Army posts sources sought for defensive cyber operations R&D

On November 14, the United States Army posted a sources sought notice for Defensive Cyber Operations (DCO) Research and Supporting Elements (Solicitation Number: W911QX1-17-R-0006). RSVPs for the Industry Day are due NO LATER THAN 3:00 pm EST on December 1.

The purpose of this Sources Sought Notice is to gain knowledge of interest, capabilities, and qualifications of various businesses in advance of a planned solicitation for Research and Development (R&D) and technical services needed to support the CyberSecurity Service Provider (CSSP). Additionally, this Sources Sought Notice is to inform interested parties of an upcoming industry day being hosted at the Adelphi Laboratory Center, Building 205, 2800 Powder Mill Rd, 20783-1197 tentatively scheduled for 13 December 2016 at 9:00AM. The Government must ensure there is adequate competition among the potential pool of responsible contractors. As detailed below, RSVPs for the Industry Day are due NO LATER THAN 3:00 pm EST on 01 December 2016.
The Army Contracting Command-Aberdeen Proving Ground (ACC-APG), Adelphi Division on behalf of the Army Research Laboratory (ARL), is conducting market research in accordance with Federal Acquisition Regulation (FAR) Part 10. The purpose of this Market Research is to identify concerns that have the skills, experience, knowledge, and capabilities necessary to provide Research and Development (R&D) and technical services needed to support the CyberSecurity Service Provider (CSSP) and its evolution in the face of a changing threat environment. This Sources Sought is issued to communicate the ARL’s program requirement to industry. ARL intends to use information gathered from these responses to gain awareness of capabilities, determine interested parties, and to support formulation of an acquisition strategy. Early industry involvement in creating a properly scaled enterprise solution is critical to the success of this contemplated acquisition.

This effort is for the Research and Development (R&D) and technical services needed to support the CyberSecurity Service Provider (CSSP) and its evolution in the face of a changing threat environment. This work includes research and technical services supporting mission areas defined in Technology Program Agreements with Research, Development and Engineering Command (RDECOM) centers in information assurance (IA) and computer network operations. ARL collaborates with partners in other CSSPs, the law enforcement and counter intelligence communities in the areas of technology development and computer security research. The focus across the effort is defense against the sophisticated cyber adversaries to ARL, the Army, DoD, and the United States (US) Government. This effort strives to improve the state of the art in cyber defense. Cyber defense R&D is reliant on raw data from real-world networks that contain vital evidence of the threats being perpetrated by hostiles against the network. Analysis of the data and the ability to improve attack detection accuracy and timeliness is intrinsically coupled with the agile development of new tools and techniques to combat adversaries. This ARL cyber defense effort partners with many organizations; some of which use the ARL CSSP services to provide primary or supplementary network defense services. Some are research partners using ARL-developed cyber defense tools and test-beds, and others are intelligence and law enforcement organizations that leverage ARL technology and share vital information about current threats. The extensive network view is a key enabler to the cyber research and technology enhancement mission. This effort’s initiative is particularly focused on improving capabilities to combat sophisticated cyber adversaries as well as investigating the next generation of Defensive Cyber Operational Tools, Techniques, and Procedures (TTP), tactical network security, exploring prospective sensor capabilities, executing components of the Information Security Continuous Monitoring (ISCM) strategy, risk measurement and monitoring, improving adversary attribution, and insider threat analysis. The ARL cyber mission uniquely derives its strength from the close synergistic bond between research and the technical services answering operational necessities. These activities demand skilled, forward-thinking staff at every position.
The objective of this effort is research and develop a fundamental understanding of the dynamic cyber domain while providing 24×7 Cyber Defense Operations and Services within the environment of the Department of Defense
Industry Day:
Additionally, this Sources Sought is to inform interested parties of an upcoming Industry Day being hosted at Building 205 2800 Powder Mill Rd, 20783-1197 tentatively scheduled for 13 December 2016 at 9:00AM.
All parties interested in the Industry Day shall notify this office by email
NO LATER THAN 3:00 pm EST on 01 December 2016. This is a firm response date and Industry Day RSVPs and response information will not be accepted after 3:00 pm EST on 01 December 2016.

The Industry day will allow for one-on-one meetings with the first ten (10) responding prospective offerors. Each one-on-one meeting will be limited to thirty (30) minutes. The intent of the one-on-one meetings is the opportunity to discuss technical capabilities. It is recommended technical representatives from prospective offerors attend.

Full information is available here.

Source: FedBizOpps