Sponsored by Spectra Group
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25 May 23. US Army receives mixed signals from industry on ‘radio as a service.’
U.S. Army officials are considering what’s next for an initiative known as radio as a service, after receiving feedback from industry that swung from enthusiasm to skepticism.
The Army published a request for information regarding the as-a-service tack, a potential pivot away from the traditional means of buying and maintaining radios, and received 15 responses by March.
Input ranged from “folks wanting to be the the manager of the process, all the way to folks providing us everything that a lower tactical network needs,” Col. Shermoan Daiyaan, the project manager for tactical radios at the Program Executive Office for Command, Control and Communications-Tactical, or PEO C3T, said May 24 at an industry conference in Philadelphia.
At the same time, other vendors came “back and said, ‘Nope, we’re not going to play,’” Daiyaan said. “That was a response, and that’s data. We’ll appreciate that and take that to heart.”
The Army has hundreds of thousands of radios — too many to quickly and cost-effectively modernize given security deadlines and constant competition with China and Russia, which have sophisticated signals intelligence that can cue onto communications. Service leaders have said the as-a-service method, while experimental, could drive down costs and boost adaptability.
As initially teased in December by Army Under Secretary Gabe Camarillo, radio as a service would be more akin to a subscription offered by some makers of consumer products. It could mirror other deals in which companies furnish goods and services on a rolling basis, keep them up to date and handle quality control.
“We left that RFI very open, very generic. We approached it from: We don’t want to shape your response,” Daiyaan said. “It’s such a novel idea that we didn’t want to take things off the table.”
The colonel expects to speak with senior leaders about the effort in the coming weeks. PEO C3T is tasked with overhauling the Army’s battlefield connectivity tools.
“What we’re trying to figure out is if there’s something in there to explore,” Daiyaan said. “I believe there’s something there to explore.”
(Source: Defense News)
25 May 23. World first as UK hosts inaugural AUKUS AI and autonomy trial.
The first AUKUS artificial intelligence (AI) and autonomy trial was held, with the aim of rapidly driving these technologies into responsible military use.
- Experimental work by Australia, UK and US on detecting and tracking military targets
- Vehicles retrained in flight to adapt to changing mission situations
- Shared focus on adhering to safe and responsible artificial intelligence activity
The work saw the initial joint deployment of Australian, UK and US AI-enabled assets in a collaborative swarm to detect and track military targets in a representative environment in real time. Accelerating the development of these technologies will have a massive impact on coalition military capability.
The trial, organised by the UK’s Defence Science and Technology Laboratory (Dstl), achieved world firsts, including the live retraining of models in flight and the interchange of AI models between AUKUS nations. The AUKUS collaboration is looking to rapidly drive these technologies into military capabilities.
The AUKUS Advanced Capabilities Pillar, known as Pillar 2, is pursuing a trilateral programme of work on a range of leading-edge technologies and capabilities to promote security and stability in the Indo-Pacific region. Through Pillar 2, Australia, the UK, and the US have collaborated to accelerate collective understanding of AI and autonomy technologies, and how to rapidly field robust, trustworthy AI and autonomy in complex operations, while adhering to the shared values of safe and responsible AI.
Autonomy and AI will transform the way Defence operates. The strategic environment is rapidly evolving, meaning we must adapt our technologies at pace if we are to maintain our operational advantage. By sharing AI – and the underpinning data to enable it – with one another, Australia, UK, and US militaries can access the best AI, reduce duplication of effort, and ensure interoperability.
The event was attended by senior AUKUS Advanced Capabilities pillar leaders – General Rob Magowan (UK), Deputy Chief of the Defence Staff (Financial and Military Capability), Abraham (Abe) Denmark (US), Senior Advisor to the Secretary of Defense for AUKUS, and Hugh Jeffrey (AUS), Deputy Secretary Strategy, Policy, and Industry.
UK Deputy Chief of Defence Staff, Military Capability, Lieutenant General Rob Magowan said: “This trial demonstrates the military advantage of AUKUS advanced capabilities, as we work in coalition to identify, track and counter potential adversaries from a greater distance and with greater speed. Service personnel, scientists and engineers from our three nations combined to develop and share critical information to enhance commanders’ decision making.
Accelerating technological advances will deliver the operational advantages necessary to defeat current and future threats across the battlespace. We are committed to collaborating with partners to ensure that we achieve this while also promoting the responsible development and deployment of AI.”
US Senior Advisor to the Secretary of Defense for AUKUS, Abe Denmark said: “We recognize the immense importance of this collaboration in strengthening our collective national security of our nations. The development and deployment of advanced artificial intelligence technologies have the potential to transform the way we approach defense and security challenges.
This capability demonstration is truly a shared effort and is thus a critical step in our collective initiative to stay ahead of emerging threats. By pooling our expertise and resources through our AUKUS partnerships, we can ensure that our militaries are equipped with the latest and most effective tools to defend our nations and uphold the principles of freedom and democracy around the world.”
Australian Deputy Secretary, Strategy, Policy and Industry, Hugh Jeffrey said: “The AUKUS AI and Autonomy trial in Salisbury Plains demonstrated AI algorithms working in a mission-tailored adaptive capability. The AUKUS research and operator teams collaborated to develop, test and evaluate joint machine-learning models, and operate our different national platforms on the battlefield. I was impressed to see AI models rapidly updated at the tactical edge to incorporate new targets, which were immediately shared among the three partners to deliver decision advantage and meet changing mission requirements. This cooperation under AUKUS Pillar II will deliver a capability greater than any one country could achieve alone, and this really is the rationale for the AUKUS partnership at work.”
More than 70 military and civilian defence personnel and industry contractors were involved in the exercise in April 2023. The trial utilised a variety of air and ground vehicles to test target identification capability, including: Blue Bear Ghost (UK) and Boeing/Insitu CT220 (AUS) uncrewed aerial vehicles (UAVs), Challenger 2 tank, Warrior armoured vehicle and Viking uncrewed ground vehicle (UGV), along with a commercially hired FV433 Abbot self-propelled gun and former Eastern Bloc BMP OT-90.
The trilateral teams collaborated to develop joint machine-learning (ML) models, apply test and evaluation processes, and fly on different national UAVs. The ML models were quickly updated to include new targets and shared among the coalition and AI models retrained to meet changing mission requirements.
Background
Organisations participating in the trial were:
- UK Defence Science and Technology Laboratory (Dstl)
- UK Defence Artificial Intelligence Centre (DAIC)
- US Air Force Research Laboratory (AFRL)
- US Army Combat Capabilities Development Command (DEVCOM) Ground Vehicle Systems Center (GVSC)
- US Office of The Under Secretary of Defense for Research and Engineering (OUSD R&E)
- Australia Defence Science and Technology Group (DSTG)
- UK suppliers: Blue Bear and Frazer-Nash Consultancy
- Australia suppliers: Boeing and Insitu
(Source: https://www.gov.uk/)
25 May 23. Korea Research Institute Drone Communications ISO Standards Prevent Risk of Collision. The lack of a single communication standard among drone makers has made it difficult for information to be shared between drones, but a Korean research team has found a solution. The Korea Electronics and Telecommunications Research Institute (ETRI) announced that four contributions related to the ‘Unmanned Aircraft Area Network’ were established as international standards at the International Organization for Standardization (ISO*) meeting in Vienna, Austria.
