A -- Intrinsically Assurable Mobile Ad-Hoc Networking (IAMANET)

PROPOSERS’ DAY CONFERENCE – SN07-30DARPA will host a Proposers’ Day Conference in support of the Intrinsically Assurable Mobile Ad-Hoc Networking (IAMANET) program on April 26, 2007 at the Hyatt Hotel, 1325 Wilson Blvd, Arlington VA 22209 from 0900 to 1700. The purpose of this conference is to provide information on the planned IAMANET program; promote additional discussion on this topic; address questions from potential proposers; and provide a forum for potential proposers to present their capabilities for teaming opportunities. DARPA expects to publish a Broad Agency Announcement and an Early-Career Investigator Research Announcement in the relatively near term with further details, and is scheduling the proposer day in advance as a way of providing potential proposers with notice at the earliest possible time. The technical and programmatic details described in this announcement are accordingly subject to change. PROGRAM OBJECTIVE AND DESCRIPTION: The objective of the IAMANET program is to develop an intrinsically assurable mobile ad-hoc network. An intrinsically assurable mobile ad-hoc network will directly support integrity, availability, reliability, confidentiality, safety, and non-repudiation of MANET communications and data. In contrast, the dominant Internet paradigm is intrinsically insecure. For example, the Internet does not deny unauthorized traffic by default and therefore violates the principle of least privilege. In addition, there are no provisions for accountability and therefore adversaries can probe for vulnerabilities with impunity because the likelihood of attributing bad behavior to an adversary is limited. Finally (although not exhaustively) existing protocols are not robust to byzantine failures and malicious behavior, leaving entire Internet-based systems vulnerable in the case of defensive failure. The broad objectives of the IAMANET program are to address these Internet-paradigm problems and related challenges such as: increasing the probability that bad behavior will be detected; increasing work factor and uncertainty for an adversary; and explicitly identifying a minimal set of critical components that must be deeply evaluated and protected from lifecycle attacks. Specific program metrics will highlight attack containment and the prevention of information exfiltration. Even though the program is initially focused on MANETs, substantial elements of the proposed solutions will be expected to have application in the wider Global Information Grid (GIG) and will be expected to address many of the design criteria of the original DARPA Internet (if not necessarily in the same priority order). The scope of the envisioned program extends to clean-slate designs. For discussion of the original DARPA Internet design criteria and their relationship to clean-slate approaches, potential proposers are encouraged to study the proceedings of the Assurable Global Networking (AGN) RFI workshop. The AGN proceedings, as well as emerging questions and answers, can be retrieved via the IAMANET web site at http://www.darpa.mil/sto/solicitations/IAMANET/index.html. A MANET is a mobile multi-hop wireless communication network, possibly but not necessarily hierarchical in nature, and possibly but not necessarily directional in nature. MANET nodes generally contain both hosts and routers, and are deployed on heterogeneous platforms including manned and unmanned vehicular platforms in the ground and in the air, stationary and mobile sensor systems, and handheld devices. Some but not all MANET nodes are limited by resource constraints including power and processing capacity, which may affect their ability to participate fully or partially in a cooperative defense of the network. MANETs cannot rely on centralized services, are intended to be self-forming, have dynamic topology, cannot assume global visibility, and lack physical security. The wireless medium implies bandwidth limitations, intermittent connectivity, and message loss. MANETs will be forward-deployed and exposed, and as a result all mobile networking protocols and infrastructure are prone to attack and manipulation. In addition, the wireless communication channel provides easy passive analysis and potential for disruption from adversaries. Nonetheless, whether under attack or not, an assurable MANET will be expected to sustain a wide range of applications and traffic loads, to include unicast and multicast traffic patterns, elastic and inelastic traffic, client-server/peer-to-peer/group communications, plus semi-real-time traffic as well as traffic with softer delivery requirements. The IAMANET program threat model concerns cyberattack in the information domain, including computer worms, pre-inserted malicious code, remote cyber intrusions, exfiltration, protocol exploits, misconfiguration, infrastructure attacks, as well as halting and byzantine failures. Byzantine failures, in contrast to halting