Moreover,
the test bed is designed to make the Naval Sea System Command (NAVSEA)
Warfare Centers' vision - turning ships into cybersafe warships - a
reality.
"The Navy really needs USS Secure and this is the right way to
go," NSWCDD Commanding Officer Capt. Brian Durant told USS Secure
builders at a final planning conference here in January. "What
you're doing today and what will be fleshed out and executed in the
next few months will be briefed to senior Navy leadership."
In all, 28 cybersafe shipbuilders - from NAVSEA Warfare Centers at Dahlgren,
Philadelphia, Corona, and Crane; Naval Air Systems Command (NAVAIR)
Warfare Centers Lakehurst and Patuxent River; National Cyber Range,
the Defense Department’s Test Resource Management Center, Joint
Staff, and the Navy Red Team - are collaborating on an inaugural test
exercise slated for March 2016.
The event will test USS Secure's ability to replicate a naval combatant
in a system of systems environment. It will also determine the effectiveness
of USS Secure's real and virtual systems to simulate live systems so
the combatant's cyber defense capabilities can be evaluated without
impacting real-time performance requirements.
“This test will give us a snapshot view of the existing interface
configuration from the adversary point of view, specifically the Navy
Information Operations Command Navy Red Team and the National Cyber
Range Penetration Team,” said Dennis Schaeffer, NSWC Philadelphia
cybersecurity systems engineer for hull, mechanical and electrical systems
aboard Navy nuclear aircraft carriers. “The results of the exercise
will provide input into our current plans for improving the defense
of the system over time.”
Throughout the test, NAVSEA’s Integrated Warfare Systems Engineering
Directorate will assess the adequacy of USS Secure to deliver an operationally
realistic test bed for cyber certifications and future cybersafe test
activities.
NAVAIR and NAVSEA officials anticipate that USS Secure will enable engineers
to address cybersecurity holistically across the entire platform so
that cybersecurity in the combat system extends to the hull, mechanical,
electrical, and other enclaves. |
