Defence Cyber Warfare Market Set to Nearly Double by 2031

Cybersecurity spending in the defence industry is forecast to rise sharply as military networks and mission systems face growing cyber threats. A MarketsandMarkets report published on 14 September 2026 projects that the cyber warfare market will grow from $14.99bn in 2026 to $28.75bn by 2031, nearly doubling over five years.

The report attributes the expected expansion to the increasing use of connected platforms, cloud systems and digital command-and-control networks, which create additional risks for defence organisations. It also points to greater investment in threat detection, cyber intelligence, network security, offensive cyber tools and training.

Western governments are placing more emphasis on offensive capabilities against threat actors operating beyond the reach of law enforcement; in August 2026, US President Donald Trump signed a memorandum authorising federal law enforcement agencies to work with private firms on offensive cyber strikes against foreign threat actors targeting the US.

MarketsandMarkets forecasts that Europe will hold the largest share of the market during the period, supported by governments’ efforts to strengthen military cyber capabilities and NATO’s development of shared capabilities and joint exercises. Cloud-based security is expected to be the fastest-growing segment, driven by military use of cloud platforms for data, applications and cyber operations, as well as the shift towards hybrid and multi-cloud environments.