failures, involve unexpected and possibly malicious behavior, extending to collusion between multiple subverted system elements. To the extent that the proposed solution addresses vulnerabilities in the social, physical, or cognitive threat domains proposers should highlight these benefits. The high-level IAMANET system model comprises network applications, a radio, the intrinsically assurable network infrastructure, a “secondary defensive subsystem,” and the interfaces or APIs (Application Programming Interface) between these elements. The network infrastructure provides basic networking functionality. The secondary defensive subsystem, if present, provides hidden detection, traceback, and quarantine of malicious activity and comprises techniques that require obscurity because they rely on surprise, statistical analysis, or invisible logical redundancy. DARPA plans to solicit only Phase 1 of the IAMANET program at this point. In Phase 1, research and development will concern primarily the applications, the intrinsically assurable network infrastructure, and any necessary APIs but not the secondary defensive subsystem. Key security responses of the assurable network infrastructure are expected to involve authenticating and accounting for the use of all network resources, denying all but authorized traffic, and tolerating byzantine (other-than-fail-stop) failures from one or more network nodes and applications. Dynamic reconfiguration, re-provisioning, and reconstitution may also be responses of the network infrastructure. ADDITIONAL INFORMATION: DARPA will host a web site for information about the IAMANET solicitation at http://www.darpa.mil/sto/solicitations/IAMANET/index.html. Questions about the IAMANET solicitation should be directed to [email protected] with a cc to the program manager, Mr. J. Christopher Ramming, at mailto:[email protected]. ELIGIBLE PROPOSERS: DARPA plans to release both a Broad Area Announcement (BAA) and a Research Announcement. Each has different proposer eligibility requirements, and certain security-related issues will affect proposers in either case. DARPA has determined that it is in the national interest to support a new generation of researchers who will become deeply familiar with technical issues of strategic importance to the Department of Defense. Therefore, a Research Announcement (RA) will specifically target the community of “Early-Career Investigators.” For purposes of the RA, an “Early-Career Investigator” is defined to be a researcher who meets all of the following criteria: • Holds a tenure-track faculty position at a U.S. institution of higher learning; • Is not tenured as of the date this proposal will be due (estimated to be June 13, 2007); • Was awarded a PhD no earlier than January 1, 1998; and • Received a first appointment as faculty member no earlier than January 1, 1998. Given this definition, the proposal teams that are eligible to apply to this RA comprise teams of grant institutions in which the principals meet the Early-Career Investigator definition. The proposal team shall be in an organizational structure that allows for efficient communication with DARPA and performance of proposal team responsibilities. It is recognized that the proposal team may utilize non-proposal team members as sub awardees for certain aspects of the proposed work. However, a majority of the research effort and leadership of the technical direction must reside with the Early-Career Investigators. Eligibility for the Broad Agency Announcement (BAA) is not restricted to Early-Career Investigators. With respect to the BAA, the Government encourages proposals from non-traditional defense contractors, nonprofit organizations, educational institutions, small businesses, small disadvantaged business concerns, Historically-Black Colleges and Universities (HBCU), Minority Institutions (MI), large businesses and Government laboratories. Teaming arrangements between and among these groups are encouraged. However, no portion of this BAA will be set aside for HBCU/MI, small or small disadvantaged business participation due to the impracticality of preserving discrete or severable areas of research in the technologies sought. Government/National laboratory proposals may be subject to applicable direct competition limitations, though certain Federally Funded Research and Development Centers are excepted per P.L. 103-337 § 217 and P.L 105-261 § 3136. Any responsible and otherwise qualified U.S. Proposer is encouraged to respond. Participation by foreign institutions is not permitted. SECURITY CONSIDERATIONS FOR ELIGIBLE PROPOSERS (applicable to both BAA and RA): Please note that although Phase 1 of this program is currently planned to be unclassified, aspects of subsequent phases will be classified. Proposers to Phase 1 must intend to participate in subsequent phases, and will be expected to outline the means whereby they will be able to continue work in subsequent phases. This means, at a minimum, that the