Transition to Practice

Addressing rapidly evolving cyber threats requires a better way to bridge the gap between cybersecurity research and the marketplace. The Cyber Security Division within the Homeland Security Advanced Research Project Agency (HSARPA) has created the Transition to Practice (TTP) program to address this need. Through TTP, DHS S&T is leading the successful transition of federally funded cybersecurity technologies into broader use and creating an efficient transition process that will have a lasting impact on the R&D community.

Goals

Identify mature technologies that address an existing or imminent cybersecurity gap in public or private systems that impacts national security.
Increase use through partnerships, product development efforts, and marketing strategies.
Improve the long term ability for federal government research labs to transition technology more efficiently.

Motivation

Successful transition of cybersecurity technology from research to operational use is i The Transition to Practice project is bridging the gab between cybersecurity R&D and transitioning technology into the marketplace. dentified as a critical area in the 2011 and 2016 Federal Cybersecurity R&D Strategic Plans.

Transition remains a difficult endeavor with many challenges. Only a small fraction of the research performed in federal laboratories reaches the marketplace where it can have an impact. This problem, known as “the Valley of Death,” is often a result of lack of partnerships between the government and the private sector, non-existent funding and other resources to mature the technology, and inefficient processes for transitioning technology out of the laboratory environment.

Approach

The TTP program conducts tech foraging to identify promising cybersecurity technologies from several sources of federally-funded R&D, including DOE National Labs, DOD Labs, Federally Funded Research and Development Centers (FFRDC), University Affiliated Research Centers, and universities funded through National Science Foundation grants. Approximately eight new technologies are selected by TTP every year.

The TTP transition process includes training, market validation, testing and evaluation, pilot deployment, and outreach. Technologies are introduced to potential partners, investors, and integrators, and showcased at a national series of Technology Demonstration Days.

TTP supports multiple paths to transition, including open source, licensing, startups, adoption by cyber operators, and government use.

TTP Successes

Since its inception in 2012, the TTP program has successfully transitioned a number of federally funded cybersecurity technologies:

Quantum Security (LANL): Licensed to Whitewood Encryption Systems; available commercially
Hyperion (ORNL): Licensed to Lenvio Inc; product in use by government and large corporations
PathScan (LANL): Licensed by Ernst & Young; product is part of cybersecurity offering
NeMS (LLNL): Licensed to Cambridge Global; in development
PACRAT (PNNL): Licensed to Rhino Corp; adding capability to existing product
LOCKMA (MIT Lincoln Lab): Licensed to several companies for use in government solutions
ZeroPoint (University of North Carolina, NSF grantee): Available commercially from Zeropoint Dynamics, a network security start up
Hone (PNNL): Available as open source