Applicability of Instant Messaging in the Military Command and Control Systems Author: Juha Vermaja Superviser: Jorma Jormakka Instructor: Marko Luoma, Lic.Sc. Helsinki University of Technology Networking laboratory

Contents Introduction Battlefield command and control systems Instant Messaging systems IM applicability to C2 usage Demonstration Conclusions

Introduction Many different IM applications available for free of charge IETF effords has created specifications and standards Security plays an important role in IM environments The requirements for the next generation IM systems are increasing The purpose of this thesis is to study the applicability and possibility of using commercially available IM systems in military C2IS (Command and Control Information Systems)

C2 Systems Command and Control (C2) messages are text messages used in military systems for data providing C2 messages can be created manually or automatically Receiving, interpretation and presentation can be automated C2 messages are independent of the physical layer Building new C2 systems is done parallel to old ones so that there is always one mechanism ready to be deployed C2 systems are not easily replaced by newer systems due to the switching costs

C2 Systems Cont... Situation now: Many countries have developed their own C2 messaging solutions including NATO countries The interoperability is a constant concern and no specific standards have been fully adopted Some standards are agreed upon, for example NATO’s Allied Data Publication No. 3 (AdatP-3) and United States Message Text Format (USMTF) AdatP-3 provides rules, constructions and vocabulary for message text formats

C2 Systems Cont... Situation in near future: In the year 1998 several countries started a joint operation called Multilateral Interoperability Programme (MIP) MIP aim is to achieve an international interoperability of C2IS in order to support combined and joint operations MIP will serve as a guideline for future developments At the moment MIP is in an implementation phaze

Instant Messaging Systems The idea of Instant Messaging comes from the Internet Relay Chat (IRC) Instant Messaging (IM) system is a text-based message system that allows the user to exchange short messages in real-time Presence awareness in its most simple form means that a user knows if another user is online or not The biggest problem in IM systems is the lack of standards Many applications are proprietary Several third party applications have been created that can handle the communication between proprietary solutions

IETF Standardization IETF has created a standard called Instant Messaging & Presence Protocol (IMPP) IMPP working group has produced several RFC’s and drafts defining protocols and data formats needed to build global end-user presence awareness, notification and IM system 2 Major IETF RFC’s are: Model for presence and instant messaging (RFC 2778) Instant messaging / presence protocol requirements (RFC 2779)

IMPP Protocols Several candidates have been competing to get a position of an official standard of IM systems with open standard protocols Session Initiation Protocol (SIP) and Jabber are the strongest candidates Many applications already use SIP or Jabber Interoperability between SIP and Jabber is achieved by using gateways

Applicability to C2IS Security Most IM applications do not use any encryption methods All the consumer applications use plain text authentication and messages are sent in plain text format Flexibility and scalability IM systems work in client-server environment Scalability is not an problem

Applicability Scenarios Temporary and fast to build For example in disaster area where all the other communication systems have been destroyed Automated systems A computer can interpret the messages Convenience The usage of presence awareness

Demonstration The demonstration was done in a closed network that corresponds to a simple wireless local area network The purpose of the demonstration was to study the behavior of the IM applications and the traffic The results Unencrypted messages could be easily captured The network topology could be discovered A conversation that includes 2 – 10 messages is only bytes per participant

Conclusions Interoperable standards are needed Both IMPP protocols (SIP and Jabber) will stay in IM systems and cooperate via the gateways IM systems can offer many advantages Security is a big problem COTS available IM applications do not satisfy wholly the needs of the C2 communication -> Specified applications are needed to make the communication easy and practical Specified applications with specific platforms are needed in order to build automated systems

Questions? Thank you!