prime contractor/grantee in Phase 2 and beyond must be a U.S. based institution holding a current facility clearance. Proposers will be expected to describe the management plan and a division of labor that will permit the team to propose to subsequent program phases. The prime contractor or grantee will be expected to comply with any necessary Non-Disclosure Agreements, Security Regulations, Export Laws, and other governing statutes that may become applicable. Please note that these provisions do not preclude the possibility of university-based research in Phase 1. Listed below are three non-exhaustive possibilities that potential university-based proposers could investigate. • If a university wishes to do classified research for the first time, DARPA may, if it chooses, sponsor a facility clearance during Phase 1. • There are a number of university affiliated research centers with pre-existing facilities clearances that may act as primes for a consortium of uncleared researchers; the research center would need to appropriately safeguard classified information from the unclassified participants and could serve as a point of continuity across multiple phases. • Because Phase 2 will involve a new solicitation and a new contract, it is possible that a prime/subcontractor relationship in Phase 1 could be inverted in Phase 2 to provide continuity; the idea would be to get an integrator with facilities clearance involved during Phase 1 and transition responsibility for the project to that integrator in Phase 2. CLASSIFICATION GUIDE OVERVIEW: The high-level IAMANET system model comprises network applications, a radio, the intrinsically assurable network infrastructure, a “secondary defensive system,” and the interfaces or APIs (Application Programming Interface) between these elements. The secondary defensive system is expected to be classified, but Phase 1 does not require the design and implementation of that defensive system. Please note that although this overview represents DARPA’s current best view, classification guidance is a matter of national security and there is always a possibility that further analysis will result in modifications to this guidance. A draft security classification guide will be available to potential proposers at a later date. REGISTRATION INFORMATION: Participants must register no later than April 19, 2007, by following the registration link available at the IAMANET web site https://www.enstg.com/signup/default.cfm?ThisCode=INT79998 . Directions to the facility and other materials are also available on the website. There is no registration fee for attending this conference. Due to space limitations of the conference facility, attendance will be limited to 150 registrants, with no more than 1 representative per organization unless space permits. The Proposers’ Day will be unclassified and open to the general public. All attendees will be required to present government issued photo identification upon entry to the event. Additionally, all US Citizens are required to submit a US Citizenship Verification form in order to attend this conference. Non-US citizens are required to submit a DARPA Form 60 “Foreign National Visit Request.” The completed Citizenship Form or DARPA Form 60 must be faxed to: Jackie Lynch, SRS, fax 703-741-0077, no later than April 19, 2007. Both documents are available for download at the registration website. Attendance is not required to propose to any associated solicitation. Additionally, attendees who would like to present company overviews, discuss their technology expertise, and/or discuss teaming opportunities in scheduled presentations at the conference may request to do so. Presentations may contain four (4) charts and are limited to five (5) minutes each (including logistical issues). Proposers desiring to reserve a time to present at the Proposers’ Day Conference should send a note to that effect to [email protected] as soon as possible, but no later than the registration cutoff date for the Proposers’ Day Conference. All material to be displayed at the conference must be approved in advance by both the organization that funded the research and the DARPA Program Manager. The DARPA Program Manager will screen the proposed material for sensitive but unclassified material and approve in advance any presentations. It is the presenter’s responsibility to ensure that all material they plan to present at the Proposers’ Day Conference has been approved by the funding organization in advance. The briefing will be subsequently posted to the IAMANET web site. An electronic copy of all material to be presented must be emailed to [email protected] for review by April 19, 2007. NOTE: PLEASE DO NOT CONTACT THE CONTRACTING OFFICER IDENTIFIED BELOW WITH RESPECT TO THIS PROPOSERS’ DAY ANNOUNCEMENT, BUT INSTEAD ADDRESS ALL INQUIRIES AS OTHERWISE SPECIFIED HEREIN. In the event that there is a discrepancy between information posted here and on www.fbo.gov, the FedBizOpps site takes precedence.