Indo-Pacific Command leader reportedly considered for top NSA, Cybercom post

Army Lt. Gen. Joshua Rudd, who is the second-in-command at the U.S. Indo-Pacific Command, is reportedly being reviewed by President Donald Trump for the dual-hat role of leading the National Security Agency and the U.S. Cyber Command, according to The Record, a news site by cybersecurity firm Recorded Future.

Despite his lack of any cybersecurity or signals intelligence experience, Rudd has a leg up over other possible picks, including Cyber Command Network Defense Head Army Lt. Gen. Paul Stanton, due to support from INDOPACOM Chief Adm. Samuel Papparo and Director of National Intelligence Tulsi Gabbard, sources close to the matter revealed.

However, sources noted that Rudd could just as easily be thumbed down as Acting NSA and Cybercom Head William Hartman, who took the post following the sudden firing of Air Force Gen. Timothy Haugh. Meanwhile, Marine Corps Maj. Gen. Lorna Mahlock, who leads the Cyber National Mission Force, and Army Cyber Command senior leader Brig. Gen. Matthew Lennox were reportedly being considered to become the next Cybercom deputy chief and CNMF leader, respectively.