Perspectives & Post-Quantum Encryption: NATO Edge 24

In December, SealingTech Account Managers, Wade Saunders and Benjamin Young, traveled to NATO Edge 24 in Tampa, Florida—an annual forum for industry experts and peers to address current and future challenges. Here are their takeaways from the event. 

Connections made 

On their first day, the SealingTech team attended a Fireside Chat: Partnership with Industry for Digital Transformation.  

The crowd at the NATO Edge 24 in December.

“A highlight for me after the discussion was meeting Major General Hans Folmer, Chief of Staff for NATO Communications and Information Agency (NCIA),” says Wade. “He is a Royal Netherlands Army Senior General Officer with extensive experience in cyber as a previous Deputy Chief of Staff Cyberspace, Supreme Headquarters Allied Powers Europe (SHAPE). He shared some insights on the NCIA organization and showed a genuine interest in SealingTech’s small form factor mobile compute capability (SN 3100, SN 5100, SN 7100) and our 3U Case. He understood the value of having a modular NATO standard platform within the cyber domain allowing allies to exchange equipment when needed or combine homogenous systems for larger scale joint cyber operations. These operations enable protection of national critical infrastructure as well as coalition networks extended to the battlefield, providing defensive capability for asymmetric and conventional warfare.” 

SealingTech was also a Silver Sponsor at this year’s event, where it exhibited its latest defensive solutions.  

Wade goes on to say, “Based off the representatives from various NATO member countries that stopped by our booth, we learned that most are interested in defensive cyber capability. A number of attendees mentioned seeing SealingTech’s equipment either in NATO joint exercises or though participation in international security cooperation military-to-military training events with the US. We found that some of our allies and partners get to see our equipment in action through the US Army National Guard State Partnership Program; this experience provides cyber protection teams (CPTs) an invaluable opportunity to train with their counterparts all over the world—beyond Europe and NATO countries.  

“In speaking with my peers, I discovered that many countries deploy general enterprise defensive cyber capabilities to protect their main unified networks. Some resort to laptops to provide defensive threat hunting or assessment of isolated network segments. These methods provide some protection, however they make finding high-end persistent cyber threats nearly impossible.  

“I shared with them how SealingTech’s defensive solutions enable CPTs to deploy a full security information and event management (SIEM) system—open-source or vendor of choice—to the corners of their network with the least visibility. Our innovative hardware allows true maneuver operations in cyber terrain providing a “loiter capability”—which allows defensive cyber forces to maintain persistent overwatch denying adversaries access to key cyber terrain—such as networks connecting combat enabling capability, units, or critical OT infrastructure like power plants.” 

Post-quantum conundrum 

“During the conference,” Wade says, “we learned that a huge concern of NATO’s involves quantum computing in general. We are truly in a technology arms race with near-peer adversaries like China and Russia who are pouring state resources—not just money—but their academia’s expertise into quantum research. Quantum computing enables decryption of most of our traditional encryption standards —not only decoding current communications that fall short of the latest post-quantum NIST standards—but also any data previously captured or compromised that near-peer adversaries are storing for the day; they can unlock this information at scale. Unfortunately, this information is lost already, information that will give our adversaries insights on NATO tactics, techniques, and procedures of how we work with our allies. State secret diplomatic information will also be revealed that could be embarrassing which can be used in information operations to influence international public opinion to weaken our alliances.  

The SealingTech team at NATO Edge 24. From left to right: Pat Lenk, Kenny Kelly, Ricky Ponds, Benjamin Young and Wade Saunders.

“We met a company, ZeroTier, specializing in post-quantum encryption software in which our high-capacity compute platforms could enable today at scale. We plan further talks with them in the New Year to pace the decryption capability of quantum technology maintaining the critical requirement of secure communication across any network,” says Wade. 

Benjamin adds, “We also met with Submer, a company who builds systems that sustain server racks in a synthetic fluid. In their demonstration, they slid these servers out of the liquid. It was impressive to see technology with the capability to function in liquid. The fluid allowed better cooling of the servers as well which is something that may be of interest to our R&D team as far as expanding SealingTech’s capabilities in an underwater environment. 

“Additionally, Scaleout Systems, a company out of Sweden came to our booth expressing interest in our microservers as they are using similar technology to run their AI and Machine Learning software. They use sensors and cameras to collect data and run them through a system to be analyzed. They were recently selected as a NATO’s Defense Innovation Accelerator (NATO DIANA) for the North Atlantic, chosen out of over 2,600 applicants.”  

Sights seen 

“NATO Edge hosted a social at The Florida Aquarium which provided a unique opportunity to see some of the different aquatic exhibits while socializing with prospective customers and industry partners. I would highly recommend a visit especially for families with kids. There were a lot of fun and educational activities for the kiddos,” says Wade.  

“SealingTech also hosted an unofficial happy hour at the American Social bar and restaurant. This venue overlooks the bay and makes amazing drinks with their own flare and serve great food. If you need to entertain this is the place for a relaxed environment for some productive fun.” 

Reflecting on their experience at the conference, Benjamin says, “Collaborating and engaging with industry leaders and our peers at NATO Edge 24 helps companies like SealingTech future-proof our alliance. It also introduces us to like-minded partners who are just as driven to maintaining a combined front and shared capability to protect critical infrastructure of our international partners and at home. Wade and I found the experience and the connections we made highly rewarding.” 

Learn more about SealingTech’s global cybersecurity efforts here.