The West Virginia Army National Guard (WVARNG) and the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) Independent Verification and Validation (IV&V) Program in Fairmont, W. Va., have recently established an agreement to help defend against cyber threats. In August, this five year agreement was signed into effect by NASA’s IV&V Program Director, Greg Blaney, along with WVARNG’s Major General, James A. Hoyer. The agreement provides members of the WVARNG with support and training in cybersecurity and establishes a relationship between the two organizations.
The partnership emerged after members of the WVARNG Cyber Network Defense Team (CND-T) participated in a collaborative cyber training exercise hosted by NASA’s IV&V Program this past November. NASA personnel provided training on advanced network penetration techniques within the Jon McBride Software Testing and Research (JSTAR) Laboratory, located in the IV&V facility. Lead by NASA Cyber Research Engineers Brandon Bailey and Adam Alley, the WVARNG CND-T members exercised their skills on the cyber range and participated in unscripted hands-on cyberattack and exploitation drills. The drills put the team through realistic simulations to experience first-hand how a cyberattack happens and ways to defend against such threats.
NASA IV&V’s New Projects Lead, Jarrod Petersavage, worked alongside Brandon Bailey, who serves as the Project Manager of all activities under this agreement. Throughout the term of this agreement, Petersavage and Bailey will collaborate with WVARNG to identify and organize future projects. The event marked the first formal collaboration in history between NASA’s IV&V Program and the WVARNG. The success of the alliance sparked the push for the recent team-up agreement. This partnership will enhance the readiness and skill of the WVARNG CND-T members and contribute to the National Guard’s ability to secure and defend its networks for the future.
For more information about NASA’s IV&V Program, visit:
https://www.nasa.gov/centers/ivv/home/index.html
For more information about the WVARNG, visit:
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Bailee Miller
Project Analyst
NASA’s IV&V Program
Fairmont, WV 26554
304-367-8270
Bailee.R.Miller@ivv.nasa.gov