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Navy’s BIG IDEAS Challenge for the IW Community

Monday, November 4th, 2024

Do you have a big idea that can help our Navy solve a problem?

The Navy’s IBoss Vice Adm. Mike Vernazza is launching the Big Ideas Challenge, a “Shark Tank” style competition for IW Sailors and government civilians to propose innovative solutions to current and future Naval challenges.

Naval Information Forces (NAVIFOR) is the Navy’s Information Warfare (IW) Type Command (TYCOM) responsible for manning, training, equipping, and certifying combat-ready IW forces to fight and win our Nation’s wars. The IW domain extends from seabed to space; is critical to our Navy’s success in competition, crisis and conflict; and underpins all Naval warfighting capabilities!

Our 60,000+ IW professionals are our asymmetric advantage – IW warriors “think, act, and operate differently.” This Challenge is an opportunity to unlock new ideas and bring fresh perspectives to meet current and future challenges through optimization, modernization and transformation.

Program Overview:

The Big Ideas Challenge creates a direct line to the IBoss for any IW Sailor or government civilian to propose and / or demonstrate their solution, big or small, for the IW enterprise. Selected winners will have a chance to implement their idea at-scale and a potential partnership with private industry and academia.

There are four submission categories:

IW Readiness

IW Training

Advancing IW Warfighting Capabilities

IW Alignment and Integration (includes business processes and process improvements)

Submission deadline is 17 January 2025.

Following the deadline, a group of Phase I judges will select the top 10 percent to move forward into Phase II.

Phase II judges will select the top 2 candidates per category (8 total) to move onto the final stage: Pitch Day.

IBoss will judge the finalists during Pitch Day and award one winner per category. Winners will be awarded a cash prize and honorary recognition.

Participants can access the Big Ideas Challenge submission portal here

If you have additional questions or concerns, please contact our team at IWBigIdeasChallenge@us.navy.mil

Posted in Guest Post, Information Warfare, Navy | No Comments »

TacJobs – Procurement Specialist at Product Manager Tactical Spectrum Warfare

Friday, September 6th, 2024

Project Manager Electronic Warfare and Cyber has a job opportunity announcement open on USAJobs for a permanent Procurement Specialist, NH-1101-03 for Product Manager Tactical Spectrum Warfare at Aberdeen Proving Ground, MD. This position is open to the public to apply and will close on 16 September 2024.

Interested applicants may apply at www.usajobs.gov/job/808069700

US Army – PEO IEW&S

Posted in Information Warfare, TacJobs | Comments Off on TacJobs – Procurement Specialist at Product Manager Tactical Spectrum Warfare

MI History: Army Security Agency Establishes DARRS Detachments

Sunday, August 4th, 2024

I love military history and in particular SOF and SI history, having served in both communities. I especially appreciate the MI stuff since so little has been published. The US Army’s Military Intelligence Soldier Heritage Learning Center recently shared this post:

Photo: Personnel of the 1st ASTD, one of the ARVN units supported by the DARRS detachments

On 31 July 1970, the Army Security Agency (ASA) established Division Advisors Radio Research Support (DARRS) Detachments in South Vietnam. The DARRS detachments were an effort to further the overall “Vietnamization” of the war as well as provide direct support to the American advisors with Army of Republic of Vietnam (ARVN) divisions.

In early 1969, President Richard Nixon’s administration began a program to end American involvement in Vietnam, which involved expanding, equipping, and training South Vietnamese military forces so they could take an increased combat role while reducing the number of American forces. As part of this broader program, the ARVN began to organize their SIGINT effort. To support their divisions, they organized ARVN Special Technical Detachments (ASTDs) consisting of four officers and fifty-six enlisted personnel. Modeled on the ASA’s highly successful direct support units attached to American divisions and separate brigades, the ASTDs provided SIGINT support to combat divisions and passed information up the South Vietnamese cryptologic chain of command. On 1 July 1969, two ARVN divisions received the first ASTDs.

