DoD cyber crime center to receive support from Lockheed Martin in contract extension
NewsMarch 17, 2017
LINTHICUM, Md. The General Services Administration (GSA) Federal Systems Integration and Management Center (FEDSIM) tasked Lockheed Martin to continue its role to support the Department of Defense?s (DoD) efforts against cyber criminals.
Lockheed Martin will deliver a range of technical, functional, and managerial support to the Defense Cyber Crime Center (DC3). The five-year contract has one base year, plus four one-year options. It is worth an estimated $347 million.
The contract includes services for the DC3 mission including leadership and staffing for the DoD Collaborative Information Sharing Environment (DCISE), the Defense Computer Forensics Laboratory (DCFL), the Defense Cyber Crime Institute (DCCI), and the Defense Cyber Crime Center–Analytical Group (DC3-AG).
"The cyber threats facing the Department of Defense and our nation are growing in complexity and frequency," says Deon Viergutz, vice president, Cyber Solutions, Lockheed Martin.
According to information gleaned from DC3 materials, the Secretary of the Air Force is the acting executive agency of DC3, which aims to deliver digital forensics and multimedia lab services, along with technical solutions development, cyber technical training, and cyber analytics in the following mission areas for the DoD:
- Cybersecurity and critical infrastructure protection,
- Law enforcement and counterintelligence,
- Document and media exploitation,
- Counterterrorism.
The Department of Homeland Security (DHS), National Security Agency (NSA), the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI), the Defense Security Service (DSS), and United States Cyber Command (USCYBERCOM), all receive support from DC3.
Since 2012, Lockheed Martin has been under contract to serve DC3 by providing digital and multimedia forensics examination, analysis, development, test and evaluation, information technology, and cyber analytical services, as well as critical cyber intelligence to Defense Industrial Base partners.
In the area of cybersecurity, some experts believe that the “human factor” is the weakest link. Thomas Warner, program director for Lockheed Martin’s DOD Cyber Solutions Division, says that humans are the biggest challenge yet are the first line of cyberdefense.
In Warner’s experience, one of the top conversations is about people’s ability to recognize a malicious e-mail. He believes that this kind of education is critical to our work force; also of supreme importance, Warner says, is education for the end users, as the humans and employees who support these contracts comprise the biggest sensor network.
When an agency performs an investigation into a breach or a possible malicious action, Warner asserts, human action plays an integral role; humans are simultaneously the greatest asset and the greatest risk.
Read more on cybersecurity:
DARPA selects BAE Systems to develop tech that restores electrical power after cyberattacks
Cybersecurity in radar/electronic warfare systems
Cybersecurity risks: Network-enabled weapon systems and humans
