Hartmut Bühl

CONFERENCE REPORT Go Connected + Go Smart = Zero Distance AFCEA Europe TechNet International 2013, Lisbon 23 to 24 October 2013

TechNet International 2013 was co-hosted by the Portuguese AFCEA Chapter, “one of the most active in Europe” as General Manager AFCEA Europe, Major General (ret.) Klaus-Peter Treche, said in his opening remarks before some 330 participants in this two-day conference plus exhibition. Portugal’s interest in this subject was clear from the strong and active participation by the country’s authorities in this event organised under the high patronage of the Portuguese Minister of Defence. Both the State Secretary of the Ministry of Defence, Dr. Berta Cabral, and the Joint Chief of Staff of Portugal Chief of Defence, Vice Admiral Pereira da Cunha, underscored their country’s desire not only to overcome the current financial crisis but also to conduct the reforms needed for Portugal to remain a reliable partner both within NATO and the European Union.

Key elements of the conference A key issue addressed by this Conference organised in cooperation with the NATO Communications and Information (NCI) Agency, in addition to the ongoing NATO command structure and agency reform, was that of the characteristics of modern C4ISR applications, which featured throughout the two days of speeches and panel discussions, in connection with the question of mobile solutions for armed forces. It came as no surprise, given the nation hosting this conference, that a broad spectrum of maritime security and awareness aspects was also presented and discussed.

Security and mobility By sheer coincidence, the news that the German Chancellor’s cell phone had apparently been under NSA surveillance for years broke during the first morning of the conference. “We can provide better protection” was the general comment of the industries participating in the Conference. With reference to the risk of industrial espionage, some speakers admitted that one weak point in this field is the tendency of companies to neglect the current cyber protection requirements.

Keynote speeches: accounts of practical experience The first keynote speech was delivered by the former Commander, ISAF Regional Command North and Commander of the German ISAF contingent in Afghanistan, LtGen Erich Pfeffer, who gave an account of his own experience of C4ISR in Afghanistan. He explained that it was possible but difficult to guarantee secured mobility during operations.

Rapid Environmental Assessment of the Maritime Battlespace was the subject of the second keynote speech delivered by

General Manager AFCEA Europe, Major General (ret.) Klaus-Peter Treche, during his opening speech. From left to right: Mr. Chuck Shawcross, Director of Service Strategy, NATO Communications and Information Agency (NCIA); Vice-Admiral José Domingos Pereira da Cunha, Chief of the Joint Staff, CHOD Portugal; Major General Klaus-Peter Treche, DEU AF (Ret.), General Manager, AFCEA Europe; Dra. Berta Maria Correia de Almeida de Melo Cabral, Secretary of State Assistant to the Minister of National Defence, Portugal photo: Jürgen C. Rosenthal

Rear Admiral António Manuel Fernandes da Silva Ribeiro, General Director of the Portuguese Hydrographic Institute (PRT), who explained that the maritime battlespace calls for special awareness and means to protect the environment. Modern technologies are already engaged but need to be further developed with a view to a better preparedness and response.

Panel Sessions In the course of four special theme tracks the rationales of the guiding theme “Go Connected + Go Smart = Zero Distance” were carved out and discussed from an operation and technology perspective. While the first day included a spectacular live hacking demonstration by Mr Tobias Schrödel, an independent consultant on IT Security and Awareness, the second day presented another veritable highlight: CASSIDIAN’s Head of Advanced Concepts, Professor Dr Holger Mey, presented his pro vo ca tive ideas on risk calculation in addition to going smart and connected at zero distance

“A long and busy conference lies behind us”, said Peter Treche in his concluding remarks in the presence of the President of AFCEA International, Kent Schneider, who participated actively in the discussions over the two days.

“I am deeply convinced that our theme Go connected + Go Smart = Zero Distance which was dealt with in such depth in the four special sessions is and will become more and more important not only for the military, but also for homeland/internal security-related fields of action”, he said. It was interesting to see, by comparison with the last three TechNets, how the comprehensive approach, combining civil and military security, has become an increasingly constant feature in the presentations by companies and institutions.

