the challenges of countering terrorist networks - cde themed call launch 19 mar 2013

The Challenges of Countering Terrorist Networks

Centre for Defence Enterprise (CDE)

© Crown Copyright MOD 2011

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Centre for Defence Enterprise

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UNCLASSIFIED / FOR PUBLIC RELEASE

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Call closes 12 April 2013 (at 1700 hrs)

The challenges of countering terrorist networks

Call closes 1 May 2013 (at 1700 hrs)

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Effective proposals

10:30 Introduction to CDE

10:45 Counter Terrorism Science & Technology Centre overview

10:55 Military context

11:25 Challenge 1 – understanding networks

11:40 Challenge 2 – identifying individuals

11:55 Q&A

12:05 Networking with lunch

13:00 Challenge 3 – translating information

13:15 Call summary

13:20 Ethics

13:25 CDE – submitting a successful proposal

13:35 Q&A

13:45 Networking with refreshments

15:15 Event close

Agenda

Network and question


Advanced Design and Manufacturing

Wing Commander Jim Pennycook


01235 438445

[email protected] www.science.mod.uk/enterprise






11:55 Q&A

12:05 Networking lunch


13:15 Call summary

13:20 Ethics


13:35 Q&A

13:45 Networking

15:15 Event close

Agenda

UNCLASSIFIED © Crown copyright 2013 Dstl

20 March 2013

The Challenges of Countering Terrorist

Networks


20 March 2013


20 March 2013

Harnessing and developing science

and technology (S&T) to increase

defence and security capability to

pursue and disrupt threats to UK

Countering terrorist networks


20 March 2013

Challenge 1: Understanding the

Network

Challenge 3: Translating Information

Challenge 2: Identifying Individuals

Today’s CDE call S&T challenges






11:55 Q&A



13:15 Call summary

13:20 Ethics


13:35 Q&A

13:45 Networking

15:15 Event close

Agenda

The Challenges of Countering Terrorist

Networks

Military Context


19 March 2013


19 March 2013

References


19 March 2013

Terminology

ISR = Intelligence, Surveillance and Reconnaissance

ISTAR = Intelligence, Surveillance, Target Acquisition and Reconnaissance

C4ISR = Command Control , Computers, Communications and ISR

E2E3 = End to End Enterprise

MPE = Materiel and Personnel Exploitation

FABINT = Forensic and Biometric Intelligence

DOCEX/DOMEX = Document Exploitation/Document and Media Exploitation

SIGINT = Signals Intelligence

OSINT = Open Source Intelligence

WTI = Weapons Technical Intelligence


19 March 2013

Future Character of Conflict: 5Cs

Contested

Constrained

Congested Cluttered

Connected


19 March 2013

The Future Battlespace

Contested Competition for resources. All geographies of operation are contested Sea, land, air & space, cyberspace and information

Congested To influence people we have to operate in, over and close to where they

live. People live in urban areas in the littoral There is no empty battlefield

Cluttered Network Enabled Capability will not fully lift the fog of war We need to understand and to discriminate

Connected Networks - source of strength for friend and foe Nodes are also a source of weakness

Constrained Legal and social norms - essential to our legitimacy - will limit us but not our adversaries

More

Constrained UNCLASSIFIED

Future Character of Conflict

Contested

Constrained

Congested Cluttered

Connected


19 March 2013

COMPLEX

CONTINGENCY

COALITION

URBAN

Understanding


19 March 2013

Understanding


19 March 2013

“Intelligence is knowing a tomato is a fruit.

Understanding is not putting it in a fruit salad.” JDP 04


19 March 2013

Afghanistan


19 March 2013

© Crown copyright 2013 Dstl

20 March 2013

CONTINGENCY


19 March 2013

Change in intelligence focus

Contingency

People Activities/Relationships

Cold War

Equipment Hierarchies


19 March 2013

Change in intelligence focus


19 March 2013


20 March 2013

Size, Weight and Power = SWaP


19 March 2013

Communications


19 March 2013

Constraint and oversight

Legal Ethical

Moral Political


19 March 2013

SCENARIOS

Maritime Boarding Operation

Insurgent Compound Assault

Non-combatant Evacuation Operation (NEO)


19 March 2013

Maritime boarding operation


19 March 2013

Compound Assault


20 March 2013

Compound assault

UNCLASSIFIED


19 March 2013

Compound assault

Compound assault


19 March 2013


19 March 2013

Compound assault


20 March 2013

Non-combatant Evacuation Operation (NEO)

UNCLASSIFIED

NEO


19 March 2013

Summary

Future Character of Conflict: 5Cs

ISR focus: People and activities

Understanding: Requires lots of information

Legal, ethical, moral, political constraints

Military are open to novel, smart alternatives


19 March 2013






11:55 Q&A



13:15 Call summary

13:20 Ethics


13:35 Q&A

13:45 Networking

15:15 Event close

Agenda

Challenge 1: Understanding

Networks

20 March 2013

© Crown copyright 2013 Dstl UNCLASSIFIED


20 March 2013

Not just people: organisations, locations, events, vehicles, phones, computers…….

