The U.S. Indo-Pacific Command is operating nodes on the bitcoin network and conducting cybersecurity operational tests using the bitcoin protocol, commander Samuel Paparo said at a Senate Armed Services Committee hearing. He said the work focuses on computer science rather than monetary policy and examines security applications of proof-of-work. Paparo said he could provide details in a classified setting. The remarks were described as the first time an active U.S. combatant commander publicly discussed bitcoin as a national security asset in a formal congressional proceeding.