The technology towed by the research team as an international standard is a drone distributed communication standard technology that prevents the risk of collision between drones when flying drones(unmanned aerial vehicles) and supports the simultaneous operation of hundreds of drones.
The international standards established this time are standards for unmanned aerial vehicle communication networks(UAAN), and covers four detailed technologies:
▲unmanned aerial vehicle communication model and requirements
▲shared communication
▲control communication
▲video communication.
As ETRI researchers’ drone distributed communication technology has been confirmed as an international standard, the market outlook is also bright as the technologies to be developed in the future will lead to international standard patents in quantity.
The core technology of this international drone communication standards is Evolved Wireless Ad-hoc Network(EVAN*) technology. EVAN technology, as a hyper-connected original technology that will lead the future society, was applied to the development of the international standards for this ‘unmanned aerial vehicle communication network’ and was recognized by standard experts around the world.
* Evolved wireless ad-hoc network: Unlike LTE, which requires a base station, a modern communication network that uses an auxiliary channel that serves as a base station instead of having a base station
With the application of EVAN technology in the drone field, it became possible to share information between drones, prevent collisions between large-scale drones, and prevent collisions with ground movement obstacles based on it. The recognition service communication distance of this standard is about 5 km, which allows drones as well as drones and helicopters to be mutually recognized, thereby securing flight safety of manned and unmanned aircraft at the same time.
For example, it was difficult for drones from different manufacturers to fly to spray pesticides on large farmland simultaneously, or for several drones to fly over the fire area simultaneously in the event of a large fire, but the technology solved these problems.
In particular, the research team explained that compared to the heavy and expensive drone recognition radar, the communication modem of the ‘UAAN’ standard can be manufactured inexpensively and lightly in the tens of thousands of won, making it very suitable for drone recognition service.
In addition, ETRI explained that this standard technology enables interconnection of drones as well as related devices. In other words, drone-related services such as drone control and drone image transmission, mutual recognition between drones, autonomous collision avoidance, illegal drone detection, mobile obstacle recognition, and communication with takeoff and landing sites can be provided as an integrated communication platform.
Through this, Korea will be the only country in the world capable of autonomous collision avoidance between drones by utilizing the international standard for ‘Unmanned Aircarft Area Network’ and the ‘Low Altitude Unmanned Aircraft Detection and Avoidance Application Layer Technology’ standard of the Korea Telecommunications Technology Association(TTA).
Also, if the communication modem of this standard is installed on a moving obstacle that is not displayed on the map, it is of great help in autonomous drone flight. In addition, it supports services such as direct communication with Vertiport, a drone taxi take-off and landing site, and provision of flight priority(dynamic geofencing) when maintaining bridges or surveying buildings, and if applied to defense drones, it can overcome North Korea’s radio interference.
ETRI researchers explained that in this standard, since the drone transmits a password(trust field*) that changes with each signal transmission, it is possible to automatically determine whether the drone is a legitimate drone or an illegal drone from the ground.
* Trust field: Password that changes every 2ms slot. Similar to banking OTP technology. Valid only in the slot that receives the packet.
Furthermore, it was disclosed that ETRI’s ‘Unmanned Aircarft Area Network’ standard can be utilized for PAV(Personal Air Vehicle) communication, such as drone taxis. Disconnection of the mobile communication network is fairly common in the air, unlike on the ground, and this standard is particularly ideal as a communication standard to supplement this. Internationally, communication redundancy is an essential requirement for Urban Air Mobility(UAM*).
* Urban Air Mobility(UAM): A futuristic metropolitan public transit system that makes use of the sky as a passageway.
Lim Chae-deok, head of the Air Mobility Research Division at ETRI, said, “The establishment of this international standard will secure drone operation stability, which is essential for servicing commercial drones, while with EVAN technology, its core, it is easier to configure an adaptive communication network compared to mobile communication such as LTE and 5G and Wi-Fi and has high transmission efficiency, so it will be of great help in leading fast and convenient future air mobility services in the future.”
According to ETRI researchers, EVAN technology will be expanded to a single communication platform that will provide a variety of services such as home/home appliances/vehicle control, indoor navigation, smartphone kiosk connection, children’s safety on the way to and from school, cannon vehicle arrest, and search for missing persons.
This international standardization work was carried out as a part of the Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy’s standard technology improvement project with the participation of the Korea Drone Industry Promotion Association, led by ETRI, which is the host organization. In March 2020, Hyeon-gu Hwang, senior researcher at ETRI, and Kang Shin-gak, head of the Standards Research Division, took over as editors(Chairmen), and standardization work began, with results coming four years later.
About Electronics and Telecommunications Research Institute (ETRI)
ETRI is a non-profit government-funded research institute. Since its foundation in 1976, ETRI, a global ICT research institute, has been making its immense effort to provide Korea a remarkable growth in the field of ICT industry. ETRI delivers Korea as one of the top ICT nations in the World, by unceasingly developing world’s first and best technologies.
This technology was developed with the assistance of the Ministry of Science and ICT. (Source: UAS VISION/NewsWise)
25 May 23. Israel: Iranian destructive cyber attacks will sustain elevated security risks to Israeli businesses. Iranian state-sponsored threat actor ‘Agrius’ is exploiting a new ransomware strain, ‘Moneybird’, to conduct destructive attacks against Israeli businesses. This group is known to stage destructive data-wiping campaigns against Israeli entities under the guise of a ransomware attack, likely in an attempt to avoid attribution and detection. Despite the group’s renewed efforts to enhance its capabilities, develop new tools and circumvent attribution and detection, Agrius tends to adhere to its usual and known tactics, techniques, and procedures (TTPs). This improves organisations’ ability to track it and detect its infections. Agrius is attributed to Iran’s Ministry of Intelligence and Security (MOIS), which also operates the ‘MuddyWater’ group known to heavily target Israel, highlighting Tehran’s sustained campaign to compete against major regional players. Simultaneously, another Iranian threat actor, ‘Tortoiseshell’, targeted Israeli websites belonging to shipping, logistics and financial services companies in watering hole attacks to steal data. As tensions in the region between Israel and Iran continue, security and operational risks Israel-based businesses will persist throughout the medium to long term. (Source: Sibylline)
25 May 23. ELT and Lendlease announce the establishment of E4life. Italy’s first company operating in the Biodefense sector.
- The company’s mission is to strengthen the technological development of E4Shield, expand its efficacy toward new viruses and additional pathogens, and take care of the commercialization of the product range internationally.
- E4shield is a revolutionary technology, completely made in Italy, designed and produced by ELT. It is capable of inactivating in air viruses for which it is programmed. The newco will be focused on advancing the evolutionary roadmap of the technology also thanks to an initial capitalization of 3.5 M€.
- The CEO of the company will be Vincenzo Pompa and the Chairman Alberto Sangiovanni-Vincentelli.
ELT, a leading global electronic defence group, and Lendlease, a globally integrated real estate and investments group, established today “E4life,” the first Italian company active in the Biodefense sector.
The initial asset of the company, 51% owned by ELT and 49% by Lendlease, is 3.5M€, contributed by the two companies for the technological and business development of the E4Shield project.
The CEO of the company is Vincenzo Pompa and the chairman Alberto Sangiovanni-Vincentelli. Board members are Andrea Ruckstuhl, Simone Astiaso and Gianni Maratta. The company will have two offices, in Milan, within the MIND Milano Innovation District, and in Rome
The collaboration between the two companies began last year with a partnership based on a common drive for innovation and sustainability. Today, the establishment of the newco E4Life demonstrates the will to aim for broader developments in terms of evolution and improvement of the technology, expansion of the efficacy towards new respiratory viruses and additional pathogens, and growth in the international market.
