University experts help improve cyber attack response
Above: Defence Science and Technology Laboratory (Dstl).
ogether with partners at Oxford University, the team at the University of South Wales is developing a prototype visualisation tool on behalf of prime contractor, Northrop Grumman, known as the ‘N.Guru Cyber Situational Awareness System’.
Situational awareness poses a particular challenge in cyber space where the physical manifestations of an attack may only become apparent after the event. Being able to identify and eradicate these risks quickly is crucial in the case of the armed forces.
Professor Andrew Blyth who leads the team at the University of South Wales said: “Cyber defence and how risks are managed and dealt with is a huge and ever changing issue for the defence industry. The systems we are working with hold vast amounts of data and so the prototype we are developing has to be capable of analysing this data and identifying high end threats.
“What is crucial in defence is that any potential breaches or attacks must be identified and dealt with very quickly. The systems we are working on could be used to deliver services for UK MoD throughout the world and so it is vital to prevent or minimise any disruption caused by cyber-attack.
“This new analytical system will identify cyber breaches and link them to a particular business process of the organisation concerned. Therefore, not only will the current threat be identified, but also the threat posed to on-going operations. N.Guru will therefore enable disruption to be minimised and operational tempo to be maintained.”