Background

• MOD may have a need to support multiple operations at any one time, including

working with coalition partners and local security forces.

• There is a requirement to build up an understanding of the networks of people

and supporting infrastructure.

• There is a need to mine all the available information to identify individuals and

groups who are interested in countering defence and security activity.

• Operations may be data rich or data sparse, with information being fed from a

number of sources, with varying degrees of confidence.

• Requirement to fuse sources to build up network picture.

20 March 2013


S&T challenges


20 March 2013

Sources: Open source; MOD; OGDs; Local military/security; Coalition partners

Formats: Audio, Video, Text, Tabular, Imagery, STRUCTURED & UNSTRUCTURED

Data quality Data complexity

Volume Uncertainty Timeliness

Automated data diagnosis Complexity estimation

Extraction of structured content Metadata tagging

Conversion to common format

FLEXIBLE EXTRACT, TRANSFORMATION, AND LOADING

S&T challenges


20 March 2013

INFORMATION REPOSITORIES

ANALYTICS/PROCESSING Common Interface

Flexible and scalable data storage

Integration with traditional data structures

Automation of common tasks

Machine-led pattern finding (eg anomaly detection)

Automated prediction and validation

Enhanced collaborative mechanisms

AUGMENTATION OF ANALYTICAL WORKFLOW

What we want


20 March 2013

Fix one part of the challenge well, rather than several parts poorly

Open architectures

Use of open-source software is encouraged

State what data types and functions your proposal will consider (be clear)

Scalability of algorithms/solutions – will it handle “big data”

Simple interfaces encouraged to reduce training burden

What we don’t want


20 March 2013

Reliance on existing proprietary solutions or closed APIs

Enterprise-level solutions

Avoid reliance on third-party services

Avoid focussing on simple aspects of challenges: •Entity extraction

•Extraction of common file formats (eg HTML)

Summary

• Information fusion

• Open architectures

• Ease of use


20 March 2013

Effective methods to explore the potentially large volume of data

available from a variety of sources, across a range of data formats to

help identify the key activities and individuals that form any network.

• Scalable

• Handling uncertainty






11:55 Q&A



13:15 Call summary

13:20 Ethics


13:35 Q&A

13:45 Networking

15:15 Event close

Agenda

UNCLASSIFIED

Challenge 2: Identifying

Individuals

20 March 2013


UNCLASSIFIED

Background

• People are a key part of networks and network

activities.

• This challenge is focused on identifying the individuals

and exploiting available information to establish

linkages.

• Wide range of scenarios across defence and security

where potential for S&T in this area can have impact

on future UK capability.

20 March 2013


UNCLASSIFIED

Approaches to identifying an individual

20 March 2013


?

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UNCLASSIFIED

The overarching challenge

20 March 2013


• Techniques exist to enable identification of

individuals and to exploit finds.

• S&T to: – provide a significant step change in current approaches

– provide a novel approach

• This challenge is split into two key areas: – A. Person is present

– B. Person is not present

UNCLASSIFIED

A. The person is present

• Range of scenarios

– Voluntary enrolment of a person in the field

– Entry into a base

– On approach to military forces

– Through activity

20 March 2013


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UNCLASSIFIED

A. The person is present

• Range of scenarios

• As the person is present

– Uncontaminated samples

– Rapid processing

– Range of environments

– Ideally portable with low power (SWaP)

– Although present person maybe at distance

20 March 2013


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UNCLASSIFIED

B. The person is not present

• Opportunities to exploit from traces or items left behind

at a scene

20 March 2013


Scene of

interest

?

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//upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/6/63/Black_telephone_icon_from_DejaVu_Sans.svg

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http://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:CD_icon_test.svg

UNCLASSIFIED 20 March 2013


B. The person is not present

• Biometrics

• Range of surfaces – time

• Contamination

• Environmental conditions

• Other opportunities from the scene

• Imagery, voice recordings, others?

