"'Distilling' Outdated Software Could Save Defense Dept. Millions in Time and Money"
Many highly sophisticated systems, such as those that power drones, fighter jets, and even secure authentication programs, are custom software developed at great expense. It is not as simple as downloading the latest software patch and clicking "Install" to update them. It often requires an expensive and time-consuming rewrite or reverse engineering process. Therefore, Georgia Tech engineers, computer scientists, and cybersecurity researchers are working to accelerate the process with a Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency (DARPA)-funded project. Their goal is to unpack these legacy systems, incorporate updates, and redeploy them in weeks or months as opposed to years. About halfway through the five-year project, the team has a prototype pipeline that automates significant portions of the process using Georgia Tech-developed software analysis techniques. This article continues to discuss the DARPA-funded effort to update critical defense software.