October 13th, 2023

Five Hacking for Diplomacy (H4Diplomacy) teams from Rochester Institute of Technology (RIT) just conducted their mid-course presentations. In this issue, you will get a closer look at each team's progress working on Diplomatic Security problem sets. We will send an update in November for James Madison University after their mid-course presentations.

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Rochester Institute for Technology Team Progress Updates

DS/C/ST High Latency, Higher Stakes Team

Problem sponsor: Nathan Lingenfelter

Problem set: The High Latency, Higher Stakes team is tasked with finding a better way for Diplomatic Security technology operation groups to transmit video data from overseas offices so leadership at domestic command centers can make better real-time decisions about how to respond to threats at DOS facilities. 

The students have conducted 22 interviews and discovered that real-time decisions about security measures can be made with lower quality video data, but high-definition video transmission becomes paramount for after-action reporting and prosecution. The team plans to learn from the perspectives from public safety officials and video transmission experts outside of DOS as they start to sketch solution ideas.

DS/C/ST Overwatch: Designing the Next Generation of C-UAS Interface Team

Problem sponsors: Roshan Daniel and Nicholaus Markowski

Problem set: The Overwatch team is looking for a way to improve the user experience of Diplomatic Security's Counter-Unmanned Aircraft Systems operators, to better monitor and respond to drone threats at DOS offices. 

The students have conducted 19 interviews and are analyzing the costs and benefits of a "single pane of glass" approach in which all the necessary C-UAS data is displayed on one screen. The team is aiming to design an intuitive UI that requires minimal training to understand and operate.

DS/CTS/CMO User Behavior Analytics Team

Problem sponsor: Danh Nguyen-Huynh

Problem set: The User Behavior Analytics Team is working to strengthen DS's cybersecurity capabilities by finding a way to detect behavioral anomalies on DOS networks.

The team has conducted 14 interviews so far. The students have narrowed the scope of their research to focus on behavioral anomalies on DOS' Okta identity authentication system. They hope to identify a baseline for user behavior to better detect bad actors trying to access the network.

DS/CTS Outsmarting Smart Devices Team

Problem sponsor: Josh Ellwein and Jose Moreno

Problem set: The Outsmarting Smart Devices Team is working with the Brussels Engineering Security Office to make Controlled Access Areas (CAAs) even more secure. 

The team’s goal is to find a way to alert personnel who may inadvertently bring personal devices into a CAA when their wireless capabilities, such as Bluetooth and Wi-Fi, are enabled so that adversaries cannot tap into those devices to access classified information. They have conducted 26 interviews.

DS/CTS Critical Communication Team

Problem sponsor: Brian Rapier

Problem set: The Critical Communication team is tackling the challenge of improving emergency communications during threat incidents at U.S. overseas offices. 

The team has conducted 21 interviews. They are hoping to increase the reliability of primary communication platforms so that emergency measures are needed less frequently in threat events. They aim to find a solution that will help all parties involved in an incident avoid misunderstandings that can lead to vulnerabilities and unnecessary loss of life.