• Robust and adaptable to maximise opportunities

• Add value to identify the individual(s) and/or establish linkages across the network

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UNCLASSIFIED

What are we looking for? General

• New methods and approaches

• Efficient collection of information

• Wider information sources

• Open architecture for software solutions

• Sampling

• Processing rates

• Defence Lines of Development (DLODs)

• Interoperability and use of international standards

20 March 2013


UNCLASSIFIED

What are we looking for? In the field

• Remote use of equipment

– Degrees of man portability

– Lower power requirements

• Ability to use in a range of environments

• Approaches to consider lower bandwidth data links

• Fast or very fast processing to support decision

making

• Efficient and effective sampling and storage

20 March 2013


UNCLASSIFIED

What are we looking for? Static location

• External power supply

• Access to on-site servers

20 March 2013


UNCLASSIFIED


20 March 2013


• Standard law enforcement techniques or

commercially available techniques for:

• Detection of fingerprints

• Face recognition

• Iris recognition

• DNA or its analysis

• Speaker recognition

UNCLASSIFIED

Summary

20 March 2013


• Range of use scenarios

• Timeliness of sampling and

processing

We need to be able to confirm the identity of individuals

reliably with a step change in current capability or using

novel approaches

• SWaP

• Interoperability






11:55 Q&A



13:15 Call summary

13:20 Ethics


13:35 Q&A

13:45 Networking

15:15 Event close

Agenda

Challenge 3: Translating

Information

20 March 2013


Background

• MOD is active in a number of military operations globally, often in a CT role.

• Majority of UK troops not fluent in local written or spoken language for area of

operation.

• Too much information to manually process.

• Human translators support high accuracy but low volume translations.

• Requirement for capability to better enable MOD’s understanding of local

environment and population (feeds Challenge 1).

20 March 2013


S&T challenges


20 March 2013

Hard copy

Speech to text

Optical Character Recognition

Machine translation (to English)

Keyword extraction

Audio Digital

Video

Speaker attribution

(eg dialect, emotion)

Speaker ID Challenge 1

What we want


20 March 2013

Optical Character Recognition Portable/small solutions (tablet sized)

Rapid processing Non-Latin text support

Handwritten text Use of open standards

Machine translation/Keyword extraction Open software interfaces to enable

addition of classified keywords High volume processing

Rule-based machine translation

Speaker ID/Attribution Resilience to noise

High accuracy Minimal training (seconds) Near real-time processing

Speech to text Multiple languages (including non-

western) Preference for untrained solutions

Resilience to background noise Scalable to large volumes of data



20 March 2013

Optical Character Recognition Latin alphabet OCR

Office-based solutions (non-portable) Closed APIs which are difficult to

integrate

Machine translation/Keyword extraction Reliance on third-party services

Bilingual text corpora built from news feeds or open sources (BBCM)

Western languages

Speaker ID/Attribution Reliance on third-party services (eg

existing proprietary language models) Proposals requiring significant

Government Furnished Extras (GFX)

Speech to text English language solutions

Closed interfaces/proprietary solutions Reliance on third-party services

Low volume/higher accuracy

Summary

• Modular solutions

• High volume and real-time

focus


20 March 2013

We need to be able to rapidly prioritise sources of information (audio,

paper and electronic) to enable human interpreters to focus only on key

information sources for full translation.

• Non-western language focus

• Open architectures






11:55 Q&A



13:15 Call summary

13:20 Ethics


13:35 Q&A

13:45 Networking

15:15 Event close

Agenda

CDE Call Summary

20 March 2013


Aim of this CDE call

• Identify innovative research that will provide a change in our ability

to counter terrorist networks

• Broad scope

20 March 2013


Initial investigation

Proof of concept for a

novel idea

Concept development

Prototype development

More advanced research

20 March 2013


Technology readiness levels F

or n

on

-tech

no

log

y s

olu

tion

s th

e d

elta

sh

ou

ld b

e a

rticu

late

d

Re

se

arc

h

pro

gra

mm

e

TRL for proposals

•Only interested in proposals that have an end point from TRL 1- 6 TRL 1-6

•Proof-of-principle research feeding into the longer-term research

•TRL 4-5 work that could make a difference in the near term A portfolio of projects

•Show a defined rise in TRL within the 6-month proposal

•Further increases in TRL outside the 6-month timescale could be an option within the proposal

TRL change

•Please clearly articulate the technical aspects of the proposal and show how you expect the research to raise the TRL Technical aspects

20 March 2013


Proposal timings

20 March 2013


CDE launch

event Call

closes:

17.00

19 Mar 1 May Before 31 May

Successful

candidates informed

Proposal Potential further research

Decision point

Up to 6 months x months

Assessment

Proposals

20 March 2013


• We are looking for proposals of up to 6 months in duration.

