Abaco mitigates threats in real-time with Mil-Std cyber resiliency
Security technology for Mil-Std-1553-based systems adds an extra layer of protection against cyber attacks, says Abaco Systems. The 1553Guard is an integrated solution which is directly built into the 1553 interface. According to the company, other technologies require expensive hardware and significant software modification but may not include threat mitigation. The 1553Guard detects and alleviates threats in real-time from a single device through continual monitoring and protection for the entire bus, protecting equipment from damage and preventing attacks that could otherwise compromise platform integrity or mission security.
MIL-STD-1553 was released by the US Department of Defense before the advent of modern cyber-warfare and lacks many of the tools used to secure modern networks. More recently it was identified as a potential danger that adversaries could leverage to compromise equipment and spread malicious software across a system.
The device continuously monitors bus traffic, identifies incidents based on user-defined rules and algorithms, then mitigates the threat. While other solutions offer the ability to monitor and detect vulnerabilities, 1553Guard can actively defeat cyber occurrences in real time, says Abaco. The security mechanism is implemented in hardware that cannot be easily bypassed or disabled by malicious software or users, making it suitable to reduce risk for on-platform use or when integrated into test and maintenance equipment which rely on the standard.
1553Guard protects the entire bus through a single device. This reduces integration time and avoids the expense and complexity of hardware and software redesign and requalification of existing LRUs (line replaceable units) and modules. Once added to the bus, 1553Guard does not interfere with normal bus communication. When improper messages are detected, they can be individually disabled without interruption to normal bus traffic. It can be easily integrated onto any existing bus using one of Abaco’s existing XMC, USB or mPCIE products or using a standalone device connected to the bus.
According to Pete Thompson, vice president of product management for Abaco Systems, the 1553Guard provides cyber resiliency to protect mission-ready systems from attack.
