National Defense University

Information Assurance: Trends in Vulnerabilities, Threats, and Technologies National Defense University

Publisher Marketing: One of the missions of the Center for Technology and National Security Policy at National Defense University is to study the transformation of America's military and to explore the consequences of the information revolution. During the last two decades of the 20th century, through a series of internal and external studies and policy pronouncements, the Department of Defense dramatically shifted its view of the nature of future military operations and the associated equipment, doctrine, tactics, and organization that were required. The names varied ("Reconnaissance/Strike Warfare," "Revolution in Military Affairs," "Network Centric Warfare," "Transformation"), but the basic premise was the same: The explosive changes in information technology would transform the future of military operations. The benefits of this change have been well documented, but its potential vulnerabilities have been less commonly described-or addressed for corrective actions. These actions must begin with a recognition of the new relationship between traditional defense systems and modern information technologies. Traditional warfare systems are developed, ruggedized, hardened, secured, and tested to ensure the highest level of performance and availability. As military systems become more software intensive (in both computers and communications), greater time and cost increases occur because of increased system complexity and the lack of vigorous software processes, especially when compared with more mature, hardware intensive engineering and development processes. For the most part, military systems are proprietary and communicate securely with little effect on performance. Current military weapons and combat platform system acquisitions have very high costs and extremely long lead times. This high expense and long preparation is attributed, in part, to the complexity of new system designs and to the rigidity of design processes that are needed to meet mission-critical battlefield requirements of high reliability, ease of maintenance, and built-in safety systems. The acquisition process itself introduces costs and delays because it must meet legal and regulatory demands designed to ensure openness and fiscal responsibility. These methods have produced formidable systems; American superiority in high-tech weapons development is acknowledged worldwide. In contrast to military systems, commercial information systems can be developed, marketed, and upgraded within a 2-year life cycle. The introduction and adoption by industry of new technologies such as wireless, voice over Internet protocol (VOIP), and radio frequency identification devices (RFID) are rapid, with little design concern for security and privacy. Introduction of this technology in the commercial market is based on user acceptability, legal consequences, and bottom-line cost analysis, not on considerations of safety, potential loss of life, or national security policy. In spite of these potential problems with commercial systems, their advantages-rapid deployment of state-of-the-art technology (consequently, higher performance) and far lower cost (because of much higher volume)-make them extremely attractive. Thus, over the past decade, Defense Acquisition Reform has been focused on developing processes to achieve both the high-performance and low-cost benefits that come from using commercial technology while still assuming the necessary mission objectives of high reliability, rugged environmental capability, and (particularly) security. This volume examines threats and vulnerabilities in the following four areas: physical attacks on critical information nodes; electromagnetic attacks against ground, airborne, or space-based; information assets; cyber attacks against information systems; attacks and system failures made possible by the increased level of complexity inherent in the multiplicity of advanced systems. Contributor Bio:  University, National Defense Alexander Woodcock is currently Principal Operations Research Analyst at MITRE Corporation, a consultant to the National Defense University, and an Affiliate Professor at the School of Public Policy, George Mason University. He is a Fellow of the Royal Society of Medicine, a foreign member of the Royal Swedish Academy of War Sciences, and a full member of Sigma Xi. He was a consultant to the Institute for Defense Analyses, the Naval Research Laboratory, and the intelligence community. He was also a Senior Research Professor and Director of the Societal Dynamics Research Center at the School of Public Policy, George Mason University. Dr. Woodcock was Chief Scientist, Vice President, and Director of the Advanced Mathematics Program, BAE SYSTEMS-Portal Solutions (formerly Synectics Corporation), a Guest Professor at the Swedish National Defence College, and a Visiting Professor at The Royal Military College of Science, England. He is the author of Assessing Iraq's Future, published by the Royal Swedish Academy of War Sciences and co-editor with John Dockery of The Military Landscape: Mathematical Models of Combat. Dr. Woodcock has a PhD in biology and an MSc in biophysics from the University of East Anglia, England, and a BSc with Honours in physics from Exeter University, England. Samuel Musa is a Senior Research Fellow at the Center for Technology and National Security Policy (CTNSP) of the National Defense University. He has held the Homeland Security Science and Technology Chair at CTNSP. He was previously Associate Vice President for Strategic Initiatives and Professor of electrical and computer engineering at Northwestern University. He has served in various positions in academia, government, and industry, including University of Michigan, University of Pennsylvania, Institute for Defense Analysis, and Office of the Secretary of Defense. Dr. Musa served on the Defense Intelligence Advisory Board, Arm y Science Board, and Air Force Scientific Advisory Board. He was Executive Secretary of Defense Science Board Summer Studies and Task Forces, and a member of the Scientific and Technical Intelligence Committee of the Director of Central Intelligence. Dr. Musa received his BA and BS degrees in Electrical Engineering from Rutgers University, and MS and PhD degrees in Applied Physics from Harvard University. Contributor Bio:  Gansler, Jacques S Jacques S. Gansler is the author of the influential books "The Defense Industry, Affording Defense", and "Defense Conversion: Transforming the Arsenal of Democracy", all published by the MIT Press. He is currently Professor and Roger C. Lipitz Chair in Public Policy and Private Enterprise in the School of Public Policy and Director of the Sloan Center Biotechnology Industry Center at the University of Maryland. He was Under Secretary of Defense for Acquisition, Technology, and Logistics from 1997 to 2001. Contributor Bio:  Binnendijk, Hans Hans Binnendijk holds the Roosevelt Chair of National Security Policy at the National Defense University and is Director of the Center for Technology and National Security Policy. He previously served on the National Security Council as Special Assistant to the President and Senior Director for Defense Policy and Arms Control (1999-2001). From 1994 to 1999, Dr. Binnendijk was Director of the Institute for National Strategic Studies at the National Defense University. Prior to that he was Principal Deputy Director of the State Department Policy Planning Staff (1993-1994). Richard L. Kugler is a Distinguished Research Professor at the Center for Technology and National Security Policy, where he performs analyses. His specialty is U. S. defense strategy, global security affairs, and NATO. He advises senior echelons of the Office of Secretary of Defense, the Joint Staff, and the interagency community. He has been an analyst and senior executive in the Office of Secretary of Defense for Program Analysis and Evaluation (1975-1984), Director of DOD Strategic Concepts and Development Center (1984-1988), and Research Leader at RAND (1988-1997). He is author of multiple books, journal articles, and official studies on U. S. defense strategy and programs as well as NATO and global security affairs.