Joint and Coalition Information Sharing in an Age of Great Power Competition 

This first session of three to be hosted by AFCEA NOVA will address the development of a zero- trust architecture environment which is fundamental to protecting an organization’s information enterprise and critical data. The presentation will cover how zero trust enables joint and coalition data sharing in today’s national security environment. Examples will explore how military forces and modern warfare requires the rapid exchange of critical battlefield intelligence and operational information, especially with joint and coalition partners with today’s great power competition.

There is an adage that says, “amateurs talk strategy and professionals talk logistics”. The quote is attributed to Gen Omar Bradley as he was well known for his attention to detail in military planning. Today’s warfare makes it as critical to move beans and bullets to the frontline as it is to move bytes in the form of real-time battlefield information to decision makers, sensor data to weapon systems, and blue-force tracking signals to teammates, to name just a few. Zero trust is more than just a cybersecurity architecture—it is fundamental to connecting decision makers together, connecting sensors to shooters, as well as any other sensitive data that must be communicated. Within a zero trust architecture, connectivity must be independent of the user’s location, the device being used to access the information, and the network that is storing the data.

No single industry vendor can deliver on all the tenants and principles of zero trust. This session will highlight the enabling capabilities necessary, with specific integrated products, to rapidly deploy zero trust to enable the vision of Coalition and Joint All-Domain Command and Control (C/JADC2).

Over the three part series, we will address critical activities to protect users while securing data access and mobility:

• The role of identity and access in zero trust.
• Role of the Joint Warfighting Cloud Capability (JWCC) for combat applications and data.
• Protecting the endpoint and incorporating cyber threat intel.
• Securing data access and mobility to resources through technical and policy controls:
  • Verify identity and context (who is connecting, what is the access context, and where is the connection going).  
  • Control the content and access (assess risk, prevent compromise, and prevent data loss).  
  • Enforce policy to either grant access, conditionally grant access, or deny access.

This three-part session is broken down into the following themes:

Part 1: The Department of Defense’s zero trust principles and the role of zero trust in establishing Cyber Lines of Communication in a Coalition and Joint All-Domain Command and Control Environment.
Part 2: The operational and technical architecture necessary to deliver on the C/JADC2 vision.
Part 3: An interactive demonstration with an example architecture, that is ready to deploy today, to protect the warfighter against today’s cyber threat and accelerate the DoD’s journey to zero trust.