Biblio

Internet of Battlefield Things (IoBT) devices such as actuators, sensors, wearable devises, robots, drones, and autonomous vehicles, facilitate the Intelligence, Surveillance and Reconnaissance (ISR) to Command and Control and battlefield services. IoBT devices have the ability to collect operational field data, to compute on the data, and to upload its information to the network. Securing the IoBT presents additional challenges compared with traditional information technology (IT) systems. First, IoBT devices are mass produced rapidly to be low-cost commodity items without security protection in their original design. Second, IoBT devices are highly dynamic, mobile, and heterogeneous without common standards. Third, it is imperative to understand the natural world, the physical process(es) under IoBT control, and how these real-world processes can be compromised before recommending any relevant security counter measure. Moreover, unprotected IoBT devices can be used as “stepping stones” by attackers to launch more sophisticated attacks such as advanced persistent threats (APTs). As a result of these challenges, IoBT systems are the frequent targets of sophisticated cyber attack that aim to disrupt mission effectiveness.

Continued advances in IoT technology have prompted new investigation into its usage for military operations, both to augment and complement existing military sensing assets and support next-generation artificial intelligence and machine learning systems. Under the emerging Internet of Battlefield Things (IoBT) paradigm, current operational conditions necessitate the development of novel security techniques, centered on establishment of trust for individual assets and supporting resilience of broader systems. To advance current IoBT efforts, a collection of prior-developed cybersecurity techniques is reviewed for applicability to conditions presented by IoBT operational environments (e.g., diverse asset ownership, degraded networking infrastructure, adversary activities) through use of supporting case study examples. The research techniques covered focus on two themes: (1) Supporting trust assessment for known/unknown IoT assets; (2) ensuring continued trust of known IoT assets and IoBT systems.