In the fight against terrorism, the Department of Homeland Security is constantly looking for new technology. Many of these technological advancements in homeland security are based around cyber security technologies. With an increase in cyber warfare and hacking, technological advancements are a necessity if the government plans on combating crime.
1. REDUCE
REDUCE is a type of software that was developed to show relationships between different samples of malware. This type of technology identifies signatures in different code sections to tell if different malware groups are related. It is designed to compare multiple samples similarity and shows code patterns that are suspiciously similar. Unlike some technologies on this list, this one was intended for security workers who are not personally skilled at reverse engineering.
2. TRACER
This type of technological advancement was made to change the internal layout of closed-source Windows applications. Since these applications are closed, it means that hackers or criminals can create large-scale attacks on the system. With TRACER, sensitive internal data is randomized in outputs of the application. This makes it impossible for attackers to effectively attack them. Even when one data or layout leaks an output, the arrangement is completely changed by next time. While it prevents control-hijacking attacks, it does slow execution time by an average of 12 percent.
3. FLOWER
While it might have a pretty name, this application is a powerhouse in preventing breaches. It uses bi-directional flow data to identify the baseline traffic and spot whenever there is an abnormal flow. By doing this, it can prevent insider threats and breaches. After an incident has happened, it can use data to help forensic investigations. Since it was created in 2010, it has been deployed on more than 100 business and government networks. With the information provided from FLOWER, law enforcement officials are better able to spot, prevent and learn from potential attacks.
4. Socrates
Socrates is a software platform that looks for patterns within different data sets. This helps the platform to find cyber threats. Because it has computer science and analysis capabilities, it has abilities that a human analyst does not. While the analyst sleeps, Socrates carries out unsupervised analysis of data as it looks for potential patterns. The Department of Homeland Security uses this program to look at travel patterns to spot different associates of criminals and persons of interest.
5. REnigma
This software program is designed to run malware in a virtual machine. Then, it records what happens so that the malware can be analyzed. This helps researchers figure out how the malware works and what it does. To do this, REnigma works with a special virtual machine developed by John Hopkins that can record and replay what happens.
While there will always be people working against the safety and security of society, the Department of Homeland Security has developed a number of technological advancements to thwart their attempts. Some of these advancements have been commercialized so that business owners can protect their corporation as well. With the right technology, the government can prevent crime, spot attackers and learn how the criminals operate.
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