E4Shield is a revolutionary technology, completely Made in Italy, designed and produced by ELT, which is able to inactivate in the air the respiratory viruses for which it is programmed thanks to the action of electromagnetic waves at a frequency effective on pathogens but harmless to humans.
24 May 23. US Army revamps program executive offices to sharpen cyber focus. U.S. Army cyber and technology programs are changing hands amid a shake-up of the service’s acquisitions offices.
The Program Executive Office for Intelligence, Electronic Warfare and Sensors, or PEO IEW&S, headed by Mark Kitz, will by Oct. 1 absorb defensive cyber operations, cyber analytics and detection, cyber platforms and systems, and the technology applications office. Those efforts are now associated with the Program Executive Office for Enterprise Information Systems, or PEO EIS, run by Ross Guckert.
The move coincides with the start of the government’s fiscal 2024, as well as a separate consolidation of network portfolios involving the Program Executive Office for Command, Control and Communications-Tactical, or PEO C3T, overseen by Maj. Gen. Anthony Potts.
The portfolio changes across all three PEOs were discussed May 24 at a conference with industry known as Technical Exchange Meeting X, in Philadelphia. No jobs are expected to be cut, and contracts should flow as normal.
“Synergy, our optimization of the organization here, is really important for us as a cyber enterprise,” Kitz said.
Using the Pentagon’s acquisition budget management tool, PEOs engage with external stakeholders to track the full lifecycle of budget data for procurement. Offices were established by the Defense Department in the 1980s as a means to control costs and improve delivery performance, and oversight of specific initiatives are reassigned from time to time as missions and priorities change.
PEO IEW&S is already home to several Army cyber efforts. In August, the office unveiled a cell dedicated to offensive cyber and space capabilities called Program Manager Cyber and Space.
The Army is always looking at how it can get upgraded hardware and software into soldier hands. That, among other factors, is motivating the office reorganization, or optimization, according to Young Bang, the principal deputy assistant secretary of the Army, or ASA, for acquisition, logistics and technology, or ALT.
“As the Army is modernizing, and we’re transforming, we looked at the structure and said, ‘Hey, are things really linked together to be more efficient, to support things like the unified network?’” Bang said at the conference. “We had a lot of discussions across the ASA(ALT) community and the PEOs. We talked about those types of things.” Additional shuffles may be on the horizon, he said. (Source: C4ISR & Networks)
24 May 23. Indra-led European cybersecurity platform makes progress.
Indra positions itself as a global leader of cyber defence as it brings an interoperable situational awareness platform that monitors cyberattacks. Indra unveiled the progress of the most significant cyber defence project in Europe during the International Defence and Security Fair (FEINDEF), held in Madrid between 17 to 19 of May.
Bottom of Form
The Madrid-based company leads the European Cyber Situational Awareness Platform (ECSAP). The company showcased its progress at a FEINDEF workshop. Experts and representatives from entities such as Nato and the European Defence Agency attended.
Indra sought to identify opportunities for future co-operation in the nascent domain of cybersecurity. The company aims to position itself as a global leader in the domain.
ECSAP involves the design of a federated mission networking (FMN) service that can identify and assess risks of cyberattacks. It would also estimate the spread of attacks and the potential impact on the mission. The aim of this is to set up a real-time military cyber situational awareness platform.
The event was attended by Nato’s Allied Command Transformation and the co-ordinators of European innovation projects such as the CIDCC (Cyber and Information Domain Co-ordination Centre), Pandora, Cyber4de, ESC2 and EU-Guardian. The latter two projects – related to command and control and the application of artificial intelligence – are also led by Indra.
Experts shared their work to detect potential areas of collaboration.
What does ECSAP do?
ECSAP addresses the development of a national and European platform for the real-time acquisition of cyber situational awareness for military operations.
The project implements visualisation and detection capabilities to respond to cyber threats and provide support for decision-making during missions. Indra expects to have an initial version of the ECSAP operational by the end of the year.
This involves the design of an FMN service to allow interoperability between different military entities. The project provides a common framework for communication and data management.
Cybersecurity drivers
GlobalData published a report on Cybersecurity (2023), where it outlines intelligence into the market industry.
The company tells us that state-sponsored cyberattacks are likely to increase in 2023. The Russian invasion of Ukraine, a continuing trade war between the US and China are all catalysts for state-sponsored attacks.
Cyberattacks also permeate the fine line between the ostensibly distant political issues on the world stage to touch the lives of ordinary people. GlobalData informs us that attacks on critical national infrastructure and supply chains have increase this year.
These attacks effectively cause large-scale disruption and long-lasting financial impact. In fact, the problem led to the establishment of an EU-Nato task force to protect critical national infrastructure, which has convened in the past two months. (Source: army-technology.com)
24 May 23. Northrop Grumman Corporation (NYSE: NOC) recently completed a Preliminary Design Review (PDR) for the U.S. Space Force Space Systems Command’s Next Generation Overhead Persistent Infrared Polar (NGP) program. The company is on track to begin production of the early-warning missile system in defense of the nation.
The design review establishes the company’s technical approach for the full integration of the Eagle-3 spacecraft with the infrared sensor, auxiliary and high-bandwidth communication payloads being developed at our Northrop Grumman site in Azusa, Calif.
“Northrop Grumman is on an accelerated path to delivering an early-warning missile system capable of surviving attacks from space, ground or cyber elements,” said Alex Fax, vice president, NGP, Northrop Grumman. “NGP satellites will maintain a direct line of communication back to the continental United States, limiting dependency on overseas ground station sites.”
The two NGP satellites, operating in highly elliptical orbits, are designed to detect and track ballistic and hypersonic missiles over the Northern Hemisphere. Broad coverage over the polar region offers the highest probability of spotting potential missile launches.
NGP can identify the infrared heat signatures of incoming threats and transmit this mission data to the ground. Based on the threat, decision-makers can then make responsive and informed decisions. This enhanced communication system also has resiliency features that reduce vulnerabilities to counter-space and cyberattacks.
Northrop Grumman is a leading global aerospace and defense technology company. Our pioneering solutions equip our customers with the capabilities they need to connect and protect the world, and push the boundaries of human exploration across the universe. Driven by a shared purpose to solve our customers’ toughest problems, our 95,000 employees define possible every day.
24 May 23. Sectra and AFRY form partnership to strengthen cybersecurity in critical infrastructure. International cybersecurity and medical imaging IT company Sectra (STO: SECT B) and engineering consulting company AFRY have come together to offer a complete and flexible security solution for operational technology (OT) systems in critical infrastructure and other operations essential to society. The partnership creates a strong offering in a market characterized by growing demand for cybersecurity expertise as well as demand for solutions to manage the risks and vulnerabilities of these operational, production and monitoring systems.
“We have identified growth opportunities in the cybersecurity area, where we see a growing need for both advisory and monitoring services to address the intensifying cybersecurity risks within critical infrastructure. Sectra’s already well-developed and established offering of monitoring services will therefore be an excellent complement to our services. We are looking forward to working with Sectra and providing joint support for our customers in tackling the challenges of OT security, which requires continuous development and a broad understanding of the risks that can arise in these complex systems, and how adequate security is created,” says Gustav Sandberg, Head of Business Area Cyber Security at AFRY.