TechNet 2013 was a definite success and AFCEA Europe is already preparing for Bucharest in 2014.

SESSION 1: ENTERPRISE MOBILITY Chairman: Colonel John Doody (Ret.) FBCS FCMI CITP IISP MIOD, Interlocutor Services Ltd. Eye Opener: Mr Tobias Schrödel, Consultant, IT Security and Awareness • Future Mobile Solutions for the Armed Forces, Markus Lehmann, Head of Defence, T-Systems International GmbH, GER • Secure Mobile Devices in a Federated Ecosystem, Daniel Turissini, CTO, WidePoint Corp, and CEO Op. Research Consultants, Inc, U.S • Defence Operational Transformation David Lawford Mee, Business Development Defence, Cisco EMEAR and Edwin Tromp, Vert. Solution Architect for National Security anc Defense, Cisco Systems • Enterprise Mobility Dr Michael Street, Principal Scientist, Service Strategy, NATO Communications and Information Agency

SESSION 2: SECURE NETWORKS Chaired by Air Commodore (ret) Bruce Wynn, Freelance Cyber Consultant • New Crypto Client Approaches for Futur Mission Networks – Multi Mission Capable Crypto Clients Johan Hesse, Head of international Sales Public Sector secunet Security Networks, AG • The Modern network: Trusted Computing’s Power to Transform Bill Solms, acting President & CEO, Wave Systems Corp. • Secure Waveforms in Modern Military Radio Systems Thorsten Müller, Sen. Software Developer, Rhode & Schwarz GmbH&Co. KG • Information Assurance and Securing the Human Infrastructure: Best Practices for the Design of Secure Command and Control Facilities Peter Henderson, Vice President and Founder, Thinklogical • Protected Networks in a Coalition Environment Malcolm Green, Chief CAT 9 Communication and Infrastructure Services, NATO Communications and Information Agency

SESSION 3: SITUATIONAL/MARITIME AWARENESS Chaired by Rear Admiral Carlos R. Rodolfo, PRT NA (Ret.), President AFCEA Portugal chapter • EMSA’s Integrated Maritime Environment Markku Mylly, Executive Director, European Maritime Safety Agence (EMSA) • Practical Challenges of MSA at Sea Captain Jorge Novo Palma, Portuguese Navy-former Force Commander EUNAVFOR in ATALANTA • How to Leverage Geospatial Data for Optimal Maritime Situational Awareness Christoph De Preter, Head of Global Sales & Distribution, Luciad • Situational Awareness – What can be done from Space? Dr Fritz Merkle, Member of the Executive Board, OHB System AG • Connected and Smart Maritime Surveillance from Space LtCol (ret) Rüdiger Koppe, Senior Manager Business Development Defence and Security, Astrium GmbH • Maritime Surveillance Multi-System Approach Sérgio Barbedo, KAM Defence and Edisoft General Manager, Thales Portugal

SESSION 4: REAL – TIME WARFIGHTING Chaired by Petr Jirásek, Cyber Security and IT Adviser, Chairman of the AFCEA Cyber Security Working Group • Lessons learned from a Decade of Conflict-a JALLC Perspective Colonel Mircea Mîndrescu, ROM and John Redmayne, Operational Research Analyst (JALLC) • Real-time Warfighting Support at Mission Speed Cameron Chehreh, Chief Enterprise Engineer, CRP of General Dynamics Information Technology, Intelligence Solutions Division • Command & Control for the Last Mile LTC Martin Münster (Ret.), Head of ESG-Koblenz Office, ESG Elektroniksystem- und Logistik-GmbH • Zero Distance Requirements for the Support of Distributed Simulation and Training Ulrich Wiedemann, Vice President Sales, Defense and Security Division, IABG mbH • Securing your Technical Infrastructure, Protecting the Network and Delivering Innovation for and to the DoD Mission and IT Environments Mick Keyes, Senior Technologist, Office of the CTO, Enterprise Group, Hewlett-Packard Company