Hagel warns troops of the severity of cyber threats

Defense Secretary Chuck Hagel told troops stationed in Hawaii that cyber warfare poses one of the biggest threats to security and that the United States needs to collaborate with other nations to address it in a global context.

"One country's just not big enough, strong enough, good enough, wealthy enough to handle it all," Hagel said, speaking on May 30. "We can't do it, especially cyber."

Hagel noted that cyber warfare capabilities are one of only a few expenditures that President Barack Obama's budget proposal increases. And according to Defense News, the chairman of the Joint Chiefs is expected to approve a measure that would allow commanders to respond to cyber-attacks without president approval.

"We're doing more than just increasing the budget," Hagel said. "That means more people, more sophisticated approaches, and more interconnects within our inter-government agencies."