The partnership between Sectra and AFRY will bring both parties together to strengthen and broaden the offering of security-related services for OT. The offering includes continuous monitoring of production-critical systems, which means that risks and potentially harmful activity can be detected and addressed at an early stage. The partnership also makes it possible to receive support for the implementation of security measures to ensure compliance with the applicable industry standards and regulatory requirements. The combined capabilities are intended to meet the growing needs of today’s market, while regulatory requirements are expected to further drive demand.
“We saw the need for monitoring services for cybersecurity in critical infrastructure at an early stage and are convinced that this partnership will achieve additional synergies and lead to more growth. In AFRY, we have found a partner with strong expertise in OT security, and an established, broad customer base. We are convinced that our combined expertise in security assessments, monitoring and incident management will increase the security and availability of our customers’ production systems. This, in turn, will benefit society as a whole by increasing the resilience of critical operations such as electricity generation, energy distribution and water supply,” says Magnus Skogberg, President of Sectra Communications.
About AFRY
AFRY provides engineering, design, digital and advisory services to accelerate the transition towards a sustainable society. AFRY consists of 19,000 devoted experts in industry, energy and infrastructure sectors, creating impact for generations to come. AFRY has Nordic roots with a global reach, net sales of 24 BSEK and is listed on Nasdaq Stockholm.
About Sectra
Sectra contributes to a healthier and safer society by assisting authorities and defense forces in Europe to protect society’s most sensitive information, and health systems throughout the world to enhance the efficiency of care. The company, founded in 1978, is headquartered in Linköping, Sweden, with direct sales in 19 countries, and distribution partners worldwide. Sales in the 2021/2022 fiscal year totaled SEK1,949m. The Sectra share is quoted on the Nasdaq Stockholm exchange.
23 May 23. Lockheed Martin Demonstrates JADC2 Integrated Fires Capability at INDOPACOM Exercise Near Alaska. Lockheed Martin (NYSE: LMT) successfully demonstrated digital command and control (C2) to synchronize joint all-domain fires during the U.S. Indo-Pacific Command’s (INDOPACOM) Northern Edge exercise near Alaska. The results will help shape future joint all-domain command and control (JADC2) capabilities.
The Big Picture
- All-Domain, Decision Superiority: The Joint Fires Network (JFN) demonstration integrated Lockheed Martin’s 21st Century Security technologies with third-party platforms to provide a persistent and resilient common operational picture across the services and all domains. With JFN, geographically dispersed commanders are able to simultaneously share a common understanding of the battlespace, fed by sensors from any platform, which can provide targeting guidance to any weapons system.
- Synchronized Planning & Execution: The exercise demonstrated the ability to reliably perform C2 functions across all the services, all levels of operation and across multiple domains. This is the first time true joint force synchronization has been demonstrated at this scale, a milestone for JADC2 interoperability.
Strategic Perspectives
“We are responding to priority national defense demands for integrating JADC2 infrastructure with proven technology to provide service members with decision advantage during live exercises at operational speed and scale. This ultimately enables the joint force to acquire true JADC2 capability years sooner than they would through the traditional defense acquisition process.” – Amr Hussein, C4ISR vice president at Lockheed Martin
Dive Deeper
- Northern Edge is an INDOPACOM-led biennial exercise meant to improve interoperability, mature emerging technology and enhance combat readiness among the services. JFN is INDOPACOM’s vision to demonstrate near-term decision superiority capabilities to enhance joint fires planning and execution.
- Lockheed Martin’s 21st Century Security technologies make up core components of a JFN prototype solution. The system harnesses machine-to-machine integration to speed decision-making and increase targeting accuracy.
- The digital C2 system pairs proven DIAMONDShield™ multi-domain battle management, command and control (BMC2) software with the pedigree of the Virtualized Aegis Weapons System (VAWS) to task assets to perform rapid, simultaneous long range fires. During Northern Edge, the system successfully integrated with F-35s to deliver timely effects in multiple domains.
- Lockheed Martin facilitated a series of immersive operator training sessions on the C2 system ahead of the demonstration, using a high-fidelity mission simulator to give operators hands-on practice in a classified secret-level, operational-like setting.
- Northern Edge 2023 represents the sixth exercise in which Lockheed Martin has partnered with INDOPACOM to improve interoperability and advance integrated deterrence.
What’s Next?
Aligning with the INDOPACOM JFN vision to accelerate allies and partners interoperability, Lockheed Martin will participate in the upcoming Talisman Sabre exercise and potentially the U.S. Army’s Project Convergence Capstone Four. We are commitment to advancing JADC2 capabilities and delivering game-changing, innovative technology for the Joint Force.
23 May 23. Middle East-South Asia: Long-term espionage campaign heightens security risks for government, diplomatic entities. On 23 May, cyber security company Kaspersky released a report on a relatively unknown advanced persistent threat (APT) group, ‘GoldenJackal’, which has been targeting government and diplomatic entities in the Middle East and South Asia since 2019. The group reportedly maintains a low profile, conducting a small number of long-term espionage and data exfiltration campaigns. The number of victims targeted by the group is significantly lower than other APT groups. This indicates a realistic possibility that the group is attempting to protect its toolset from analysis and security solution detections. While the group is not overtly linked to another APT group, Kaspersky noted several similarities between GoldenJackal and the Russian APT ‘Turla’. Specifically, there are overlapping tactics, techniques, and procedures (TTPs), and both groups frequently target Afghanistan, Azerbaijan, Iran, Iraq, Pakistan and Turkey. However, many other APT groups, including groups affiliated with China and India, have geopolitical interests in the region and enact attacks on that basis. Therefore, we assess the possible link between Turla and GoldenJackal to be tentative and attributed with low confidence. As the Middle East and Central/South Asia become increasingly important in the strategic considerations of foreign governments, there is a heightened risk to government and diplomatic entities in the region. (Source: Sibylline)
22 May 23. General Dynamics Mission Systems-Canada Launches Distributed Acoustics Processing Suite. General Dynamics Mission Systems–Canada has officially launched its most advanced suite of distributed acoustics processing solutions, including the UYS-506 Sonobuoy Processor, at Combined Naval Event 2023 in Farnborough, United Kingdom.
This launch positions General Dynamics among the first globally to offer and field a distributed acoustics processing system that can be hosted on autonomous vehicles enabling real-time data relay with other airborne or shipborne platforms and ground stations. With this improved interoperability, operators and decision makers can achieve extended range performance without sacrificing exceptional target detection and identification capabilities.
General Dynamics has recently fielded this new technology suite. The company was subcontracted earlier this year to support General Atomics Aeronautical Systems Inc. (GA-ASI), developer of MQ-9B SeaGuardian®. General Dynamics is now providing the acoustics processing technology necessary for GA-ASI’s SeaGuardian to conduct various tests to review adaptability for crewed-uncrewed teaming missions.
“At General Dynamics, we’re passionate about providing capabilities that find submarines and adapting our world leading solutions to unmanned platforms for our customers. We’re exceptionally proud to see our distributed acoustics processing technology lead the market in this important space. This is a game changer for the future of Underwater Warfare,” said Matt Young, Senior Director, International Air and Naval Programs.
Using advanced processing techniques, General Dynamics UYS-506 Sonobuoy Processor minimizes the bandwidth required to transmit data from the aircraft to the ground station without decreasing system performance. The full suite being fielded includes small form factor on-board processing, distributed acoustics technology, quality of service data management, and field-proven intelligence exploitation software. All of this is supported by crew training and post mission analysis and exploitation capabilities.
