BlueSpace

Overview

BlueSpace creates multi-level (MLS) mashup applications that can span multiple networks at different classification levels.  These applications can have a significant impact on information sharing and network centric operations:

• Collaboration: Improve information sharing by allowing users to work seamlessly across multiple security domains at the same time through a single user interface.

• Command & Control: Consolidate separate Common Operating Pictures into a Unified Operating Picture that spans multiple domains – a “God’s eye view” for joint and coalition operations that can save lives.

• Cyber Security: Reduce systems’ surface attack area for exploitation and improve the security of classified networks by reducing the volume of cross-domain data transfers – keep the data on the right network.

• Intelligence Analysis: Achieve unique insights by carrying out true ‘all source’ intelligence analysis in application interfaces spanning multiple domains at the same time.

• Record Messaging: Refresh legacy AMHS and record messaging systems with a modern platform, delivering more flexible data integration, access controls and workflow processes.

MLS can help defense and intelligence organizations achieve transformational change that significantly improves mission effectiveness.

What’s Unique about BlueSpace?

• COTS:

  • Status Quo: Heavily custom MLS solutions built on a T&M basis by government funded system integrators.

  • BlueSpace: Currently the only enterprise software company creating commercial-off-the-shelf, MLS end user applications.

• User Friendly:

  • Status Quo: User interfaces run on native UNIX desktops, heavily customized, often look ‘legacy’ before initial deployment after long accreditation cycle.

  • BlueSpace: Users interfaces run in Windows, look modern (web 2.0) and typically reuse significant portions of existing applications, e.g. Microsoft Outlook OWA for Unity MLS email client.

• Initial Costs:

  • Status Quo: Startup costs high due to custom development, typically over $5m including starting up a government PMO.

  • BlueSpace: Buy COTS applications, initial production pilot costs typically less than $1m.

• Lifecycle Costs:

  • Status Quo: Ongoing code management, patching, OS migration and accreditation costs borne by at most a handful of government offices – unpredictable maintenance costs.

  • BlueSpace: COTS software means predictable maintenance costs negotiated at initial acquisition, typically 18% of license.

• Successful:

  • Status Quo: Continue to fail to be broadly adopted, with suppliers sometimes focused on billing hours rather than making a successful result.

  • BlueSpace: Interests aligned – prove it in a pilot of a BlueSpace COTS product, and only scale up once success is assured.

Effecting Strategic Change

In the commercial world, Apple’s iTunes has had much greater success in getting people to buy music again than the RIPAA suing file sharers.  Facebook is doing more to connect the real and virtual lives of 20 somethings than university studies on the negative social impacts of anonymous Massive Multiplayer Games.

Creating strategic change in the defense and intelligence communities is not solely about training and culture – the right technology can catalyze the type of behavior being mandated at the strategic level.  When an intelligence analyst has to go to a separate computer (whether physical or virtual) to create an intelligence product on a lower classified network, they are far more likely to compose it on the high-side network.  Give that analyst an MLS client with a dropdown arrow from which to pick the network for his/her new intelligence product, and the chance of that analyst following policy to ‘write to share’ goes up dramatically.

MLS should be considered a strategic priority for any defense or intelligence organization struggling with silos in multiple domains or a lack of information sharing.  Users love multi-level applications – working seamlessly across domains that were previously completely separated is a nirvana.  Being able to immediately recognize friend and foe in joint and coalition operations will save lives.

The convergence of virtualization and MLS that ‘really works’ in production systems will change the way the defense and intelligence communities think about networks.