Bi-directional Cybersecurity Device for Control Systems
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Solution Overview
Problem
Current cybersecurity solutions for safety-critical control systems, such as avionics, lack bi-directional communication capabilities, which are essential for modern applications involving remote control and monitoring, and fail to provide adequate protection against internal and external threats without introducing latency or system instability.
Innovation Solution
A bi-directional cybersecurity device that processes messages inline across various interfaces and protocols, including deterministic and non-deterministic systems, using byte-by-byte validation and operational state-based rule sets to ensure secure communication while allowing disparate systems to interoperate, with customizable rule-sets for each interface and system.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Reliability
If a unidirectional data-diode is used to protect safety-critical systems, then security against external attacks is improved, but bi-directional communication capability is lost
Solution Approach 1:
The system segments communication interfaces into multiple types (deterministic/real-time buses and non-deterministic network interfaces) and applies different validation rules to each segment, allowing bi-directional communication while maintaining security through interface-specific protection mechanisms
Solution Approach 2:
The cyber-security device acts as an intermediary between external networks and safety-critical control systems, validating all incoming and outgoing data through rule-sets before passing it through, thereby enabling secure bi-directional communication without direct exposure
2Reliability
If data validation and security checking are performed on all communications, then security against malicious signals is improved, but processing latency increases
Solution Approach 1:
The system performs preliminary validation by pre-configuring rule-sets for each interface type that define acceptable data patterns and protocols, allowing rapid validation decisions without complex real-time analysis, thus reducing processing latency while maintaining security
Solution Approach 2:
The validation mechanism changes parameters based on interface type and data direction (incoming/outgoing), applying different rule-sets and validation strictness levels to optimize the balance between security and processing speed for different communication scenarios
3Measurement precision
If byte-by-byte validation is performed on all messages, then data security and validation accuracy are improved, but processing complexity and computational load increase
Solution Approach 1:
The system applies different validation qualities to different parts of the communication stream - deterministic real-time messages receive validated processing with state-based rules, while non-deterministic network messages receive standard validation, optimizing the balance between accuracy and complexity for each message type
4Adaptability or versatility
If multiple communication protocols and interfaces are supported, then system interoperability and versatility are improved, but device complexity and configuration difficulty increase
Solution Approach 1:
The cyber-security device is designed with universal rule-set structures and interface types that can handle multiple communication protocols (ARINC-429, ARINC-664, MIL-STD 1553B, Ethernet, CANBUS) through a unified validation framework, reducing configuration complexity despite supporting diverse protocols
Data Source
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AI summary
A cyber-security device includes a processor operable to process messages with a data validation rule-set; an external communication interface configured for bi-directional data communication between the processor and external networks or systems; and an internal communication interface configured for bi-directional data communication between the processor and a safety-critical control device, wherein the data received by the processor via either the external or internal communication interface is blocked, sanitized, or passed by the appropriate rule-set, depending on whether the data conform to validation criteria established by the rule-set. The processor analyzes the data, preferably byte-by-byte, with the data in each byte being required to conform to the rule-set validation criteria before being passed from the processor to the appropriate interface.