This new suite, including the UYS-506, will be on display at Combined Naval Event 2023 in Farnborough from May 23-25, 2023. Chris Wardman, Business Development Manager, will be presenting on Integrating Beyond Traditional ASW Platforms as part of the Underwater Defence & Security Stream on Wednesday, May 24.
To learn more, visit: https://gdmissionsystems.ca/airborne-anti-submarine-warfare.
General Dynamics Mission Systems–Canada delivers advanced system solutions to Canadian and international customers. Headquartered in Ottawa, Ontario, it is one of the largest defence and security companies in Canada and is a world-class prime contractor and systems integrator for sea, air, land and cyber solutions. For more information, visit www.gdmissionsystems.ca. (Source: PR Newswire)
22 May 23.USN use digital twins for electronic warfare assets.
Digital modelling will now design, troubleshoot, and enhance the integration of the latest technologies to naval aviation platforms.
The US Naval Air Systems Command (NAC) has adopted digital twin modelling for its Airborne Electronic Attack Systems Programme (PMA-234).
A digital twin is simply a virtual model of a physical object. The digital twin can be modified and used in a computer simulation as it would in the real world; but with the added benefit of error-free manipulation.
The new digital practice will enable the agency to improve the programme’s readiness, explore new capabilities, and expedite training. The PMA-234 has developed digital twin technology with an industry partner for the past six months.
Practice makes perfect
The operators selected the pod interface unit on the ALQ-99 Tactical Jamming System (TJS). This was first used in the 1970s, and is now the first capability on which to test the new software.
The TJS is unique as an older technology that converts analogue signals to digital signals. By using an older system, the team members can test the bounds of their creativity and exploration.
The PMA-234 programme manager, David Rueter, stated: “We wanted to prove to ourselves we could take an existing piece of hardware and develop a digital twin that would be useful. We picked something fairly easy as a starting point.”
“From a capability perspective, if I have a digital model of a system that requires improved processing, I can now figure out what that upgrade is and test it out digitally before I even purchase new hardware,” Rueter added.
The PMA-234 Chief Engineer Christie Agamaite explained how a digital twin can aid in troubleshooting. (Source: naval-technology.com)
22 May 23. Geospatial-intelligence agency making strides on Project Maven AI. Since taking over operational control of the Defense Department’s most prominent artificial intelligence tool in January, the National Geospatial-Intelligence Agency has made “important strides” toward improving geolocation accuracy, detecting targets and automating work processes, according to its director.
Project Maven was created in 2017 to take data, imagery and full-motion video from uncrewed systems, process it and use it to detect targets of interest. The agency announced last year it would oversee operations of the program — which had been managed by the Under Secretary of Defense for Intelligence and Security — but a protracted fiscal 2023 budget cycle pushed that official transition to the beginning of this year.
“The bottom line here is that under NGA’s watch, Maven . . . has made some significant technological strides and has already contributed to some of our nation’s most important operations,” Vice Admiral Frank Whitworth said May 22 at the GEOINT Conference in St. Louis.
Within the intelligence community, NGA is the lead for processing and analyzing satellite and other overhead imagery as well as mapping the Earth. Some portions of Project Maven that do not pertain to GEOINT have shifted to the Pentagon’s Chief Digital and Artificial Intelligence Office. The effort is not yet a formal program, though the agency expects to achieve that milestone this fall.
In a briefing with reporters following his speech, Whitworth declined to offer details on how Project Maven is being used due to security concerns. He did say that military commanders are “really excited” about the tool’s growth and the agency is expanding its collaboration with academia and industry as they continue to develop the system.
Mark Munsell, NGA’s director of data and innovation, said the agency’s primary charge within Project Maven is to increase the quality of AI and machine learning algorithms and, as a result, improve their ability to detect targets within imagery.
NGA has used scenarios in the ongoing war in Ukraine to improve the AI algorithms used by Maven and other programs, he said. For example, the agency hasn’t typically trained its AI models to recognize destroyed equipment. But that information has proved relevant in Ukraine, Munsell said, and NGA is now training its models for those scenarios. (Source: Defense News)
22 May 23. UiPath and Peraton Announce Partnership to Expand Cloud-based Automation in U.S. Intelligence, Defense, and Federal Civilian Sectors. Today, UiPath (NYSE: PATH), a leading enterprise automation software company, announced its partnership with Peraton, a leading mission capability integrator and transformative enterprise IT provider, to deliver the UiPath Business Automation Platform as a cloud-based managed service to high-security environments within U.S. intelligence, defense, and civilian agencies.
Peraton specializes in helping essential government agencies overcome daunting challenges that require fast, reliable, and secure technology solutions. These valued customers require the highest levels of compliance and security to complete their missions. This partnership enables it to take advantage of the UiPath AI-powered automation platform in sensitive environments as a managed service – either via cloud or on-premises with expert support in automation scripting, implementation, and management. As a result, the customers will be able to rapidly scale in any mission area, take full advantage of higher productivity and increased visibility, enjoy enhanced insights with real-time situational intelligence, advance their digital transformation, and improve business outcomes within their unique customer environments.
Through this partnership, UiPath and Peraton allow customers to create and execute on automation strategies, drive mission agility, and orchestrate transformational impact for highly sensitive secure workloads. The AI-powered UiPath Platform offers unprecedented time-to-value by combining the leading robotic process automation (RPA) solution with a full suite of capabilities to understand, automate, and operate end-to-end processes.
“Automation can be a potent ‘arrow in the quiver’ for civilian, defense and the intelligence community—as well as for American businesses and citizens—as we move forward into a future of renewal, resilience, and readiness,” said Mike Daniels, Senior Vice President of Public Sector at UiPath. “With automation, implementations happen fast, and improvements are immediate. Our partnership with Peraton will enable us to jointly push automation out to the edge to effect where services are delivered, which leads to better outcomes and improved employee experiences.”
“Our partnership with UiPath will leverage the power of automation, AI, and machine learning to help tackle missions of consequence at greater scope and scale than before,” said Mike King, Chief Growth Officer at Peraton. “As national security continues to evolve, this partnership helps ensure our customers are utilizing market-leading solutions to achieve transformational impact and meet the challenges of tomorrow.”
Automation can be deployed to increase quality, reduce human error, increase compliance, strengthen controls environments, and add new services to an organization’s portfolio. The White House Executive Order (EO) on Transforming Federal Customer Experience and Service Delivery to Rebuild Trust in Government instructs federal agencies to modernize government programs and find ways to reduce costly, time-consuming administrative tasks—which are achievable in automation first organizations. Additionally, since the launch of the Federal Cloud Computing Strategy, government agencies have been migrating to the cloud to achieve scalability and reduce costs.
UiPath and Peraton combined to drastically improve processes at a U.S. defense agency. The customer needed to process hundreds of weekly metrics from data dispersed in disparate sources. With an automation solution from UiPath, the agency built highly scalable bots to fully automate the process, reducing the workload from many hours to 15 minutes. In addition, automation can be deployed to support federal and civilian agencies to manage future global events such as pandemics by processing and understanding data in real time.
Register here for the upcoming UiPath Together Public Sector summit, “Automation for Mission Impact”, taking place May 23 in Washington, D.C.
Learn more about UiPath automation for public sector organizations here, and learn how Peraton supports the mission-critical work of U.S. government agencies here.