Under the terms of the Vietnamese Improvement and Modernization Program, ASA’s 509th Radio Research (RR) Group, under Col. William W. Higgins, would assist the ASTDs by providing mission equipment and logistical support and by instructing the South Vietnamese on how to perform their own maintenance. All the while, ASA leaders continued to take every opportunity to press the ARVN to focus upon voice intercept and even offered on-the-job training by temporarily assigning Vietnamese to the 509th RR Group’s own low-level voice intercept teams.

Over the next year, Higgins and his group informally supported the ARVN’s nascent SIGINT efforts. Under Project SCREWDRIVER, 509th RR soldiers regularly visited South Vietnamese elements to pass on maintenance tips and to ensure they were receiving necessary supplies. These visits also proved an excellent means to monitor overall operational progress.

At the same time, intelligence support for American advisors became more critical. Consequently, the 509th RR Group field-tested the concept of a team dedicated to specifically support the senior American advisor for the 1st ARVN Division. This test proved so successful that the U.S. Military Assistance Command, Vietnam (MACV) approved the concept for all of the ASTDs. On 31 July 1970, MACV and ASA established the DARRS detachments.

The DARRS detachments’ primary function was to pass SIGINT information to senior American personnel advising the South Vietnamese divisions and to provide a sanitized version for the ARVN commanders. In addition, DARRS personnel provided the ASTDs with constant support and advice. Their impact was immediately evident and began to assure that the ARVN detachments were operationally functional.

As one advisor noted, “For a long time we had a shortage of hard intelligence…The 9th DARRS has given us the ability to make estimates and allow the commander to make decisions.”

?Michael E. Bigelow

Posted in CEMA, Guest Post, History, Information Warfare, IO, ISR | Comments Off on MI History: Army Security Agency Establishes DARRS Detachments

Information Operations Creates Global Reach

Saturday, October 7th, 2023

JOINT BASE SAN ANTONIO-LACKLAND, Texas —

Integrated deterrence starts at the lowest level and at 16th Air Force’s (AFCYBER) 67th Cyberspace Wing A39, the Information Operations team is making a global impact at their level.

The IO team supports real-world operations, reach back, exercises and operations security.

“We are the only Air Force and Space Force OPSEC Support Team,” said Tyrese Stafford, 67th CW, A39 IO chief. “We are the ‘operational arm’ supporting units worldwide.”

As the two services’ OST, they are responsible for OPSEC Management Assessments and OPSEC External Assessments traveling around the world assisting organizations to achieve a more effective OPSEC program, while also testing units for vulnerabilities and their ability to mitigate them.

“This past year, our OST has assisted and evaluated over dozens of wings and deltas all over the world from the 100th Air Refueling Wing at RAF Mildenhall, England, to the 31st Fighter Wing at Aviano Air Base, Italy,” said Stafford. “Additionally, the OST conducted a multi-year, Air Force-wide OPSEC External Assessment to understand the Air Force’s ability to protect sensitive aircraft deployments.”

Once the team identifies any vulnerabilities, they incorporate them into exercises to test the units again and integrate lessons learned.

One such exercise is Air Force Special Operations Command’s Emerald Warrior, where the IO team applies these lessons learned from real-world operations to deliver trained and ready joint forces.

From Sept. 11-15, 2023, the IO team was leading the white “fusion” cell team that replicated a Theater Special Operation Command J39 and adjacent Joint Task Force along with other Information Warfare forces from space, cyber and public affairs.

The white fusion cell provides realistic and relevant training for personal recovery, humanitarian support and direct action missions to prepare headquarter special operations staff for an evolving strategic environment.

“The team trained the joint force on ISIO, Intelligence Support to Information Operations, making the exercise more information focused,” said Stafford. “The force is taught whether to reveal or conceal information depending on the objective and the adversary’s physical means.”

The ISIO training was first introduced at the 16th annual Emerald Warrior exercise in March 2023, to further synchronize information capabilities across cyber, space and public affairs, and prime AFSOC’s Special Operations Task Group (Expeditionary Group) and Special Operations Task Unit (Expeditionary Squadron) commanders when deployed.

For the past three years and four iterations, the IO team has supported Emerald Warrior exercises with exercise design, integration of military information support operations, OPSEC and military deception.

