Technology and Program Protection

End-to-end engineering support for the warfighter's needs

Secure and protect

Aether's Technology Security ensures warfighting systems are secure, effective and resilient.

We have developed processes that enable customers to transform complex Technology and Program Protection requirements into validated, verified and deployed war fighting solutions. Our System Security Engineers and cybersecurity SMEs provide direct support to Department of Defense (DoD) clients with designing, integrating and testing bespoke cybersecurity and anti-tamper solutions that enhance the resiliency, survivability, and lethality of our deployed forces.

Technology & Program Protection Services
Our Technology & Program Protection Process

Secure and protect

Aether's Digital Engineering optimizes designs while maximizing the stated effective measures

We develop processes that enable customers to translate complex Department of Defense (DoD) policy requirements into developed, validated, and deployed war-fighting solutions. These include capabilities in Technology and Program Protection with major emphases in Cybersecurity and Anti-Tamper. Our Technology and Program Management staff provides direct support to DoD clients to implement the Risk Management Framework and Anti-Tamper solutions as part of development of program protection requirements. Our core competency includes acquisition security, cyber resilience, cyber survivability, anti-tamper implementation and evaluation, and critical technology protection.

Technology & Program Protection Services
Our Technology & Program Protection Process

Aether's capabilities in Technology and Program Protection place major emphasis on Cybersecurity and Anti-Tamper. Our Technology and Program Management staff provides direct support to DoD clients to implement the Risk Management Framework and Anti-Tamper solutions as part of the development of program protection requirements. Our Technology and Program Protection core competency includes acquisition security, cyber resilience, cyber survivability, anti-tamper implementation and evaluation, and critical technology protection. These core capabilities provide an integrated approach to accomplish these solutions for government objectives:

  • Future Capabilities Engineering
  • Program Support
  • System Security Engineering
  • International Programs Development and Execution

Our EXPERTISE

JHNA's Technology and program protection process

Future Capabilities Engineering

Through future capabilities engineering, JHNA is able to define capability requirements that encompass joint capabilities areas accurately, gap analysis of alternatives, warfighting analysis, DoD Architectural Framework (DoDAF) modeling, systems roadmap development, and other strategic and program management techniques.

  • Joint Capabilities Integration & Development System (JCIDS) Process and Pre-Milestone A (MSA) Analysis
  • Department of Defense Architectural Framework
  • Advanced Technology Development
  • Systems Engineering
  • Technology Transition Initiatives

Program Support

We offer a singular level of service to its partners in the public sector, bringing to bear a wealth of capabilities, experiences and strategies unrivaled in the arena of program support. This includes:

  • Acquisition
  • Systems Engineering
  • Software Engineering
  • Logistics
  • Configuration Management
  • Financial Management
  • Security Mangement
  • Inforamtion Technology Support
  • POM Analysis/Roadmap Development

Technology and Information Protection

Our specially developed processes and tools are designed to prevent loss of critical information to adversaries by ensuring requirements are translated into acquisition, contract, engineering, test, and production requirements.

  • Critical Program Information (CPI) Identification
  • Anti-Tamper
  • Cybersecurity/Risk Management Framework (RMF)
  • Supply Chain Risk Management (SCRM)
  • Program Protection Plan (PPP) Development

Commercial Services

Critical information is constantly under threat from many different vectors. Information can be lost by:

  • Unauthorized disclosure — intentional or unintentional disclosure by individuals in the organization to persons not authorized to have the information.
  • Cyber attacks — technical attacks against a network to pull information out of a network or system, or affect its operation.
  • Reverse engineering — technical attacks performed in a lab to pull information out of embedded system hardware or software.

JHNA focuses on preventing, deterring or delaying loss of information through any of these attacks. It starts by establishing a root of trust in personnel and processes, hardware and software. We build from there, developing protection plans and technical solutions to meet the protection requirements of the organization and system.

Aether Technology and Program Protection EXPERTISE

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Acquisition Security and Technology Transfer

Our System Security Engineers (SSE) and Subject Matter Experts (SME) were selected to provide and/or support every aspect of the acquisition of Program Protection (PP) Engineering solutions from requirements definition through delivery processes.  Our experts developed a template roadmap to Program Protection Letters of Concurrence (LOC) adopted by the customer to synchronize and guide Program Managers and Prime Contractor efforts to develop and deliver certifiable PP solutions. We have extensive experience in assessing existing and proposed Weapons Systems for Critical Program Information (CPI) and its required protections.  Our SMEs have led and are supporting implementation and verification of the protection mechanisms required to enable the spectrum of Naval Air Weapons System Foreign Military Sales (FMS) to allies across the tiers of international cooperation. Our engineers define Protection Architectures and mechanisms that enable approved security for the transfer of sensitive technology.

We currently provide foreign disclosure and export compliance expertise to a dozen NAVAIR program offices exporting a wide array of systems and technologies, and our SSE, Cyber and AT SMEs support export requirements that enable export of technologies to allies across the tiers of international cooperation.

