Goes Beyond Building Control Systems

Aug 12, 2015 -- Over the past several years, the nation’s communities have seen an increasing shift to “smart buildings” that use internet-enabled wireless technology to control building-related systems. Such trends also are being seen in U.S. military facilities. In early 2015, following the release of a Government Accountability Office (GAO) report that called attention to building-related cyber risks, the House Armed Services Committee approved legislative language requiring the U.S. Department of Defense (DoD) to perform a cyber-vulnerability study as part of its fiscal year 2016 defense authorization bill.

To support DoD facility managers and other facilities-related personnel to better prepare against cyber threats, the National Institute of Building Sciences is initiating a new cybersecurity workshop series, to be held at its headquarters in Washington, D.C. The Cybersecuring DoD Control Systems Workshop, taught by Michael Chipley of The PMC Group LLC, is geared to help architects, engineers, contractors, owners, facility managers, maintenance engineers, physical security specialists, information assurance professionals—essentially anyone involved with implementing cybersecurity in the facility life cycle—to learn the best practice techniques to better protect DoD facilities.

Department of Defense Instruction (DoDI) 8500.01 and DoDI 8510.01 incorporate Platform Information Technology (PIT) and PIT systems into the Risk Management Framework (RMF) process. PIT may consist of both hardware and software that is physically part of, dedicated to or essential in real time to the mission performance of special-purpose systems (i.e., platforms). PIT differs from individual or stand-alone IT products in that it is integral to a specific platform type, as opposed to being used independently or to support a range of capabilities (e.g., major applications, enclaves or PIT systems). A Control System (CS) is a specific type of PIT that consists of combinations of control components (e.g., electrical, mechanical, hydraulic, pneumatic) that act together to achieve an objective (e.g., transport matter or energy, or maintain a secure and comfortable work environment). 

The Cybersecuring DoD Control Systems Workshop will include hands-on classroom exercises and labs to footprint a CS as a hacker would do; use the Cyber Security Evaluation Tool (CSET) to establish a risk baseline and create a System Security Plan; and use the enterprise Mission Assurance Support System (eMASS) to load projects using the new DoDI 8510.01 RMF process. Attendees will gain in-depth experience on using the Committee on National Security Systems Instruction (CNSSI) 1253; National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) Special Publication (SP) 800-53 R4; NIST SP 800-82 R2; and other key publications and tools to load and manage a project through the six steps of the RMF.

Currently scheduled dates for the Cybersecuring DoD Control Systems Workshop include Friday, September 11; Friday, October 9; and Monday, November 9.

Attendees of the Workshop will need a laptop with administrative privileges to load software. They will receive the course content, tools and lab exercises on a CD at the beginning of each Workshop.

The Workshop is limited to 20 students. Registration is $500.

Friday, September 11

Friday, October 9

Monday, November 9