Britain waives fitness test for cybersoldiers

Britain waives fitness test for cybersoldiers

Britain waives fitness test for cybersoldiers

LONDON (AP) — Flabby keyboard jockeys, stringy coders, and out-of-shape hackers: The British military wants you.

British Defense Minister Philip Hammond told lawmakers Wednesday that military physical aptitude tests won’t apply to computer experts working as reservists.

He says the military will “specifically be recruiting cyberreservists, who will not necessarily have to have the same levels of fitness or deployability as reservists in general.”

Britain, like other countries, is boosting its electronic capabilities as attention increasingly turns to the twin threats of cyberespionage and cybersabotage.

The U.K. is already active in the world of hacking.

Documents recently leaked by U.S. intelligence worker Edward Snowden have revealed details of alleged aggressive British cyberattacks against other countries’ diplomats at international conferences.