DoD 8570 and DoD 8140 Training

Get Training for DoD 8570 and DoD 8140 directives for Information Assurance Certification

The U.S. Department of Defense (DoD) requires recruits wanting to work in cybersecurity roles to meet a strict set of criteria before being taken on. Known as Information Assurance roles, the requirements vary depending on the position being offered. The requirements for I.A. roles were initially defined by DoD directive DoD 8570 but is being transitioned to the newer directive DoD 8140.

The DoD also requires contractors to adhere to these two directives. So in our region of Maryland, Virginia, and Washington DC, where there is a high concentration of military contractors, gaining DoD 8570 and DoD 8140 related skills makes you far more marketable when it comes to jobs and promotions.

What Is DoD 8570?

By the early 2000s, the U.S. DoD had determined that it needed a way to codify its information assurance roles and the skills needed to fulfill them to manage its cybersecurity workforce efficiently. In 2005 it issued directive DoD 8570, which laid out the principles for establishing such a framework.

This was followed by the publication of DoD 8570.01-m. This manual details the specific I.T. certifications that an Information Assurance employee would need to validate the knowledge and skills for a given cybersecurity role.

Within DoD 8570.01-m, job roles are divided into the following categories:

• Information Assurance Technical (IAT) levels I, II, and III.
• Information Assurance Management (IAM) levels I, II, and III.
• Information Assurance Security Architecture and Engineering (IASAE) levels I, II, and III.
• Cyber Security Service Provider (CSSP) levels of Analyst, Infrastructure Support, Incident Responder, Auditor, and Manager

What Is DoD 8140?

With the cybersecurity field growing rapidly in scope and complexity in 2015, the DoD introduced the DoD 8140 directive. This new directive expands DoD 8570 and allows more flexibility to recruit experienced technicians who have specific cyber skills but lack the standard certifications.

DoD 8140 is based on the Defense Cybersecurity Workforce Framework, which is derived from the National Initiative for Cybersecurity Education Cybersecurity (NICE) Workforce Framework and the DoD Joint Cyberspace Training and Certification Standards (JCT&CS). The NICE standard was developed by the Washington DC based  National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST).

The new framework has a higher level of granularity than set out in DoD 8570, with seven tech categories, 33 specialty areas, and 54 work roles. The framework also focuses more on specific skills than I.T. certifications:

• Security Provision - Includes roles in I.T. architecture, engineering, operations incorporating information assurance compliance, software, security engineering, system development, research, etc.
• Operate/Maintain - Includes knowledge management, customer service, tech support, data administration, security analysis, and network service.
• Protect/Defend - Roles responsible for defense analysis, defense against cyberattacks, vulnerability assessment, and incident reporting.
• Analyze - Includes network analysis, threat analysis, resource intelligence, exploitation analysis.
• Operate/Collect - This is defined as applicable to cyber operations and planning, collection operations, planning, and implementation.
• Oversight and Development - This category covers legal aspects of operating in a digital environment, focusing on planning, education, and awareness-raising.
• Investigate - Roles and skills about forensics work and investigation of online security.

While we are still waiting for a manual for DoD 8401, certification authorities such as CompTIA and EC-Council continue to update their certifications to include skills from the NICE framework. Many employers continue to use DoD 8570.01-m as a reference guide, while some training schools offer shorter skills classes that map individual skills within the NICE framework.

TrainACE offers a range of classes that meet DoD 8570 and DoD 8140 requirements, which can be found below.