited eight military treatment facilities and identified several security measures already in place. They also found security weaknesses that “could allow unauthorized access” to the MTFs, including restricted or controlled areas, leaving some areas “vulnerable,” the report says.

Those who manage the Army’s installations must move quickly to close gaps in vulnerability, modernize management practices and facilities, and automate where possible, said a panel of experts at the Association of the U.S. Army’s Annual Meeting and Exposition.

Army systems using artificial intelligence will require battlefield security to prevent information from being altered or blocked, says the U.S. Army Research Laboratory director, who specializes in sensors and electronic devices.

Speaking at the Army Autonomy and Artificial Intelligence Symposium and Exposition in Detroit, Philip Perconti cautioned that data can be hacked, and signals and information in the field can be altered. If that happens, soldiers will lose trust in the systems and turn them off. 

Space in the USA Security and Defense Pavilion for IDEX 2019 is already 77 percent booked for an event in the United Arab Emirates that doesn’t take place until February.

The U.S. pavilion at the International Defence Exhibition and Conference in Abu Dhabi is organized by the Association of the U.S. Army. The 2019 event will be held Feb. 17–21.

Held every two years, IDEX is the largest security and armaments exhibition in the Middle East and North Africa. It is the world’s second-largest security and defense show.