Security, Interoperability Linked as C3I Challenges

Two of the most stubborn hurdles to effective defense networking are security and interoperability, and the two may be linked. Brig. Andy Bristow, British Army, former chief G-6 and director of command and battlespace management, Headquarters U.K. Land Forces, described the challenges posed by both and offered his own assessment of a connection between the two at the Tuesday MILCOM 2010 luncheon address. "Call it Bristow's Equation," the brigadier told the audience. "interoperability is inversely proportional to the number of security domains." Brig. Bristow described his experiences as a sail boat owner where he knew that any electronic device he bought would interoperate with other devices aboard the boat. He asked why that could not be the case with military systems, and he suggested that standards and economic incentives might be the solution. Part of the problem may be that too many individual functions are the purview of specialized systems. Brig. Bristow relates that the British Ptarmigan communications system used simple means for a variety of messaging. "We need to get back to the point where we have systems that serve many functions," he offered. The brigadier warned against complacency when it comes to network assurance. "There is no such thing as guaranteed reach back," he said, adding that any number of malevolent or innocuous actions could bring down a reach-back network.