Ministry of Defence

Main Building
Whitehall
London SW1A 2HB
United Kingdom
Ref: FOI2016/07279

Telephone [MOD]: 0207 2189000

E-mail:

CyberandSpacePolGroupMailbox@mod.uk

Mr Jonathan Bishop
E-mail address: jonathanbishop@
jonathanbishop.com

12/08/2016

Dear Mr Bishop
Thank you for your email of 21/07/2016 requesting the
following information:
What does the Joint Cyber Reserve Unit do?
What do those recruited as part of it do?
I am treating your correspondence as a request for information under the Freedom of Information
Act 2000 (FOIA).
A search for the information has now been completed within the Ministry of Defence, and I can
confirm that the information in scope of your request is held.
The information you have requested can be found below:
What does the Joint Cyber Reserve Unit do?
In 2011 the Future Reserves 2020 Paper recommended that as part of redefining Reservist roles,
Defence should seek to employ Reservists with specialist skills. Specifically, it noted that in order
to defend against the growth in the Cyber threat, Defence will need to engage additional civilian
experts. This may involve outreach to skills in IT firms and the establishment of a larger Reserve
structure around the Defence Cyber Operations Group. The Joint Cyber Unit (Reserve) was
therefore created with the aim of engaging additional capable personnel to help defend against
Cyber threats and explore the opportunities available through cyberspace. The Unit, which is part
of the Joint Forces Cyber Group, exists to deliver the Reserve component of Defences cyber
capability and, with other organisations, manages the selection, recruitment, administration, and
training of Reservists.
What do those recruited as part of it do?
Cyber Reservists will have the opportunity to undertake military training, gain security
accreditation, and develop their existing skills and experience. The military Reservist context
provides leadership and development opportunities as well as the opportunity to understand and
work with military systems and networks in support of the UK's national security. Reservists
provide support to the Joint Cyber Units which exist to defend MOD networks and systems and triservice Information Assurance units, which provide information security and assurance capability
to the Armed Forces. Cyber Reservists must commit to training for a minimum period each year of

between 19 to 27 days. They are liable to be mobilised for a period of full time service if there is a
requirement to support cyber operations for an extended period.
Further information is available on the recruitment website:
https://www.gov.uk/government/organisations/joint-forces-command/about/recruitment
If you are not satisfied with this response or you wish to complain about any aspect of the handling
of your request, then you should contact the Cyber and Space Policy Team in the first instance. If
informal resolution is not possible and you are still dissatisfied then you may apply for an
independent internal review by contacting the Information Rights Compliance team, 1st Floor, MOD
Main Building, Whitehall, SW1A 2HB (e-mail CIO-FOI-IR@mod.uk). Please note that any request
for an internal review must be made within 40 working days of the date on which the attempt to
reach informal resolution has come to an end.
If you remain dissatisfied following an internal review, you may take your complaint to the
Information Commissioner under the provisions of Section 50 of the Freedom of Information Act.
Please note that the Information Commissioner will not investigate your case until the MOD internal
review process has been completed. Further details of the role and powers of the Information
Commissioner can be found on the Commissioner's website, http://www.ico.org.uk.

Yours sincerely,
Cyber and Space Policy