How Cyber Command contributed to Operation Epic Fury against Iran

Joint Chiefs of Staff Chairman Gen. Dan Caine said U.S. Cyber Command, alongside U.S. Space Command, was among the “first movers” to begin “layering non-kinetic effects” in support of Operation Epic Fury launched against Iran over the weekend. 

“Coordinated space and cyber operations effectively disrupted communications and sensor networks across the area of responsibility, leaving the adversary without the ability to see, coordinate or respond effectively,” he said in a Monday press briefing at the Pentagon.

The remarks add another chapter to storied public acknowledgment of Cyber Command’s involvement in the high-profile military operations during the second Trump administration.

President Donald Trump has also suggested U.S. cyber warriors played a role in efforts to cut power to Venezuela’s capital and interfere with air defense radar during an operation aimed at capturing President Nicolás Maduro. Some details of those efforts were previously reported by Nextgov/FCW and Defense One.

The operation launched Saturday has so far resulted in the deaths of Iranian Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei and several other senior regime officials.

Caine’s acknowledgment signals a continued willingness by U.S. military leaders to publicly describe cyber capabilities as an embedded element of large-scale combat operations, rather than as a separate, covert matter.

Tehran-linked hackers are stepping up digital reconnaissance and preparing for potentially disruptive cyber activity following recent U.S. and Israeli strikes on Iran, cyber intelligence firms warned Monday. The war is expected to test U.S. cyber defenses, which have been significantly impacted in the last year amid broad workforce cuts across the federal government.

U.S. officials said Monday the Iran operation was in its initial phases, with additional forces expected to be deployed to the Middle East amid escalating attacks that risk inflating into a full-scale regional conflict.