Oct 21 – Chapter Candidates and Overview of Center for Hardware & Embedded System Security and Trust (CHEST)

Please join us via Zoom for the October chapter meeting by registering here.

On Thursday, October 21, we will gather to hear candidates for the 2021 board provide a brief overview of their qualifications and reasons for running. Afterwards, we have a panel scheduled to discuss the work being done by the Center for Hardware & Embedded System Security and Trust (CHEST).

Our presenters, Zachary Collier, PhD and Luis Concha, are two of the leaders behind this important initiative. Society has come to rely on the Internet. No news there, but as new technologies and hardware such as embedded systems become more common, we need to address threats specific to them. Our presenters will review the severity and nature of threats to the embedded systems and other hardware that we increasingly use and discuss their center’s mission to address those threats. They will cover some of the solutions that they are working on and how they see these defenses playing out over time as the cat-and-mouse game of cyber intrusions continues.

CHEST Overview

The CHEST Center is funded by a combination of National Science Foundation grants and memberships by industry and non-profit institutions, and CHEST coordinates university-based research with partner needs to advance knowledge of security, assurance, and trust for electronic hardware and embedded systems.

CHEST areas of interest include identification, detection, monitoring, mitigation, and elimination of vulnerabilities that affect hardware and embedded systems. More specifically, CHEST covers all levels of hardware and embedded systems design: system, architectural, board, microprocessor, embedded system, application specific integrated circuit (ASIC), field programmable gate array (FPGA), and other circuits. Threats to hardware and embedded devices cover a broad range of attack vectors with the integration of design, manufacturing, supply chains, operations, and complex assemblies of hardware, software, and firmware. Vulnerabilities can be introduced at any hardware design level and any stage of the product lifecycle. The NSF CHEST Center addresses security, assurance, and trust across all levels and stages. The Center is inventing and disseminating technologies, practices, and guidelines to stakeholders and educating a next generation of experts.

Areas of research include: hardware assurance, counterfeit detection, integrated circuit authentication, anti-reverse engineering and anti-tampering, secure communication protocols, formal verification, secure processor architectures, vulnerability analysis, infrastructure safety and resilience, and secure systems engineering.

About the Speakers

Zachary A. Collier is Assistant Professor in the Department of Management at Radford University. His research interests include Risk Analysis and Decision Analysis, which he has applied to a number of areas including supply chain and logistics management, acquisition and lifecycle management of new technologies, and evaluation of the safety, security, and sustainability of processes and systems. He is an active member of the Society for Risk Analysis where he is President of the Decision Analysis and Risk Specialty Group, is a Fellow of the Center for Risk Management of Engineering Systems at University of Virginia, and contributes as a subject matter expert to the development of industry standards through SAE International. He is President of Collier Research Systems, a consultancy providing decision making and analytics services. His prior work experience includes the U.S. Army Engineer Research and Development Center, where he was a member of the Risk and Decision Science Team. He has also held consulting positions in the area of accident reconstruction. He is Managing Editor of the Springer journal “Environment Systems & Decisions”, and has published over 40 peer-reviewed journal articles, book chapters, and conference papers on topics related to decision modeling, risk analysis, and resilience. He earned his Ph.D. in Systems Engineering from University of Virginia, a Master of Engineering Management from Duke University, and a Bachelor of Science from Florida State University.Zachary A. Collier is Assistant Professor in the Department of Management at Radford University. His research interests include Risk Analysis and Decision Analysis, which he has applied to a number of areas including supply chain and logistics management, acquisition and lifecycle management of new technologies, and evaluation of the safety, security, and sustainability of processes and systems. He is an active member of the Society for Risk Analysis where he is President of the Decision Analysis and Risk Specialty Group, is a Fellow of the Center for Risk Management of Engineering Systems at University of Virginia, and contributes as a subject matter expert to the development of industry standards through SAE International. He is President of Collier Research Systems, a consultancy providing decision making and analytics services. His prior work experience includes the U.S. Army Engineer Research and Development Center, where he was a member of the Risk and Decision Science Team. He has also held consulting positions in the area of accident reconstruction. He is Managing Editor of the Springer journal “Environment Systems & Decisions”, and has published over 40 peer-reviewed journal articles, book chapters, and conference papers on topics related to decision modeling, risk analysis, and resilience. He earned his Ph.D. in Systems Engineering from University of Virginia, a Master of Engineering Management from Duke University, and a Bachelor of Science from Florida State University.Zachary A. Collier is Assistant Professor in the Department of Management at Radford University. His research interests include Risk Analysis and Decision Analysis, which he has applied to a number of areas including supply chain and logistics management, acquisition and lifecycle management of new technologies, and evaluation of the safety, security, and sustainability of processes and systems. He is an active member of the Society for Risk Analysis where he is President of the Decision Analysis and Risk Specialty Group, is a Fellow of the Center for Risk Management of Engineering Systems at University of Virginia, and contributes as a subject matter expert to the development of industry standards through SAE International. He is President of Collier Research Systems, a consultancy providing decision making and analytics services. His prior work experience includes the U.S. Army Engineer Research and Development Center, where he was a member of the Risk and Decision Science Team. He has also held consulting positions in the area of accident reconstruction. He is Managing Editor of the Springer journal “Environment Systems & Decisions”, and has published over 40 peer-reviewed journal articles, book chapters, and conference papers on topics related to decision modeling, risk analysis, and resilience. He earned his Ph.D. in Systems Engineering from University of Virginia, a Master of Engineering Management from Duke University, and a Bachelor of Science from Florida State University.Zachary A. Collier is Assistant Professor in the Department of Management at Radford University. His research interests include Risk Analysis and Decision Analysis, which he has applied to a number of areas including supply chain and logistics management, acquisition and lifecycle management of new technologies, and evaluation of the safety, security, and sustainability of processes and systems. He is an active member of the Society for Risk Analysis where he is President of the Decision Analysis and Risk Specialty Group, is a Fellow of the Center for Risk Management of Engineering Systems at University of Virginia, and contributes as a subject matter expert to the development of industry standards through SAE International. He is President of Collier Research Systems, a consultancy providing decision making and analytics services. His prior work experience includes the U.S. Army Engineer Research and Development Center, where he was a member of the Risk and Decision Science Team. He has also held consulting positions in the area of accident reconstruction. He is Managing Editor of the Springer journal “Environment Systems & Decisions”, and has published over 40 peer-reviewed journal articles, book chapters, and conference papers on topics related to decision modeling, risk analysis, and resilience. He earned his Ph.D. in Systems Engineering from University of Virginia, a Master of Engineering Management from Duke University, and a Bachelor of Science from Florida State University.

Luis Concha served for thirty-two years as an Air Force civil servant in a wide range of engineering and leadership roles. He spent the first part of his career in the Air Force Research Laboratory Sensors Directorate where he worked Integrated Circuit design, VHDL modeling, and CAD tool research. He then worked for the Materials and Manufacturing Directorate where he developed the first Manufacturing Readiness Levels assessment and measurement process. He also led the MEMS based IMU program creating new IMUs with state-of-the-art MEMS devices. At his final stop at AFRL he led the RF/EO Integration branch where he oversaw the integration of the best new sensor technologies into critical experiments leading to technology transitions. After AFRL Mr. Concha went to work for the Air Force Life Cycle Management Center in the ISR & SOF PEO as the Deputy Director of Engineering. There he led Anti-Tamper efforts for the PEO and Program Offices. Finally, Mr. Concha was selected as the Chief Engineer for the Sensors Program Office where he oversaw a large portfolio of sensor development for Air Force platforms.