About Peraton
Peraton is a next-generation national security company that drives missions of consequence spanning the globe and extending to the farthest reaches of the galaxy. As the world’s leading mission capability integrator and transformative enterprise IT provider, we deliver trusted, highly differentiated solutions and technologies to protect our nation and allies from threats across the digital and physical domains. Peraton supports every branch of the U.S. Armed Forces, and we serve as a valued partner to essential government agencies that sustain our way of life. Every day, our employees do the can’t be done by solving the most daunting challenges facing our customers. Visit Peraton.com to learn how we’re safeguarding your peace of mind.
About UiPath
UiPath (NYSE: PATH) is on a mission to uplevel knowledge work so more people can work more creatively, collaboratively, and strategically. The AI-powered UiPath Business Automation Platform combines the leading robotic process automation (RPA) solution with a full suite of capabilities to understand, automate, and operate end-to-end processes, offering unprecedented time-to-value. For organizations that need to evolve to survive and thrive through increasingly changing times, UiPath is The Foundation of Innovation™. For more information, visit www.uipath.com. (Source: BUSINESS WIRE)
22 May 23. SambaNova and Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory Scale Up Collaboration to Accelerate AI for Science. SambaNova Systems, the company that was first to market with domain-specific, pre-trained foundation models to underpin generative AI, and Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory (LLNL), today announce that they’re scaling up their collaboration to bring SambaNova spatial data flow accelerator into LLNL’s Computing Center. This solution upgrades LLNL’s cognitive simulation program by improving the speed and accuracy of scientific research.
LLNL is a leading federal research institution that leverages high performance computing (HPC) across its research. Increasingly, the institution has studied how deep neural network hardware architectures can accelerate traditional physics-based simulations as part of the National Nuclear Security Administration’s (NNSA’s) Advanced Simulation and Computing program.
Computer modeling and experimentation are essential to scientific research. Models simulate natural phenomena and experiments, which provide data to understand underlying principles. However, they face two fundamental challenges. First, even the most complex models do not achieve sufficient fidelity to simulate reality. Second, modern experiments regularly generate overwhelming amounts of data. To address these issues, LLNL researchers are working on cognitive simulation (CogSim), leveraging the SambaNova systems to improve the fidelity of models as well as to manage the growing volumes of data.
“Multi-physics simulation is complex,” said Brian Van Essen, computer scientist at LLNL and Informatics Group Lead. “Our inertial confinement fusion (ICF) experiments generate huge volumes of data. Yet, connecting the underlying physics to the experimental data is an extremely difficult scientific challenge. AI techniques hold the key to teaching existing models to better mirror experimental models and to create an improved feedback loop between the experiments and models. The SambaNova system helps us create these cognitive simulations.”
LLNL has been working with SambaNova since 2020. The collaboration started as a proof-of-concept and evolved to creating prototypes of the final solution together. The first stage of the collaboration involved tight integration of SambaNova DataScale hardware input directly into the Corona supercomputing cluster. This integration first enabled the use of AI calculations to improve overall speed, performance, and productivity. More importantly, it created a heterogeneous system architecture that integrates SambaNova’s system into the existing supercomputing cluster to support efficient CogSim. The next stage allows the heterogeneous system to be less tightly integrated with the supercomputing clusters. This design supports a wider selection of workloads, allowing LLNL to use a wider range of traditional resources, a more generalized solution that expands the possible use-cases.
“We are looking to leverage AI to improve speed, energy use, and data motion,” said Bronis R. de Supinski, CTO for Livermore Computing (LC), which operates LLNL’s Computing Center. “SambaNova has a different architecture than CPU or GPU-based systems, which we are leveraging to create an enhanced approach for CogSim that leverages a heterogeneous system combining the SambaNova DataScale with our supercomputing clusters.”
“Scientific discoveries rely on speed, accuracy, and collaboration. We’ve built an incredible partnership to solve complex scientific issues – together,” said Rodrigo Liang, CEO of SambaNova Systems. “We’re excited to leverage SambaNova’s agility, power, and flexibility to fulfill Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory’s mission of science in the national interest.”
By leveraging SambaNova’s architecture, LLNL’s need to address critical use-cases in the scientific community demonstrates the opportunity and need to have a full stack AI solution. For more information, please visit sambanova.ai.
About LLNL
Founded in 1952, Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory provides solutions to our nation’s most important national security challenges through innovative science, engineering and technology. Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory is managed by Lawrence Livermore National Security, LLC for the U.S. Department of Energy’s National Nuclear Security Administration.
About SambaNova Systems
Customers turn to SambaNova to quickly deploy state-of-the-art generative AI capabilities within the enterprise. Our purpose-built enterprise-scale AI platform is the technology backbone for the next generation of AI computing.
Headquartered in Palo Alto, California, SambaNova Systems was founded in 2017 by industry luminaries, and hardware and software design experts from Sun/Oracle and Stanford University. Investors include SoftBank Vision Fund 2, funds and accounts managed by BlackRock, Intel Capital, GV, Walden International, Temasek, GIC, Redline Capital, Atlantic Bridge Ventures, Celesta, and several others. Visit us at sambanova.ai or contact us at . (Source: BUSINESS WIRE)
22 May 23. Israel aims to be ‘AI superpower’, advance autonomous warfare. Israel aims to parlay its technological prowess to become an artificial intelligence “superpower”, the Defence Ministry director-general said on Monday, predicting advances in autonomous warfare and streamlined combat decision-making.
Steps to harness rapid AI evolutions include the formation of a dedicated organisation for military robotics in the ministry, and a record-high budget for related research and development this year, retired army general Eyal Zamir said.
“There are those who see AI as the next revolution in changing the face of warfare in the battlefield,” Zamir told the Herzliya Conference, an annual international security forum.
He named GPT (Generative Pre-trained Transformer) and AGI (Artificial General Intelligence) as deep-learning realms being addressed by civilian AI industries which could eventually have military applications.
These, Zamir said, potentially include “the ability of platforms to strike in swarms, or of combat systems to operate independently, of data fusion and of assistance in fast decision-making, on a scale greater than we have ever seen”.
The ministry declined to provide figures on AI funding.
The Israeli military has lifted the veil on some of autonmous systems already deployed. In 2021, it said robot surveillance jeeps would help patrol the Gaza Strip border.
This month, state-owned Israel Aerospace Industries unveiled an autonmous intelligence-gathering submarine which, it said, had already completed “thousands of hours” of operations.
Eyal credited Israel’s achievements in cyber warfare – widely believed to have been used against Iranian nuclear facilities – to “a correct and timely discerning of the defence, economic, national and international dimensions”.
Similary, he said, “our mission is to turn the State of Israel into an AI superpower and to be at the head of a very limited number of world powers that are in this club”. (Source: Reuters)
22 May 23. Hensoldt unveils new SA-developed interactive signal analysis software. Hensoldt used the Association of Old Crows (AOC) Europe conference and exhibition last week in Bonn, Germany, as an opportunity to launch its new SAS2000S Signal Savant signal analysis software, which was fully developed in South Africa by the company’s GEW business unit.
The SAS2000S is a standalone software solution that uses intuitive visual interfaces, allowing electronic warfare (EW) users the ability to analyse signals across the HF, V/UHF, and SHF bands whilst automatically processing these signals.
Hensoldt said the AOC conference provided “an ideal platform for Hensoldt to demonstrate its extensive experience in electromagnetic spectrum operations (EMSO) and showcase the latest in signal intelligence technology to the industry.”
