Personnel from the Air Force Research Laboratory joined dozens of industry and military partners at Northern Arizona University Feb. 25, 2020, to discuss a multimillion-dollar cybersecurity project headed by Professor Bertrand Cambou.

Cambou, a professor of nanotechnology and cybersecurity in the School of Informatics, Computing, and Cyber Systems, is the principal investigator on a grant from the U.S. Air Force to develop nanotechnology solutions to cyberattacks and cyber warfare. SICCS professor Paul Flikkema is the PI on a grant aimed at developing hardware for computer diversity. Together, the grants total $6.3 million and include a dozen researchers and students at NAU.

Because of the complexity and constantly changing nature of cybersecurity and computing diversity issues, the Department of Defense brought in additional partners to aid in the transfer of technologies, which is always a huge task. That group met at NAU to seek clarity on the critical tasks and objectives of the work.

Not only are these complicated issues, but the work of about 12 faculty members at NAU has to be coordinated with seven different organizations, Cambou said. Therefore, we are implementing a process to drive the program management of the entire program.

Partners from the Air Force Research Labs Information Directorate, Space Vehicles Directorate and Materials and Manufacturing Directorate; the Office of Naval Research; Sandia National Laboratory; Lockheed Martin; and Crossbar Inc. are part of this project, which has two major goals:

Hackers and cyber-criminals continuously probe and attack legacy infrastructure that was not designed to combat the ever-evolving complex assaults, Telesca said. With the existing infrastructure continuing to be weak to cyberattacks, it is time to consider radical architectural and infrastructural changes intended to disrupt the status quo and support a healthier cybersecurity ecosystem through computational diversity.

We are excited and honored that AFRL recognizes our facultys innovative approach in identifying nontraditional solutions to the increasing danger of cyberattacks and cyber warfare, NAU President Rita Cheng said as she welcomed the group. The impact of this work reaches all corners of modern life, helping to protect factories, power plants, transportation systems, drones, personal medical devices and much more.

The Air Force Research Laboratory is the primary scientific research and development center for the Air Force. AFRL plays an integral role in leading the discovery, development, and integration of affordable warfighting technologies for our air, space, and cyberspace force. With a workforce of more than 11,000 across nine technology areas and 40 other operations across the globe, AFRL provides a diverse portfolio of science and technology ranging from fundamental to advanced research and technology development.

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AFRL partners with Northern Arizona University, DOD labs, industry to develop nanotechnology solutions to cyberattacks and cyber warfare - Aerotech...