They have provided over 150 years of their combined experience and expertise in IO, which is why their unit trains the Air Force’s 14F Information Operations officers.

“We train continuously from the time we’re on board at the A39,” said U.S. Air Force 2nd Lt. Conner Anderson, 67th CW, OPSEC branch chief. “I’ve learned joint planning principles and the application if IO from the tactical to the operational level.”

Since 2013, over 20 IO officers have been trained at the 67th CW A39 with follow on assignments with Pacific Air Forces, 16th Air Force to Joint Task Forces under U.S. European Command, U.S. Africa Command and U.S. Central Command.

“Our IO officers go out into the force equipped to protect Air Force assets and operations,” said Stafford. “They also know, they can reach back to us anytime for support, even the IO officers we trained at Emerald Warrior.”

Through its mission, the IO team has created a global reach leveraging IW capabilities and achieving an information advantage across the competition continuum.

By Capt. Dorothy Sherwood

16th Air Force (AFCYBER)

Posted in Air Force, Guest Post, Information Warfare | Comments Off on Information Operations Creates Global Reach

USSOCOM Awards Accrete Contract for AI Agent Argus to Detect Disinformation Threats from Social Media

Tuesday, September 5th, 2023

Anomaly detection AI software, Argus, analyzes social media data to predict emergent narratives and generate intelligence reports at a speed and scale that empowers military forces to neutralize viral disinformation threats.

New York, NY, August 29, 2023 – Accrete AI, a leading dual-use enterprise AI company, deployed its AI software for open-source threat detection, Argus, with the U.S. Department of Defense in 2022. Today, Accrete is excited to announce that it has been awarded a new contract by the U.S. Special Operations Command (USSOCOM) to deploy Argus to enable intelligence analysts and special operators in USSOCOM to predict real time disinformation threats from social media.

“Synthetic media, including AI-generated viral narratives, deep fakes, and other harmful social media-based applications of AI, pose a serious threat to U.S national security and civil society,” said Prashant Bhuyan, Founder and CEO of Accrete. “Social media is widely recognized as an unregulated environment where adversaries routinely exploit reasoning vulnerabilities and manipulate behavior through the intentional spread of disinformation. USSOCOM is at the tip of the spear in recognizing the critical need to identify and analytically predict social media narratives at an embryonic stage before those narratives evolve and gain traction. Accrete is proud to support USSOCOM’s mission.”

Argus Social, An Interactive AI Agent for Disinformation Threat Detection

Accrete will also launch an enterprise version of Argus Social for disinformation threat detection later this year called Nebula Social. Nebula Social will address urgent customer pain points pertaining to AI-generated synthetic media, including heightened risk from viral disinformation and deep fakes. Managing AI-generated synthetic media risk requires an AI agent capable of autonomously learning what is most important to an enterprise and predicting the most relevant emergent social media narratives across modalities, including language, image, video, and audio, before they influence behavior.

Nebula Social not only aims to help enterprise customers manage synthetic media risk, such as AI-generated smear campaigns from competitors, but also to autonomously generate timely and relevant content that matches the most influential emergent narratives with authentically engaged audiences to drive more efficient product innovation and go-to-market strategies. Nebula Social has the potential to significantly expand the traditional social listening market by satiating latent enterprise demand for more intelligent and predictive social media tools for a variety of use cases, including crisis management, product innovation, recruiting, marketing, and political strategy.

According to Bhuyan, “Government agencies and enterprises alike have an urgent need to manage a plethora of risks and opportunities posed by AI-generated synthetic media.” Bhuyan goes on to say, “Companies are already experiencing significant economic damage caused by the spread of AI-generated viral disinformation and deep fakes manufactured by competitors, disgruntled employees, and other types of adversaries. We believe that the market for AI that can predict and neutralize malign AI-generated synthetic media is about to explode.”

?Contact Accrete to learn more about our latest social media AI solutions.

Posted in AI / ML, Contracts, Cyber, Information Warfare, Press Release, SOF | 4 Comments »

SPX CommTech Launches Latest Transportable Tactical COMINT 953 RF Receiver

Wednesday, August 23rd, 2023

• New Communications Intelligence (COMINT) Radio Frequency Receiver delivers superior threat analysis at a time of heightened electronic warfare activity.

