May 7, 2026

Eric Oliver says the Pentagon Cyber Crime Center, known as DC3, is in the middle of a major transformation as it works to modernize operations and stay ahead of rapidly evolving cyber threats. During an interview on Fed Gov Today, Oliver explains that the organization is moving away from aging infrastructure and manual processes toward a more sustainable, automated and secure environment.

Oliver says DC3 grew up with an entrepreneurial culture over nearly three decades, but now faces the same modernization pressures many organizations experience as they mature. Some of the organization’s facilities and technology systems have been in place since DC3 was created. He points to aging HVAC systems and on-premises infrastructure as examples of why modernization is necessary.

At the same time, Oliver says DC3 is shifting away from processes that rely heavily on individual expertise and “tribal knowledge.” Instead, the organization is embracing automation, infrastructure as code and modern IT practices designed to improve consistency and resiliency.

Because DC3 operates at the intersection of cybersecurity, counterintelligence and law enforcement, Oliver says modernization requires careful attention to policy and compliance requirements. He notes that the organization must comply not only with Department of Defense standards, but also with FBI Criminal Justice Information Services requirements. That means vendors supporting DC3 need expertise that goes beyond traditional defense contracting and includes law enforcement and intelligence community knowledge.

One of the biggest initiatives underway is DC3’s migration into the Department of the Air Force’s intelligence cloud environment. Oliver says moving systems off-premises and into the cloud helps position the organization for long-term sustainability while maintaining strict protections for sensitive information.

Data management plays a central role in the transformation effort. Oliver explains that DC3 recently completed an extensive inventory of its data holdings to better understand the legal authorities governing how information can be used and shared. Some information collected through mandatory incident reporting programs can be broadly shared across government agencies, while other types of data carry more restrictive handling rules.

That complexity drives the organization’s focus on identity management, segmentation and fine-grained access controls. Oliver says DC3 must understand not only the data itself, but also who should have access to it and under what circumstances.

The conversation also turns to the growing role of artificial intelligence in cybersecurity. Oliver says emerging AI tools capable of identifying vulnerabilities could dramatically accelerate both offensive and defensive cyber operations. He says DC3 is already exploring how to apply AI capabilities against its own code base to proactively identify weaknesses before adversaries do.

Looking ahead, Oliver believes autonomous and agentic AI systems will eventually create entirely new investigative challenges. He says future cyber investigations may involve determining responsibility when AI systems make decisions that lead to harmful consequences.

Despite the challenges, Oliver says DC3’s unique mission also provides advantages. Because the organization works closely with partners across government and industry, it gains visibility into emerging threats that can strengthen both external collaboration and internal defense. He emphasizes that maintaining strong cybersecurity is essential because DC3 itself is a high-value target for foreign intelligence services.