Boeing

Boeing [NYSE: BA] information sharing technology that supports defense and homeland security has received a top trial designation from the U.S. Department of Defense following a demonstration last year.

The technology allows the sharing of information in near real-time among various governmental users and doesn't require significant architecture changes to already fielded operational systems. It provides assured means to connect various networks used by government and civil agencies to process information.

Known as the Multi-Level-Secure Information Infrastructure, or MI2, the technology provides the capability to share information between security levels and between agencies. With MI2, communities can control information sharing between network domains at all tactical and operational levels.

"MI2 addresses some of the critical interoperability capabilities that are necessary to protect our nation from terrorist threats," said Brian Knutsen, general manager of Boeing S &IS Mission Systems. "MI2 successfully demonstrated the ability to act as a 'middle-man' for data exchanges between the various systems, agencies and networks and provided a capability to pass data among unclassified networks, the internet, and classified networks without compromising security."

The top trial designation for MI2 was made in February 2006 by the Coalition Warfare Interoperability Demonstration (CWID) Senior Management Group following a demonstration in June 2005. The demonstration was sponsored by the Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff. The demonstration enabled U.S. Combatant Commands and the international community to investigate solutions for Command, Control, Communications, Computers, Intelligence, Surveillance and Reconnaissance (C4ISR) that focus on relevant and timely objectives for enhancing coalition interoperability. MI2 recently was recommended by the U.S. Northern Command (NORTHCOM) for further evaluation and funding.

MI2 was developed by Boeing Integrated Defense Systems and uses technology from Tenix America, Inc. MI2 integrates Boeing's Secure Network Server (SNS) and Total Domain information management middleware with the Tenix Interactive Link Data Diode (IDD) to allow users to share and manage the flow of information between agencies and across security domains.

"Today's intelligence and homeland security communities need cross domain security and information sharing solutions," said Sam Maccherola, president of Tenix Datagate. "Having CWID recognize our Data Diode so shortly after it received an EAL-7 certification from the National Information Assurance Partnership (NIAP) reinforces that this technology is ready for deployment. We are honored to work with our partner Boeing as part of the MI2 solution and feel that together we offer a great method for providing interoperability between disparate organizations operating at different security levels."