Computing and Information Sciences
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Safe and Secure Operations
- Sandia is working with the US Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) to assess and improve the design and implementation of digital instrumentation and control systems, responsible for ensuring safe and secure operations at power generation plants. Assessing these systems is necessary to determine the risks associated with employing them. Sandia also is helping the NRC ensure adequate cyber protection in nuclear digital safety networks, as these networks may be subject to attacks that attempt to modify configurations and disrupt safety functions.
Novel Analysis and Visualization - Emerging national security challenges require techniques for extracting insight from large and complex data collections. Researchers from across the Labs are teaming to develop novel analysis and visualization techniques and to investigate new computer architectures for such problems. An early result of the Networks Grand Challenge LDRD was a prototype system for studying cyber attacks using advanced algorithms and tools. In a related development, Sandia has obtained one of the first “massively multithreaded” supercomputers, ideally suited for complex data analysis applications.
- ANTFARM
- Funded under DOE’s National SCADA Test Bed Program, Sandia released a new software tool, Advanced Network Toolkit for Assessments and Remote Mapping (ANTFARM), that will aid energy utility owners in mapping and visualizing their control system networks. Making this tool available is a critical first step in meeting the North American Electric Reliability Corporation’s critical infrastructure protection standards. Sandia has made the source code and documentation available to all interested parties via an open-source repository website under a no-fee, general purpose license agreement.
Risk Analysis Capabilities
Sandia exercised a set of risk analysis capabilities with energy control system owners, operators, and stakeholders at its June 24, 2008, workshop “Cyber Attacks on Control Systems: Evaluating the Real Risk.” As part of a project funded under DOE’s National SCADA Test Bed Program, Sandia has developed these risk analysis tools using a threat-to-consequence framework. The capabilities will allow Sandia to help owners and operators prioritize risks, focus limited resources on the most pressing security issues, and build a business case for needed cyber security improvements.
Hash Algorithm
An LDRD research team from Cryptography & Information Systems Surety Dept. 5635 has developed a new hash algorithm and submitted it to the National Institute of Standards and Technology for consideration as a new national standard. Hash functions are extremely important for authenticating data. We use one every time we make an Internet purchase, for example. Recently the current standard family of hash functions used for Internet authentication was partially compromised by Chinese mathematicians, prompting the call for a competition to find
