Bug catchers: DOD hearts hackers.

• Author: Mangu-Ward, Katherine
• Position: Citings - Program to test the cybersecurity of websites - Brief article

In March, the Department of Defense issued an official invitation to "hack the Pentagon." In a bid to improve security that mimics longstanding practice in private industry, the military invited hackers to find vulner-abilities in the 488 websites it currently runs.

The program is the brainchild of the Defense Digital Service, an office that's supposed to bring youth, engineering expertise, and tech savvy to the feds' kludgy bureaucracy. "I am always challenging our people to think outside the five-sided box that is the Pentagon," said Secretary of Defense Ash Carter in a press release. "Inviting responsible hackers to test our cybersecurity certainly meets that test."

But political concerns have altered the program in ways that are likely to decrease its effectiveness. Only "verified hackers" will be allowed to participate, and they'll have to pass a background check and register with the government-something the best and brightest in...