• 953 COMINT Radio Frequency Receiver will be exhibited for the first time at DSEI 2023.

Wappenham, UK, 22 August 2023 – SPX CommTech, formed by TCI and ECS, today launches its next generation 953 Communications Intelligence (COMINT) Radio Frequency (RF) Receiver for superior identification, direction-finding, and tracking of hostile RF signals to support COMINT and Counter-UAS tactical operations. It will be exhibited for the first time at DSEI, Excel London, on stand H2-874, between 12-15 September 2023.

The new 953 COMINT RF Receiver builds on the success of its predecessor and now boasts reduced size and weight, but with greater power. This makes the device portable for dismounted operations and easily mounted on a vehicle to support mobility operations. For example, it can be carried to an elevated position in a dismounted role, such as a tactical position only accessible on foot or on top of a high-rise building, to ensure the antenna is situated at height for optimum signal detection and increased range.

The 953 COMINT RF Receiver performs continuous, unmanned, remote, and real-time signal collection up to 80MHz bandwidth across a frequency of up to 40GHz for signal monitoring, collection, and direction-finding. This bandwidth delivers a sweet spot between monitoring sufficient signal breadth and amplitude to ensure quality and accuracy in identifying threats.

The 953 COMINT RF Receiver is powered with removable hot-swappable batteries for round-the-clock use. The new compact chassis is IP-67 rated to withstand temperatures up to 50°C to deliver full operational capability in extreme hostile climatic environments. It also boasts increased removable storage of up to 2 TB for enhanced data capture.

“All around the world, heightened political, military and societal tension, and the growing use of electronic warfare, demonstrates the unparalleled importance of managing and understanding the RF spectrum today. Threat analysis and response are critical to global security, so we are excited to welcome the next generation product of our successful RF range, currently used across 20 countries,” says Graeme Forsyth, Counter-UAS Product Manager at SPX CommTech.

The 953 COMINT RF Receiver is powered by SPX CommTech’s well-renowned Blackbird software application, which detects, identifies, direction-finds and tracks signals of interest to support, find, fix and strike operations, and mitigate electronic warfare threats. It also tracks the RF emission of UAVs and their controllers or Data Links to support counter-responses. Blackbird can record the signal environment for look-back analysis without interrupting the current mission. It simplifies the collection task and can trigger automated actions and support unattended operations.

Utilising part of the 953 COMINT RF Receiver, Blackbird also uses geolocation to enable defence teams to visualise the location of the frequencies for improved intelligence-gathering and threat management. Blackbird’s intuitive point-and-click user experience suits all skill levels and is an evolution of the proven intuitive interface in previous models. This ensures minimal training requirements for existing customers while enabling new users to master the system quickly.

The new 953 COMINT RF Receiver is backwards compatible with previous COMINT versions and other technologies from SPX CommTech, for cost avoidance, uninterrupted service and seamless scalability for our users. It can also be integrated with open-source or customer-supplied mapping and other integrations.

The 953 COMINT RF Receiver is available today, and current COMINT models in service with customers will continue to be supported by SPX CommTech.

For more information, visit www.tcibr.com. Book a time to discuss your COMINT needs with us at DSEI (Excel London, 12-15 September 2023) by emailing tci_sales@spx.com.

Posted in CEMA, Information Warfare, International, Press Release, Sensors | Comments Off on SPX CommTech Launches Latest Transportable Tactical COMINT 953 RF Receiver

SOFWERX – Broadcast Dissemination Platform Light (BDP-L) Assessment Event

Monday, July 17th, 2023

SOFWERX, in collaboration with SOF Acquisition, Technology, and Logistics (SOF AT&L) Tactical Information Systems (TIS), will host an Assessment Event (AE) 21-23 August 2023 to identify solutions for a Broadcast Dissemination Platform Light (BDP-L) that can operate in a land environment conducting Military Information Support Operations (MISO). Configurable capabilities include FM and cellular dissemination and must weigh less than 100 pounds including travel cases.

