Rochester Institute of Technology Students Help Reinforce Critical DOS Communication Networks
Four cybersecurity students at Rochester Institute of Technology proposed a plan that may fortify the safety of Departments of State (DOS) personnel worldwide. The students, Ryan Cheevers-Brown, William Joslin, Vishal Pranav, and Brian Rich aim to enhance the reliability of communications systems in US embassies to streamline potentially life-saving communications during emergency events.
From left to right, Rochester Institute of Technology Students Ryan Cheevers-Brown, Brian Rich, Vishal Pranav, and William Joslin during their final presentations in December 2023.
The Critical Communication team spent a semester working with personnel from the Directorate of Cyber and Technology Security (CTS) to investigate how communication in DOS overseas offices can be improved in emergencies. They were aided by their problem sponsor, Special Agent Brian Rapier of the Diplomatic Security Service (DSS). “It can be terrifying when you are trying to pass critical information and the info is not being passed,” Rapier said, “having reliable communications is critical to facilitating the safe conduct of US foreign policy work.”
The students conducted 47 interviews with DSS special agents, other DOS security and IT professionals, local law enforcement officials, and private sector subject matter experts to investigate the problem and possible solutions. They discovered common pain points when using their devices, including dead zones outdoors, unreliable indoor coverage, and garbled messages.
The team’s proposal is to enhance signal with low-cost short-range repeaters in areas of overseas posts with coverage deficits. “[Short range repeaters] let you use existing devices in buildings, in basements, in places where you don't normally have coverage, and broadcast out over long-range repeaters to everyone in the service area,” Cheevers-Brown said.
They stressed that these new instruments would be compatible with the existing network infrastructure at overseas posts - DOS personnel would still use the same devices, and the short-range repeaters would connect seamlessly to the already existing long-range repeaters and ethernet hardwiring. “You’re using existing cabling that’s already there,” Joslin said, “so it’s faster and more reliable.”
Rapier plans to introduce the proposal to key stakeholders in DOS and seek approval to identify an embassy that will serve as a pilot for the team’s solution. The students hope that if the pilot is successful, their proposal will become a model that can be replicated across multiple embassies.