Cyber Secure Dashboard Origins

Recognizing Cybersecurity as an Essential Business Process

Leadership in Compliance

The Cyber Secure Dashboard project began as a collaboration in 2017 between the Department of Homeland Security’s Critical Infrastructure Resilience Institute at the University of Illinois, and Heartland Science and Technology Group, not-for-profit scientific research and engineering company.

The Dashboard project was initially funded by the United States Department of Defense through the MxD (formerly Digital Manufacturing & Design Innovation Institute) Factory Operations & Industrial Control Systems Cyber Security Project.

Addressing the Challenges

For Large and Small Enterprises Throughout the Supply Chain

Our team was tasked with creating a tool to simplify and expedite the compliance process for every manufacturer, and to create a clear path to maintain future compliance. We wanted to empower experts as well as the uninitiated — to understand & meet compliance requirements — and to be prepared for a cyber compliant future.

As new DFARs requirements rolled out, MxD recognized that compliance would be a challenge for most small and mid-sized defense contractors. So the initial Dashboard project was proposed in support of Mx3’s objectives: to begin to understand the costs, challenges, and effectiveness of the DFARS controls for small and mid-sized manufacturers as an initial step in the continuing process of developing and refining technologies, standards and practices for factory floor data protection.

Compliance Isn't Enough

Risk Reduction Requires Continuous Management and Monitoring

From it’s inception, the Dashboard was developed to handle shifting standards and the inevitable need for cybersecurity verification requirements. Now, as CMMC becomes the new standard for risk management, the future of effective cybersecurity and risk management lies in our ability to take these newly establish base-line practices and compliance assessments forward –applying them to the entire supply chain. Businesses up-and-down the supply chain can now understand and continuously monitor their own status relative to evolving compliance regulations, and to the very real cybersecurity risks they imply. Now more than ever, business leaders need an application that can facilitate essential cybersecurity leadership, mentorship, communication, documentation, and accurate risk assessment.

Leave No Business Behind

Our Mission - Connect Every Link In The Chain

A Secure Supply Chain Requires Collaboration
We develop applications to automate and manage cybersecurity as a business process. We provide organizations of all sizes an easy to understand and implement process -- to meet the NIST SP 800-171 and CMMC cybersecurity standards and align with industry best practices. Our approach enables organizations of all sizes and capabilities to continuously adapt to changing requirements, to effectively communicate with internal and external stakeholders, to understand their posture relative to multiple interrelated standards, and continuously progress toward a more secure end state.

A Collaboration Across Trusted Public and Private Entities

Cyber Secure Dashboard Sponsors
Critical Infrastructure Resilience Institute

Key Sponsor

The Critical Infrastructure Resilience Institute at the University of Illinois -- a Department of Homeland Security Science & Technology Center of Excellence (CIRI) conducts research and education that enhances the resiliency of the nation’s critical infrastructures and the businesses and public entities that own and operate those assets and systems. Funded by a $20 million five-year grant from the Department of Homeland Security, it is led by the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign with collaborators from other U.S. universities and national labs.

CIRI’s work is grounded in sound academic research but with the ultimate goal of developing products that will positively impact the security and resilience of our nation’s critical infrastructure.

The Dashboard is part of the CIRI research portfolio – a technology transition research output developed, in part, for use by DHS operational components, other homeland security end users, policymakers, decision makers across all levels of industry and government, and community leaders.

Manufacturing X Digital (MXD)

Founding Sponsor

MxD (formerly the Digital Manufacturing & Design Innovation Institute) in 2015, recognized that compliance with the new DFAR 252.204-7012 would be a challenge for most small and mid-sized defense contractors. In response, MxD/DMDII funded the Factory Operations & Industrial Control Systems Cyber Security Project.

The project's objective was to begin to understand the costs, challenges, and effectiveness of the DFARS controls for small and mid-sized manufacturers as an initial step in the continuing process of developing and refining technologies, standards and practices for factory floor data protection.

The Dashboard v1.0 was funded by this MxD/DMDII project.

Lockheed Martin

Collaborator

LMCO is a global security and aerospace company principally engaged in the research, design, development, manufacture, integration and sustainment of advanced technology systems, products and services. We also provide a broad range of management, engineering, technical, scientific, logistics and information services. We serve both U.S. and international customers with products and services that have defense, civil and commercial applications, with our principal customers being agencies of the U.S. Government. In 2014, 79% of our $45.6 billion in net sales were from the U.S. Government, either as a prime contractor or as a subcontractor (including 59% from the Department of Defense (DoD)), 20% were from international customers (including foreign military sales (FMS) contracted through the U.S. Government) and 1% were from U.S. commercial and other customers. Our main areas of focus are in defense, space, intelligence, homeland security and information technology, including cyber security.

The Dashboard project objective was to begin to understand the costs, challenges, and effectiveness of the DFARS controls for small and mid-sized manufacturers as an initial step in the continuing process of developing and refining technologies, standards and practices for factory floor data protection.

Heartland Science and Technology Group

Technology Partner & Founding Sponsor

Heartland Science & Technology Group is the trusted technology partner for the Cyber Secure Dashboard – devoted to solving technical challenges of national, local & public interest. As a 501(C)(3) not-for-profit corporation, Heartland teams with private industry, government organizations & academia to support big-picture problem-solving. Heartland engages in scientific research & engineering development, provides & maintains technology solutions, and facilitates and manages mission-critical collaborative partnerships for clients.
Information Trust Institute

Key Sponsor

The Information Trust Institute (ITI) at the University of Illinois provides national leadership combining research and education with industrial outreach in trustworthy and secure information systems. ITI brings together over 100 faculty and senior researchers, many graduate student researchers, and industry partners to conduct foundational and applied research to enable the creation of critical applications and cyber infrastructures. In doing so, ITI is creating computer systems, software, and networks that society can depend on to be trustworthy, meaning that they are secure, dependable (reliable and available), correct, safe, private, and survivable. Instead of concentrating on narrow and focused technical solutions, ITI aims to create a new paradigm for designing trustworthy systems from the ground up and validating systems that are intended to be trustworthy.
CIRI’s work is grounded in sound academic research but with the ultimate goal of developing products that will positively impact the security and resilience of our nation’s critical infrastructure.

The Dashboard is part of the CIRI research portfolio – a technology transition research output developed, in part, for use by DHS operational components, other homeland security end users, policymakers, decision makers across all levels of industry and government, and community leaders.

University of Illinois

Founding Sponsor

Illinois students, scholars, and alumni are a community with the power to change the world. With a land-grant heritage as a foundation, Illinois pioneers innovative research that tackles global problems and expands the human experience. The University's transformative learning experiences, in and out of the classroom, are designed to produce alumni who desire to make a significant, societal impact.
HL Precision Manufacturing

Collaborator

Integrity Technology Solutions (Integrity)
Integrity Technology Solutions has been supporting the information technology needs of Central Illinois businesses for over two decades. Through personalized support we become an extension of our client’s team, functioning as their very own IT department.
Integrity has a skilled team of 30 local professionals who have the training, experience and tools to support our clients IT security needs and the business knowledge to understand why it's critical. Integrity provides the following services:
· IT support & help desk
· Secure cloud services (secure public cloud, private cloud, hybrid cloud & data center)
· Secure mobile connectivity and mobile business solutions
· Technology consulting and technology project deployments and project management
· Network design, security, and administration
· On-premise & off-site backup & disaster recovery
· Chief technology officer and technology advisor services

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