Deputy Secretary of Defense characterized this as "the most significant breach of U.S. military computers ever," and it marked a turning point in the U.S. cyberdefense strategy, starting with Operation Buckshot Yankee.
Lynn estimated that more than 100 foreign intelligence organizations are trying to break into U.S. networks, which presents a sizeable challenge for the military's global communications backbone, which covers 15,000 networks and 7 million computing devices in dozens of countries.