– This timing will inform programme formulation for the following financial year.

– This may provide the opportunity for follow-on work after the initial 6 months phase.

Therefore after a clearly defined decision point at 6 months please state possible

continuation work (subject to funding and possible alternate contracting routes).

• There is no fixed value for any proposal but we would prefer to fund a larger

number of smaller value proposals. We have allocated up to £700K for this call.

• If GFX (government-furnished equipment/information/personnel) is unavoidable,

please clearly state any assumptions in the proposal.

What are we looking for?

• Longer proposals will not be funded Duration less than 6 months

•In the view of experienced assessors (achievable within the proposed time frames and budgets)

Value for money and achievable

• Not “off the shelf” A step change in capability

• Rather than funding development of existing proprietary technology/software Open architectures

• Rather than duplication of already existing technology/ideas Novel ideas

• Expected outcome and the methods to achieve this

Clear articulation of technical details and output

• Please state clearly how this answers part/parts of the challenges

Explain how the proposal answers the challenge

20 March 2013


[email protected]

20 March 2013


• For further questions on the proposal requirements or technical details

please contact us via:

mailto:[email protected]






11:55 Q&A



13:15 Call summary

13:20 Ethics


13:35 Q&A

13:45 Networking

15:15 Event close

Agenda

Ethics • Some of the proposals may require Ethics Approval

– Any research involving human participants in MOD research, both clinical and non-

clinical requires ethics committee approval

20 March 2013


• Conduct research upon the human participant, including (but not limited to) administering substances, taking blood or urine samples, removing biological tissue, radiological investigations, or obtaining responses to an imposed stress or experimental situation.

Clinical

• Conduct research to collect data on an identifiable individual’s behaviour, either directly or indirectly (such as by questionnaire or observation).

Non-Clinical

Ethics

• All proposals should declare if there are potential ethical hurdles to address

• A proposal must, in the first instance, be scientifically robust in order for it to be,

prima facie, ethical

• If the proposal may require ethics approval, please make a three part proposal:

– Milestone 1: Produce research protocols

– Milestone 2: Obtaining ethics approval for the project

– Milestone 3: Proposed research (subject to ethics approval)

• More information

– http://www.science.mod.uk/engagement/modrec/modrec.aspx

20 March 2013


http://www.science.mod.uk/engagement/modrec/modrec.aspx






11:55 Q&A



13:15 Call summary

13:20 Ethics


13:35 Q&A

13:45 Networking

15:15 Event close

Agenda





Centre for Defence Enterprise Submitting a Successful Proposal

Maximising your chances

Dstl is part of the

Ministry of Defence

UNCLASSIFIED / For Public Release



Crown Copyright Dstl 2012

Know what is available

Dstl is part of the

Ministry of Defence





Read available

information

Including CDE

manuals

Especially Quick Start

Guide

Know what is available

Dstl is part of the

Ministry of Defence





Developing a CDE proposal

Dstl is part of the

Ministry of Defence

Value from technology

Innovative concept

Future capability

Proof of

concept Incremental development

The essentials

Abstract

mins

Assessment

MOD Performance Assessment Framework

Five criteria:

Operational relevance

Likelihood of exploitation

Builds critical S&T capability to meet UK needs

Scientific quality/innovation

Science, innovation and technology risk





Proposal health check

Claim of future benefit

Contribution to future benefit

Logical programme of work

Generation of evidence

Demonstration of progress





Based on a claim of future benefit

Contribution to realisation of future benefit

Logical programme of work

Evidential outcomes

Demonstration of progress towards goal

Health check

Dstl is part of the

Ministry of Defence





Government-furnished X

Ethics

Health and safety

Unclassified

Early birds

Dstl is part of the

Ministry of Defence





This call closes:

17:00 hrs on

Wednesday 1 May 2013

Deadline






01235 438445

[email protected]

www.science.mod.uk/enterprise

Call process queries

Dstl is part of the

Ministry of Defence





[email protected]

Call technical queries

Dstl is part of the

Ministry of Defence





www.science.mod.uk

Events and Calls > Current calls for proposals > The Challenges of Countering Terrorist Networks

Webinar – Tuesday 26 March 2013 12:30-13:30

Details on the call webpage

Email [email protected] to join

Further information

Network and question

the challenges of countering terrorist networks - cde themed call launch 19 mar 2013

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