Key Takeaways
- Cyber Discovery 2026 is a live‑fire exercise that lets the Idaho National Guard, state IT agencies, and civilian partners train together on real networks.
- Participation grew from 94 to 135 individuals and partner organizations expanded from 10 to 20, including counties, cities, and private‑sector firms.
- A red‑team simulates a foreign adversary’s coordinated cyber‑attack while a blue‑team defends actual systems, revealing genuine vulnerabilities.
- The exercise demonstrated the ability to surge cyber‑defense capacity nearly tenfold, accomplishing in days what would normally take six weeks of work.
- Operation Cyber Idaho uses Cyber Discovery as a proving ground for students, apprentices, and partners seeking to enter the cyber‑defense workforce at state, local, and tribal levels.
- Senior leaders, including the Idaho adjutant general and attorney general, observed the final briefing, underscoring the exercise’s practical value.
- As an Innovative Readiness Training (IRT) mission, Cyber Discovery strengthens military readiness while delivering tangible benefits to Idaho’s communities.
Overview of Cyber Discovery 2026
Cyber threats operate silently, probing networks for weaknesses before striking with speed. To prepare for such realities, the Idaho National Guard conducted Cyber Discovery 2026 in early June, a hands‑on training event that placed soldiers alongside fellow Guardsmen, civilian partners, and the State of Idaho Office of Information Technology Services (OITS). The exercise was designed around the understanding that, should a cybersecurity incident ever activate the Guard, OITS and local partners would respond jointly; therefore, they train together year‑round to sharpen skills, map environments, and build interoperability.
Purpose and Structure of the Exercise
The core objective of Cyber Discovery is to create tangible operational readiness for Idaho’s cyber defense posture. Unlike tabletop simulations, the event unfolds on live networks where actions have real consequences. A designated red team assumes the role of a foreign adversary launching a coordinated cyber‑attack, while a blue team works to detect the intrusion and mount an effective response. This adversarial dynamic forces participants to think like attackers, anticipate moves, and apply defensive tactics under pressure—exactly the conditions they would face during an actual incident.
Growth in Participation and Partner Involvement
Over the past year, Cyber Discovery saw significant expansion. Partner organizations increased from 10 to 20, and total participation rose from 94 to 135 individuals. The growth reflected broader involvement from counties, cities, and private‑sector entities, illustrating a statewide commitment to cyber resilience. Additionally, organizers added a physical‑security component and successfully tested remote participation options, allowing personnel from across Idaho to engage without needing to be physically present at the Chinden Campus. These enhancements made the exercise more inclusive and representative of the diverse stakeholders that would collaborate during a real‑world cyber event.
Red‑Team/Blue‑Team Dynamics in Action
During the exercise, the red team employed sophisticated tactics, techniques, and procedures (TTPs) to probe for weaknesses, mimicking the stealth and persistence of nation‑state actors. The blue team, composed of Guard soldiers, OITS analysts, and civilian IT professionals, monitored network traffic, analyzed logs, and executed containment and eradication steps in real time. Because the engagement occurred on actual government systems, every alert and mitigation effort had immediate impact, providing participants with authentic feedback on the effectiveness of their detection capabilities, incident‑response playbooks, and coordination protocols.
Demonstrated Capacity to Surge Defenses
One of the most striking outcomes highlighted by Jerred Edgar, OITS chief information security & operations officer, was the ability to rapidly surge cyber‑defense resources. “We demonstrated that Idaho can rapidly surge its cyber defense capacity, effectively increasing our team by nearly tenfold during the exercise and completing the equivalent of six weeks of work in just a few days,” Edgar noted. This surge capacity is critical for statewide cyber incidents, where the speed of response can determine whether an attack is contained before it disrupts essential services such as power, water, or emergency communications.
Operation Cyber Idaho as a Talent Pipeline
Cyber Discovery also serves as a validation platform for Operation Cyber Idaho, a statewide initiative aimed at growing homegrown cyber talent. Students, apprentices, and partners enrolled in the program use the exercise as a proving ground to showcase real‑world capability in a live environment. By participating, they gain hands‑on experience with the same tools and processes used by professional defenders, thereby bridging the gap between academic training and operational demand. The program is intentionally structured to develop the next generation of cyber defenders across every level of government—state, county, city, and tribal—ensuring a deep, resilient talent pool ready to support Idaho’s cybersecurity needs.
Final Day Briefing and Distinguished Visitors
The culmination of Cyber Discovery 2026 occurred on its final day, when distinguished final briefing held at the Chinden Campus. Attendees included Maj. Gen. Timothy J. Donnellan, adjutant general of Idaho and commanding general of the Idaho National Guard, and Idaho Attorney General Raul Labrador. Leaders received a comprehensive debrief of the penetration‑testing findings, which were not theoretical exercises but actual vulnerabilities uncovered in systems that Idaho’s government institutions rely on daily. The presence of senior military and legal officials underscored the exercise’s strategic importance and reinforced the message that cyber readiness is a top priority for state leadership.
Cyber Discovery as an Innovative Readiness Training Mission
Classified as an Innovative Readiness Training (IRT) mission, Cyber Discovery exemplifies how military training can simultaneously enhance warfighter readiness and benefit local communities. IRT missions leverage the unique skills and discipline of service members to address civilian challenges—in this case, bolstering the state’s cyber defenses while providing soldiers with realistic, high‑stakes practice. Edgar emphasized that the ongoing collaboration between the Idaho National Guard and OITS remains central to that readiness, noting that the Guard’s operational expertise and mission‑focused mindset strengthen the state’s overall response capabilities and ensure preparedness for emerging cyber threats.
Through live‑fire drills, expanded partnerships, talent development pipelines, and senior‑level oversight, Cyber Discovery 2026 has solidified Idaho’s ability to detect, respond to, and recover from cyber incidents—turning a silent threat into a well‑rehearsed, coordinated defense.