Applied Communication Sciences (ACS)
Applied Communication Sciences (ACS) delivers world class research, consulting and engineering to
enable government agencies, telecom carriers and commercial enterprises to fully exploit technology
futures. Drawing on its Bell Labs heritage, ACS excels at creating innovative technologies and services to
solve the most difficult and complex information and communications problems. Areas of particular
expertise include cybersecurity and information assurance, network and operations, data analytics,
advanced software and methodologies, wireless and mobility, application engineering and integration,
smart grid, and optical networking and quantum technologies. ACS is particularly valued for working
large-scale problems requiring deep knowledge of technology and operations. ACS’s ability to assess,
create and deliver solutions with end-end security, scalability, reliability and interoperability are widely
viewed as best in class. The company is headquartered in Basking Ridge, N.J., and is a wholly-owned
subsidiary of The SI Organization, Inc.
Describe your innovative technology and how it solves a real world problem:
The ACS SecureSmart™ MSS is the industry's first wireless network intrusion detection and security
monitoring solution for Smart Grid Advanced Meter Infrastructure (AMI) and Distribution Automation
(DA) deployments. Offered under a Continuous Monitoring as a Service (CMaaS) model, SecureSmart
bundles network and cybersecurity monitoring services, a set of analysis applications, MSS
infrastructure, and ACS-developed, first-of-its-kind sensor technology to provide 24x7 anomaly
detection and real-time network visibility.
Recognized by the U.S. Department of Energy with a 2013 Cybersecurity for Energy Delivery Systems
(CEDS) grant, the service includes daily cyber threat analysis performed by security experts who review
bulk alerts and perform trace analysis, investigate and track suspicious activity, and provide incident
notification. SecureSmart sensors unobtrusively overlay on existing field infrastructure and use groundbreaking technology to intercept over-the-air transmissions from fixed and mobile platforms.
SecureSmart MSS monitoring and analysis applications include: ProbeLive / FAN Analyzer™, which
enables utilities to observe and dissect, through deep packet inspection, real-time traffic flowing in their
Field Networks; a custom IDS to monitor mesh-based traffic for malicious activities and policy violations;
MeshView™ Analysis and Visualization, which constructs logical and GIS-based connectivity and routing
maps of dynamic self-forming, FAN subnets based on traffic observations; and TrafficProfiler, which
provides a real-time network health dashboard. All support security monitoring and analysis, forensics,
network operations, network engineering, and field diagnostics use cases.
AMI and DA FANs are the largest, possibly most complex, and least understood networks operated by
U.S. utilities. They are part of, and support, a critical national infrastructure that is important to our
economy and national security. Utilities need security monitoring systems and tools to detect intrusion
in AMI and DA FANs and provide better situational awareness. Moreover, in a global economy where
products have deep, complex supply chains, utilities need independent means to monitor their systems
to mitigate supply chain threats.
ACS SecureSmart MSS fills the gap to independently monitor wireless AMI and DA networks and also
helps protect government and military installations that are implementing Smart Grid systems. Prior to
ACS SecureSmart, utilities were unable to “see into the wireless mesh” and monitor field
communications among AMI and DA nodes. The security and network monitoring tools used by utilities
to manage IT communications were largely unusable in AMI and DA FANs. ACS SecureSmart MSS
overcomes these obstacles and provides real-time visibility and monitoring of wireless Smart Grid
networks for intrusions and network health issues.
In addition to security monitoring, the ACS SecureSmart MSS provides real-time network health
information that can alert network management personnel to malfunctioning network components,
network outages and other unusual network behavior. SecureSmart MSS applications provide traffic and
network topology views that can help rapidly locate the source of network troubles. ACS MeshView
provides network views that can help optimize the placement of collectors and access points to improve
performance and minimize equipment expenditures. ACS Probe Live / FAN Analyzer assists network
operators and field technicians troubleshoot problems by providing direct access to field traffic.
ACS’s SecureSmart MSS is a first-of-its-kind solution for monitoring wireless AMI/DA networks. There are
no other commercial solutions available to independently monitor FAN traffic and detect security
anomalies/intrusions or software bugs. ACS’s SecureSmart MSS is a low-cost, easy to deploy solution
that uses a probe-based architecture to passively intercept over-the-air FAN communications. The field
sensors meet utility equipment safety and operational requirements, are deployable in diverse
environmental conditions, and can be deployed in fleet vehicles.
ACS’s SecureSmart MSS provides a security event stream to feed Security Incident and Event
Management systems to enable enterprise-wide situational awareness. The product uses novel, sensorbased technology to peer directly into FAN wireless communications to detect anomalous behavior and
early signs of attack. Smart Grid AMI/DA are among today's largest IPv6 networks. ACS SecureSmart is
an independent, security overlay solution that can be applied at any stage of network deployment
without special hooks into the infrastructure. Because it is completely independent of the infrastructure
that it monitors, ACS’s SecureSmart MSS also helps mitigate supply chain threats.
The ACS SecureSmart MSS closes the gap for security capabilities to independently monitor and detect
malicious and anomalous activity in AMI/DA FANs. ACS’s SecureSmart MSS is offered as a complete
CMaaS that simplifies deployment of an AMI/DA security solution for utilities both large and small and
other entities. ACS SecureSmart alleviates the challenge of cultivating deep expertise and domain
knowledge to secure and manage new and unfamiliar networks that have many non-standard elements.
Because ACS SecureSmart packages its own secure infrastructure from probes through operations, there
is reduced operational burden and complexity for utilities, enabling them to focus on power delivery and
customer issues. ACS SecureSmart is well suited for all utilities, but particularly mid-size to small utilities
that do not possess the resources to launch a new security operations group. The first generation of ACS
SecureSmart MSS, its underlying sensor technology and analysis applications have already been
implemented and deployed. ACS has successfully commercialized the SecureSmart MSS, launching it
with the Sacramento Municipal Utility District (SMUD), a leading Smart Grid utility. Since April 2013,
fielded probes have been actively intercepting and backhauling AMI and DA traffic to ACS’s data center
for monitoring and analysis. ACS continues research and development to enhance the SecureSmart MSS,
its analytic and detection capabilities, and application features.