“The SAS2000S Signal Savant offers a powerful combination of interactive and semi-automatic capabilities for signal analysis, classification, and decoding, using the latest technology in AI and building on a large base of core classification and decoder processing modules. It features advanced transmission codes for new-generation signals, allowing users to evaluate the latest single- and multi-signal scenarios effortlessly,” Hensoldt said.
“By reviewing current and past results, users gain a detailed understanding of the signal environment, allowing for the export of new signals into the decoder development toolkit or importing new decoders for customised processing.”
The SAS2000S is sensor and platform agnostic. Hensoldt’s collection of classic and modern decoder libraries are supported with periodic updates. The SAS2000S grants users the flexibility to customise spectrum and decoder development through the optional DecoderLab, empowering them to build and personalise their own decoders.
“The SAS2000S Signal Savant allows users to deep dive into the modern signal taxonomy and provide tools to process these fast-evolving signals,” said Wimpie van den berg, Land EW product portfolio executive at HENSOLDT.
“Signal intelligence (SIGINT) is a vital window into foreign adversaries’ capabilities, actions, and intentions and is an increasingly crucial component in intelligence operations. The SAS2000S represents a significant leap forward in communication signal analysis, classification, and decoding, using the latest technology in AI”, he added.
GEW, part of Hensoldt South Africa, is one of the leading players in the spectrum dominance industry in South Africa, having been active in the COMINT (communications intelligence) field since the 1960s. The company develops and manufactures strategic, semi-mobile and tactical systems, as well as airborne and ship-mounted systems, some of which include sophisticated electronic attack capability in addition to search, direction-finding and basic jamming capability. GEW’s signal intelligence and spectrum monitoring systems have been sold and are in operation in more than 30 countries worldwide, including with the South African Air Force, Army and Navy, and the spectrum regulatory body ICASA.
A more recent development has been jamming systems to protect fixed targets, convoys, individual vehicles and foot patrols (manpack system) against remotely controlled improvised explosive devices (RCIEDs), such as the roadside bombs encountered in Afghanistan and Iraq. GEW recently launched two new jammers: the GRJ8500 and GRJ6000 jammers covering the V/U/SHF and HF frequencies. The two new jammers join the existing GMJ9 multirole jammer, and GMJ900 and GMJ9000 man-portable multirole jammers.
GEW is also active in the fields of airspace surveillance and security systems, particularly perimeter and border fencing systems with integrated alerting systems to localise a breach. Such systems have been successfully used to counter wildlife poaching, amongst others.
Hensoldt South Africa/GEW is increasing its involvement in the radar, data link, identification friend or foe (IFF), customer services and business development fields, among many others, and this has been helped by the recent acquisition of Tellumat’s air traffic management and defence business units, which now form part of the company’s new Radar Business Unit. This offers 3D radar, synthetic aperture radar, radar for counter-UAV operations and passive radar. One of the biggest radar projects in South Africa in recent years is Hensoldt South Africa’s Quadome dual-mode, three-dimensional (3D), multi-mission naval radar for air and surface surveillance as well as target acquisition.
With more than 800 South African employees across five sites, Hensoldt South Africa is the Group’s largest industrial base outside of Europe and one of the largest defence and security electronics companies in South Africa. Hensoldt South Africa has a portfolio of more than sixty products and solutions, operational in more than 40 countries. (Source: https://www.defenceweb.co.za/)
22 May 23. Strategic Command and Italian delegation discuss cyberspace.
A contingent of senior Italian military officers met with their counterparts from Strategic Command to discuss cyberspace and digital.
The meetings, conducted in MOD Main Building on 18-19 May 2023, formed part of our efforts to drive integration, and lead the cyberspace and electromagnetic domain.
Attendees included Major General James Roddis DSO, MBE, Director Strategy at Strategic Command, and Charles Forte, Chief Information Officer. The Italian delegation included Major General Giovanni Gagliano, Head of Division C4I Systems and Digital Transformation.
Topics discussed included cyberspace operations, training and education, data strategy, NATO and national doctrine, and artificial intelligence (AI) policy.
Major General Gagliano is leading a review of Italy’s cyberspace strategy, policy, and governance and spearheading work on cloud strategy.
Italy is highly valued as an ally to the UK and the rest of NATO. British and Italian Defence ministers signed a joint statement of intent on bilateral Defence cooperation in February; and Italy forms part of the UK-led Global Combat Air Programme (GCAP).
The concepts of driving integration and leading the cyber and electromagnetic domain will be incorporated in Strategic Command’s exhibition stand at Defence and Security Equipment International (DSEI) on 12-15 September 2023 at ExCeL, London. (Source: PR Newswire)
22 May 23. Thales strengthens its leadership in Automotive Cybersecurity with a new certification.
- Thales has been successfully certified against the automotive standard ‘ISO/SAE 21434’ following an independent audit, demonstrating the highest level of cybersecurity expertise in the field.
- Obtaining this critical certificate required by 68 countries, establishes Thales as a trusted cybersecurity provider for the automotive market.
- Car industry players must conform to stringent regulations, and Thales’ overall cybersecurity expertise helps them in monitoring and preventing cyber threats; such as hacking, data theft and software alteration.
There is a clear growing demand for increased cybersecurity in the automotive industry. The United Nations Economic Commission for Europe (UNECE) responded by issuing a new regulation (UN Regulation No. 155) for vehicle Cyber Security Management System. This covers risk and security assessment, threat detection, and vulnerability monitoring over the entire vehicle lifecycle. In consequence, the automotive industry is implementing a mandated cybersecurity standard (ISO/SAE 21434) that applies not only to car manufacturers, but also to all vehicle cybersecurity suppliers such as Thales. Being compliant in this highly regulated environment reinforces Thales’ leadership in automotive cybersecurity.
The ISO certification ensures Thales offers solutions with the highest level of security for car makers, integrators, and by extension users, and this starting from the vehicle development. It outlines the many procedures that should be followed to secure road vehicle cybersecurity. As a result, this certification demonstrates that the complete process of developing Thales cyber solutions has been evaluated and certified. Identifying the vehicle’s cybersecurity needs, designing and implementing cybersecurity measures, and continuously monitoring and updating the cybersecurity system are all part of the proven expertise.
By default, Thales ‘security-by-design’ approach is applied to all of its onboard solutions and services designed, built, and implemented in cars. This comprises embedded secure elements, credentials management and storage, authentication systems, firmware update and much more. It establishes strict vulnerability monitoring and risk assessment for a secure future-proof maintenance.
Furthermore, this certification reinforces the trust that Thales provides in the data management throughout the connected vehicle’s lifecycle. This is crucial because car makers must provide remote application and embedded device upgrading, patching, and improvement in connected vehicles. This data protection capability protects vehicles from cyberattacks while also increasing customer trust in the +300 million connected cars expected by 20271.
“Automotive connectivity and digitization provide end-customers with numerous service opportunities. However, in order to benefit from these services, drivers and passengers must trust the safety, security and privacy of their vehicle,” said Christine Caviglioli, VP Automotive at Thales. “We consider the impact of ISO certification as highly positive for the market. Obtaining this certification makes us feel even more proud in a climate where cyber has become vital and indisputable. At Thales, we are all set to continue supporting our customers in the face of this new security challenge by providing certified ‘ready to use’ solutions.”
