DHS releases 2018 Mobile Security Research and Development Program Guide

The Department of Homeland Security (DHS) Science and Technology Directorate (S&T) recently released its 2018 Mobile Security Research and Development (R&D) Program Guide, which introduces the program’s technology projects, goals, and objectives.

The Mobile Security R&D Program aims to address technical, operational, and policy challenges to the adoption of secure mobile technologies to enable the mobile workforce to support the homeland security mission and enable mission success through mobile technologies.

“Mobile technologies are evolving rapidly to meet increasing consumer demand and in parallel technology, developers are evolving and improving their technologies to maintain a competitive edge,” Douglas Maughan, director of S&T’s Cyber Security Division, said. “The high adoption rate of mobile devices, apps and services by consumers and government departments has made the technologies a new target for attackers, who are taking advantage of this rapid pace of change to pinpoint vulnerabilities and introduce malware into the mobile ecosystem.”

The guide includes an overview of the Mobile Security R&D Program strategy and summaries of the program’s two project areas: Mobile Device Security and Mobile Application Security. It also features description of 11 current R&D efforts from both project areas.

It also includes a Table of Mobile Security Guidance, which provides information on recent developments in mobile security standards and guidelines, reference architectures and security solutions for mobile technology implementations.

“As the adoption of mobile technology by the federal government and the private sector accelerates, the S&T Mobile Security R&D Program is helping to secure these innovative technologies through targeted R&D that addresses security gaps and barriers,” S&T Mobile Security R&D Program Manager Vincent Sritapan said. “This guide will raise awareness about the program within the federal government and the private sector and create opportunities to transition these new technologies to operational use.”

The program guide is free to download from the S&T website.