SPIRAL DEVELOPMENT OF AN INDUSTRIAL CONTROL SYSTEM TESTBED TO ASSESS OPEN-SOURCE TECHNOLOGY IN EDUCATIONAL AND NAVAL APPLICATION

Vulnerabilities in operational technology (OT) within industrial control systems (ICS) can compromise the resiliency and availability of mission critical naval systems, such as power, navigation, and combat systems. Securing these systems is vital to national security, especially to prevent physical consequences in military operations from cyber-attacks. This work explores trade-offs in building ICS testbeds emulating real-world scenarios that can improve the resilience of naval ICS. We constructed and evaluated the testbeds using open-source (OS) technology (including hardware and software) for cost-effective and flexible solutions. We then evaluated the performance of OS technology against traditional OT used in ICS. We establish comprehensive criteria for testbed evaluation and highlight the trade-offs between OS and traditional OT technologies. Our findings stress the limitations of OS technology in industrial or Naval applications, particularly regarding their current low cyber resiliency and slow responsiveness. This work also advances cyber warfare education for military personnel by developing instructional materials and a permanent cyber physical testbed to enhance student understanding and experience with ICS applications and protocols.

Department dc:contributor.department

Electrical and Computer Engineering (ECE)

Grantor dc:publisher

Monterey, CA; Naval Postgraduate School

Year dc:date.issued

2024

Author dc:creator

• Tranchitella, Dominic A.

Advisors dc:contributor.advisor

• Rogers, Darren J.
• Bollmann, Chad A.

Statement dc:rights

• This publication is a work of the U.S. Government as defined in Title 17, United States Code, Section 101. Copyright protection is not available for this work in the United States.

Handle dc:identifier.uri

https://hdl.handle.net/10945/73532

OAI identifier oai:identifier

oai:calhoun.nps.edu:10945/73532