BDP-L shall be designed to provide broadcast capabilities to support small teams and operational elements and is comprised of a single channel and single band broadcast capability. The BDP-L will be man-portable/man-packable. The white paper should identify what adaptations or modifications to the off-the-shelf system may be required to satisfy all performance attributes. The AE will also consider how much technical risk the proposed adaptations or modifications introduce to the existing off-the-shelf platform.

This assessment solicits white papers to describe off-the-shelf BDP-L systems. The most promising candidates will be invited to virtually demonstrate/present some performance attributes with vendor-provided equipment and operators.

Interested parties (U.S. Persons Only) must submit NLT 04 August 2023 11:59 PM ET.

events.sofwerx.org/bdp

Posted in Information Warfare, SOF | Comments Off on SOFWERX – Broadcast Dissemination Platform Light (BDP-L) Assessment Event

Smarter Technologies Highlight the Unique Capabilities of Their Orion IoT Data Network to Defence in Helping to Defeat Organised Crime

Thursday, April 13th, 2023

Smarter Technologies, the leading British provider of Internet-of-Things (IoT) solutions, recently concluded a successful capability assessment trial of their asset tracking systems with the MOD at HMNB Devonport, with follow-on demonstrations now also planned for HMNB Portsmouth and other military establishments. Their unique Orion IoT Data Network, and its associated tracking tags and sensors, is a persuasive capability, with a proven track record in other sectors: over the last 15 years, it has helped recover over £40 million of stolen assets (including cash), working directly with security firms and supporting regional police Serious Organised Crime Units.

Smarter Technologies’ high-value asset tracking capability has been honed with the expert advice and support of Mark Roche (Head of Global Risk at Smarter Technologies). Mark has over 20 years of direct experience and expertise in the organised crime world, both as a Covert Police Officer in Serious Crime Units, and from his dedicated high-value asset recovery role at Smarter Technologies. Using the Orion Network and specialist tracking devices, Smarter Technologies has a 95% recovery rate for high-value assets that have been suitably protected by their system, and the capability is in permanent use with many of the world’s leading security companies. Mark’s phenomenal national recovery rate, using Smarter Technologies’ Orion system, has been recognised with over 15 commendations from various regional Serious Organised Crime Units. His efforts have not only recovered the stolen goods, but the technology has also provided the necessary evidence to ensure arrests and convictions.

Smarter Technologies’ high-value asset tracking capability is multi-functional and uses the unique Orion IoT data network technology, which has far greater range, penetration, sample rate, power efficiency and security than rival systems. The Orion IoT data network is a low power, ultra-narrow band 433 MHz UHF radio system that can penetrate concrete ammunition bunkers, large fuel installations and even underground facilities, without affecting munitions, radio systems or sensitive equipment, so is highly suitable for use at naval dockyards, air bases and other military establishments. Its unique properties help to defeat organised crime, but they also make the Orion network enormously versatile for a range of other tasks such as routine asset tracking, smart metering or remote monitoring across large military estates and dispersed building complexes. The signal is all-but guaranteed and it is rarely affected by dead-spots or range limitations that cause other systems to fail. Its specifications and technical operation are consistent across all regions of the world and it is unaffected by the European channel availability constraints that limit the performance of rival technologies. It is simple, scalable, easily configured and can be deployed rapidly and globally, making it particularly suitable for use in Defence.

Matt Walker, Product Manager for Orion at Smarter Technologies, said, “This incredible track record of stolen asset-recovery showcases the asset-tracking effectiveness of our unique Orion IoT Data Network. We recently reported on the success of the MOD Devonport trial, which applied Orion’s impressive capabilities to meet the requirements of the Future Maritime Support Programme, and we will shortly announce further demonstrations at other MOD establishments.” He added, “Many thanks to Mark and the team for all their hard work and superior skill in helping to defeat organised crime.”

Posted in Information Warfare, International, Press Release | Comments Off on Smarter Technologies Highlight the Unique Capabilities of Their Orion IoT Data Network to Defence in Helping to Defeat Organised Crime