Modular ACMI Cybersecurity Appliance for Legacy Platform Protection
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Solution Overview
Problem
Legacy mobile platforms face cybersecurity vulnerabilities due to a mix of old and new technologies, requiring complex and costly system overhauls to maintain protection, especially with high uptime requirements.
Innovation Solution
A modular cybersecurity appliance is installed between the internal processing environment and external network, incorporating a DMZ network, NGFW, SIEM, out-of-band IDS, IPS, CDS, DLP, and SOAR modules, providing comprehensive security features like encryption, threat detection, and policy enforcement.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Reliability
If a complete overhaul of system architecture is performed to maintain protection for legacy platforms, then cybersecurity protection is improved, but system complexity and cost increase significantly
Solution Approach 1:
The patent introduces a cybersecurity appliance as an intermediary device installed between the legacy mobile platform and external networks. This appliance handles all security functions (firewall, intrusion detection, encryption, etc.) externally, allowing the legacy platform itself to remain unchanged while still receiving comprehensive security protection without architectural overhaul.
Solution Approach 2:
The security system is segmented into separate functional modules within the appliance, including firewall modules, intrusion detection systems, cryptographic modules, and security information management components. This modular approach allows each function to be optimized independently and enables the security system to protect legacy platforms without requiring changes to the platform's core architecture.
2Adaptability or versatility
If multiple vendors and diverse licenses are used to operate legacy platforms, then system functionality is maintained, but cybersecurity vulnerability increases
Solution Approach 1:
The cybersecurity appliance is designed as a universal security platform that can protect multiple legacy platforms from different vendors using diverse operating systems and communication protocols. It provides multi-functional security services including firewall protection, intrusion detection, encryption, and security monitoring that work across heterogeneous systems without requiring vendor-specific solutions.
3Reliability
If system-level protection is enhanced to match evolving threats, then cybersecurity is improved, but system overhead and cost increase
Solution Approach 1:
The appliance performs preliminary security actions by inspecting and filtering traffic before it reaches the legacy platform. The firewall and intrusion detection systems proactively identify and block malicious traffic patterns, preventing threats from reaching the platform rather than responding after compromise occurs. This preliminary action reduces the overhead on the legacy platform itself.
Solution Approach 2:
By positioning the security appliance as an intermediary between external networks and the legacy platform, all security processing occurs at the appliance rather than within the platform. This mediator approach concentrates security overhead in the dedicated appliance while keeping the legacy platform lightweight and unchanged.
Data Source
AI summary
A multifunctional cybersecurity appliance is physically installable between a processing environment (e.g., an aircraft or other mobile platform) and external networks with which the processing environment is in communication. The modular appliance combines multiple cybersecurity and cryptographic modules within a hardened housing or chassis. For example, a perimeter firewall provides a demilitarized zone (DMZ) network providing a first line of defense by admitting or denying inbound traffic from suspicious addresses or ports. Cryptographic modules encrypt and decrypt secure data traffic. Next-generation firewall (NGFW) components provide further packet inspection of decrypted inbound traffic to guard against internal attacks. A security information and event management (SIEM) module monitors event logs from other components of the appliance and generates an alert when anomalous activity is detected.