09 May 23. Comtech welcomes Aarna Networks as a new EVOKE technology partner. Aarna Networks will work with Comtech to create new, integrated, cloud-native solutions for emerging commercial and government use cases. By combining Aarna Networks technologies with Comtech’s Dynamic Cloud Platform (DCP), the companies will enable customers to easily add and manage a variety of open architecture cloud-based applications across private, hybrid, and public networks, in both terrestrial and non-terrestrial environments.
Comtech’s DCP is designed to be infrastructure, cloud and application agnostic. Comtech’s DCP also unlocks the availability of new third-party cloud-based applications across current and future computing environments.
EVOKE is Comtech’s Innovation Foundry, which is led by the company’s Chief Growth Officer, Anirban Chakraborty, and is dedicated to creating and accelerating transformational changes across the global technology landscape. EVOKE engages with customers, partners and suppliers to push the boundaries of technologies that will lay the foundation of connectivity as well as shape future societies and ecosystems.
Aarna Network’s software, and software as a service (SaaS) solutions, leverage open source, cloud native, and DevOps methodologies to provide zero-touch edge and 5G service orchestration and management (SMO) services.
“By working with Aarna Networks as an EVOKE technology partner, we will open the door to new cloud-based applications that will support the convergence of communications infrastructures and empower individuals, communities, businesses, and governments by providing access to new technologies. As connectivity services expand into new global markets, the need for innovative cloud applications will continue to grow. By integrating Aarna Networks zero-touch edge orchestration technologies with Comtech’s DCP offerings, we will multiply the value our cloud-native solutions can bring to 5G, satellite communications, and edge computing customers around the world.”
— Ken Peterman, President and CEO, Comtech
“Aarna Networks is thrilled to be an EVOKE technology partner and to integrate with Comtech’s DCP. This allows us to bring edge and 5G services orchestration to diverse infrastructures and management systems for a broad set of industry use cases. Our open source, vendor neutral Open Radio Access Network (O-RAN) SMO offering is important for a variety of customers segments across global markets.” — Amar Kapadia, Co-founder and CEO, Aarna Networks. (Source: Satnews)
19 May 23. Fur-midable: US Air Force pairs Angry Kitten jammer with Reaper drone. The U.S. Air Force meshed fearsome with furry in tests of electronic warfare equipment aboard a widely used drone.
The service’s 556th Test and Evaluation Squadron in April completed initial ground and flight testing of an MQ-9A Reaper outfitted with the Angry Kitten ALQ-167 Electronic Countermeasures Pod, a cluster of components contained in a vaguely cat-shaped tube.
The successful trials at Creech Air Force Base, Nevada, focused on providing electronic attack from the Reaper, a General Atomics Aeronautical Systems product typically used to collect intelligence or conduct reconnaissance. The pod is derived from technology developed by the Georgia Tech Research Institute, which in 2013 described the project as using commercial electronics, custom hardware and novel machine-learning for flexibility.
“The goal is to expand the mission sets the MQ-9 can accomplish,” Maj. Aaron Aguilar, the 556th Test and Evaluation Squadron assistant director of operations, said in a statement May 13. “The proliferation and persistence of MQ-9s in theater allows us to fill traditional platform capability gaps that may be present.”
Electronic warfare, or EW, is an invisible fight for control of the electromagnetic spectrum, used to communicate with friendly forces, to identify and suppress opponents, and to guide weapons. Dominance of the spectrum will be critical in a fight with China or Russia, the two most significant national security threats, according to U.S. defense officials.
The Air Force is trying to reinvigorate its EW capabilities after years of neglect; the service in September announced a “sprint” to dig up deficiencies, seek needed resources and identify next steps.
Lt. Col. Michael Chmielewski, the 556th Test and Evaluation Squadron commander, in a statement said electronic attack aboard a Reaper is “compelling.” The Air Force previously used Angry Kitten in training, outfitting aggressor squadrons with the gear to harass trainees and simulate dizzying electronic barrages.
“Fifteen hours of persistent noise integrated with a large force package will affect an adversary, require them to take some form of scalable action to honor it, and gets at the heart of strategic deterrence,” Chmielewski said.
Angry Kitten’s name is a brew of inside joke and design goals, according to a 2013 Newsweek report. It is also a departure from the typical terror-inducing military moniker: Hellfire missile, Predator drone, Stryker combat vehicle.
Roger Dickerson, a senior research engineer with the Sensor and Electromagnetic Applications Laboratory at the Georgia Tech Research Institute, in 2015 told C4ISRNET that although the pod has “an admittedly slightly silly name,” it represents “very serious technology.”
“We’ve been working hard to improve the capabilities and the readiness of the war fighters in our sponsor organizations: the Army, the Navy and especially the U.S. Air Force air combat community,” Dickerson said at the time. (Source: C4ISR & Networks)
22 May 23. Iceland joins NATO cyber defence centre of excellence.
The membership aligns with Iceland’s action plan on cyber security and aims to enhance collaboration, research, and training in cyber defence.
Iceland committed to cybersecurity as it becomes a formal member of the NATO Co-operative Cyber Defence Centre of Excellence (CCDCOE) in Tallinn, Estonia. The CCDCOE, established in 2008, is dedicated to bolstering its member states’ cyber defence and cybersecurity capabilities through education, publication, research, and analysis.
During a ceremony held at the CCDCOE, Iceland’s flag was raised to mark its membership, and Harald Aspelund, Iceland’s Ambassador to Estonia, delivered a speech underscoring Iceland’s commitment to cyber defence.
The country’s inclusion brings the total number of member states in the Centre to 39, comprising both NATO member states and partner nations.
“Through our membership of the CCDCOE, we are strengthening information sharing and collaboration with our key partners on cyber defence while increasing our own knowledge and building capabilities at home.
Our participation is part of our policy to contribute to joint partnerships of NATO, not least in those areas where traditional military capabilities are not of primary importance.” says Thórdís Kolbrún Reykfjörd Gylfadóttir, Minister for Foreign Affairs.
As a member of the CCDCOE, Iceland gains access to expertise and resources in cyber defence. The Centre’s primary functions include providing research expertise, training cyber defence experts, and organising cyber defence exercises.
An international Live-Fire cyber exercise launched in Tallinn in 2022, NATO Cooperative Cyber Defence Centre of Excellence (CCDCOE) organises Exercise Locked Shields 2022, the annual largest and most complex international live-fire cyber defence exercise in the world.
(Source: army-technology.com)
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Spectra Group Plc
Spectra Group (UK) Ltd, internationally renowned award-winning information security and communications specialist with a proven record of accomplishment.
Spectra is a dynamic, agile and security-accredited organisation that offers secure Hosted and Managed Solutions and Cyber Advisory Services with a track record of delivering on time, to spec and on budget.
With over 15 years of experience in delivering solutions for governments around the globe, elite militaries and private enterprises of all sizes, Spectra’s platinum and gold-level partnerships with third-party vendors ensure the supply of best value leading-edge technology.
Spectra was awarded the prestigious Queen’s Award for Enterprise (Innovation) in 2019 for SlingShot.
In November 2017, Spectra Group (UK) Ltd announced its listing as a Top 100 Government SME Supplier by the UK Crown Commercial Services.
Spectra’s CEO, Simon Davies, was awarded 2017 Businessman of the Year by Battlespace magazine.
Founded in 2002, the Company is based in Hereford, UK and holds ISO 9001:2015, ISO 27001:2013 and Cyber Essentials Plus accreditation.
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