Cyber & Specialist Operations Command – Established to tackle the threats of today and tomorrow
Source: gov.uk (2025-08-31)

The Ministry of Defence has reshaped the Cyber & Specialist Operations Command (CSOC) to enhance the UK’s ability to help keep the United Kingdom secure at home and strong abroad.

In an era where the first blows of conflict are often struck in cyberspace, the Ministry of Defence has today reshaped the Cyber & Specialist Operations Command (CSOC), following the announcement on 1 July, (https://www.gov.uk/government/news/launch-of-new-body-to-harness-innovative-tech-for-the-uks-armed-forces) to help keep the United Kingdom secure at home and strong abroad.

Building on the foundations of Strategic Command, CSOC unites Defence’s cyber and specialist capabilities under a single command, ensuring the Armed Forces are ready to respond across all domains: land, sea, air, space, and cyberspace.

This change reflects the ambition of the 2025 Strategic Defence Review, which sets out a bold vision to make Britain safer, secure at home, and strong abroad. CSOC is at the heart of this vision, driving a landmark shift in deterrence and supporting the move of the Armed Forces towards warfighting readiness.

CSOC stands as the fourth Military Command alongside the Royal Navy, British Army and Royal Air Force - playing a core role in shaping and delivering Defence’s Integrated Force.

CSOC’s mission is to generate and operate specialist capabilities, ready to fight across all domains, to make the United Kingdom secure at home and abroad.

CSOC provides vital and game-changing capabilities for Defence, in support of HMG’s National Security Objectives. This includes commanding and conducting integrated operations 24/7 – for all of Defence and the UK Armed Forces - to protect the UK and support NATO, ensuring warfighting readiness - whilst keeping our forces healthy, fit to fight and ready to respond globally.

Cyberspace and the electromagnetic spectrum connect every aspect of modern life, but this connectivity also creates significant vulnerabilities. The frontline of conflict now extends beyond traditional battlefields to the digital networks underpinning businesses, national infrastructure, and daily life. Recent conflicts have shown that disinformation campaigns and persistent cyberattacks are defining features of modern warfare. CSOC stands at the forefront of this fight. Every day, its cyber specialists defend the UK’s critical networks, military assets, supply chains, and people.

CSOC brings together over 26,000 specialists across 130 global sites, uniting expertise across cyber operations, medical support, intelligence, special forces, education, and our Defence attachés overseas.

General Sir James Hockenhull, Commander CSOC, said:

Across all we do—whether delivering specialist operations, combatting daily cyber threats, arming Defence with intelligence, uniting the Integrated Global Defence Network, or preparing the next generation of Defence leaders—CSOC is always on, acting with insight, speed, and impact.

We are across every UK operation, delivering specialist capabilities and always ready to respond, anywhere and anytime.

This reshaping ensures we are equipped to out-think, out-pace, and out-fight our adversaries, keeping the UK safe at home and strong abroad.

The conflict in Ukraine has underscored the needs to move to warfighting readiness, achieved through closer collaboration across Defence, wider Government, industry, and our international allies and partners. CSOC embeds frontline lessons, harnessing AI, data, drones and digital warfare to enhance the UK’s operational advantage.

CSOC’s close collaboration with UK industry is central to this effort. By uniting operational insight with technical ingenuity, CSOC is driving innovation in areas such as cybersecurity and digital warfare. These partnerships not only strengthen national security but also create high-skilled jobs and support the growth of UK businesses at the forefront of defence technology.

As one of four UK military commands, CSOC operates at the forefront of modern warfare. Whether delivering precision targeting, constantly combatting cyber and electromagnetic threats, or uniting Defence’s Integrated Global Defence Network, CSOC ensures the UK is prepared to meet the challenges of modern warfare and protect our society, now and in the future.