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Cyber Resiliency and Cyber Survivability

We have been supporting NAVAIR cybersecurity requirements since the implementation of DOD Information Assurance Certification and Accreditation Process (DIACAP). Our SMEs today are responsible for ensuring the security and compliance of systems across numerous NAVAIR programs following the RMF Assess & Authorize (A&A) process. Our SMEs conduct security categorizations and risk assessments and implement security controls based on the security categorization of the system. We perform system scans, implement Security Technical Implementation Guides (STIGs) and Security Content Automation Protocol (SCAP) Benchmarks, and address vulnerabilities.  Our SSEs develop cyber survivability requirements, lead the program Cybersecurity Survivability Risk Assessments (CSRAs) and Cyber Table Tops (CTTs), and coordinate with NAVAIR Airworthiness to receive a Cybersafe certification.
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Anti-Tamper and Critical Technology Protection

For more than two decades, we have been the premier Anti-Tamper Engineering support corporation for Naval Air Systems Command (NAVAIR) and the United States Marine Corps (USMC).  Our team authored the initial Navy Anti-Tamper Desk reference and the subsequent updates.  Additionally, we have contributed extensively to the initial DoD Anti Desk Reference.  Our System Security Engineer (SSE) Subject Matter Experts (SME) have operated in or supported all key elements of the design, development, testing, independent evaluation, production and operational support of the full spectrum of Anti-Tamper solution requirements across the Naval Air Weapons Systems portfolio.  Whatever Anti-Tamper requirements are needed, we have the experience and can provide the expertise needed to ascertain what should be done to obtain authoritative concurrence.
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Export Control and Compliance

Aether provides expert International Traffic in Arms Regulations (ITAR) and Export Administration Regulations (EAR) export compliance consulting to ensure organizations adhere to U.S. export laws. Our experts make ITAR and EAR classification decisions, accurately classifying defense articles and dual-use goods under the United States Munitions List (USML) or Commerce Control List (CCL), ensuring compliance with federal regulations. We streamline the export licensing process with tailored guidance on obtaining approvals from the Department of State Directorate of Defense Trade Controls (DDTC) and Department of Commerce Bureau of Industry and Security (BIS) while implementing robust internal Export Compliance Programs (ECP) to sustain long-term regulatory adherence. Additionally, our team also conducts comprehensive internal audits and develops training programs to identify compliance gaps, prevent violations, and educate personnel on evolving ITAR and EAR requirements.

Our approach to export compliance combines deep regulatory knowledge with tailored, proactive strategies to safeguard organizations from penalties and operational disruptions. Our team includes former regulators, legal experts, and defense industry specialists, ensuring accurate guidance aligned with government expectations. We assist in policy development, voluntary disclosures, risk mitigation strategies, and ground-up ECP development to ensure full compliance with export control laws.

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JHNA digital engineering METHODS EXPERTISE

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Model-Based System Engineering (MBSE)

MBSE represents both a current and growing area of expertise within JHNA. JHNA has engineers skilled in numerous MBSE tools and methods at all levels starting with entry and leading to seasoned professionals. The JHNA approach to this technology is to combine MBSE tool training with expertise in the domain of application. JHNA believes this approach separates us from the competition by having a base of staff knowledgeable in both MBSE tools and how best to apply them based on domain knowledge. Domain knowledge is not easy to acquire and maintain. JHNA has hiring and retention practices to ensure this high level of MBSE expertise is available for clients needing to apply MBSE techniques for their business and technical developments.

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Agile SW and Development Tools (DevSecOps)

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Systems Engineering and Modeling Languages

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JHNA's digital engineering METHODS process

In the early stages of systems engineering, our work centers around clarifying the end user’s needs and problems, capturing the goals the system is intended to support, and then measuring and evaluating the system's effectiveness in supporting these goals.

Our JHNA consultants do this by documenting the required system functionality, interfaces, physical and performance characteristics linked directly to the goals, and any effectiveness measures documented in our modeling environment. We then capture alternative system solutions by organizing the preliminary system design into modeling components that satisfy the modeled system requirements. This provides a digital environment to compare and contrast solutions that optimize the design and maximize the stated effective measures.

Characteristic of our careful and diligent work, our model based engineering environment maintains traceability from the system goals to the system and component requirements. It is during the system integration and test process, that the verified components are integrated into the system. System test cases are developed and digitally documented to verify the system requirements are satisfied.

The end result is a disciplined system engineering process coupled with digital engineering rigor that produces a well-documented and traceable balanced system solution that satisfies our stakeholder needs.  

On-going Support

During the operations and support phase, our JHNA consultants continue to fine tune solutions. We develop fielding plans, assist with system upgrades, develop training programs that optimize system use, and facilitate hardware and software training and integration.

JHNA’s end-to-end system development support ensures the system stays responsive to warfighter needs and within the realm of engineering capability.