SpiderOak Wins DoD Contract to Demo OrbitSecure Zero-Trust Protocol

Photo: Pixabay.

Space cybersecurity solutions provider SpiderOak confirmed Wednesday that it received a contract from the U.S. Defense Innovation Unit (DIU) to deliver the company’s OrbitSecure zero-trust protocol on-orbit for the U.S. Department of Defense‘s future Hybrid Space Architecture. The DIU contract also includes collaboration with the U.S. Space Force Space Warfighting Analysis Center (SWAC).

The DoD’s Hybrid Space Architecture initiative is referred to as the “Outernet” in congressional legislation. SpiderOak designed its zero-trust OrbitSecure software to support new and modern space technologies while also being backward compatible to Space Force’s existing on-orbit constellations. OrbitSecure will demonstrate an enhanced space-domain cyber resilience even when network hardware or application software has been compromised.

“As commercial space companies continue delivering increasingly innovative capabilities at an unprecedented rate, the Pentagon grows more eager to incorporate these technologies while securing and defending these hybrid (mixed commercial and government) networks across multiple domains,” SpiderOak said in a company statement. “With escalating threats from China and Russia, it is more critical than ever to ensure secure global, ubiquitous, and hybrid connectivity throughout the space domain for commercial, civil, and military users, including international allies and partners.”

SpiderOak said it will demonstrate the OrbitSecure zero-trust software suite on-orbit to support DIU’s development of a scalable architecture capable of communicating across government and commercial networks.

“We are thrilled to be selected by DIU and SWAC and partnered with York Space Systems to secure this mission and we are very much looking forward to working with the other companies selected to support the entire Hybrid Space Architecture into the future,” said John Moberly, senior vice president for Space, SpiderOak. “Jointly, we are enabling a foundational layer of commercial industry and allied capabilities to ensure our national security is protected from the ground and from space.”