Lockheed Martin announced the the forthcoming incorporation of blockchain technology into its operations. The company, one of the top defense contractors in the US, stated that blockchain technology will enable “more efficient and assured offerings” to the US federal government.

Headquartered in Bethesda, Maryland, Lockheed Martin is a global security and aerospace company focused on advanced technology systems, products and services, which employs approximately 97,000 people worldwide. Now, the company has contracted Guardtime Federal to integrate a variety of cyber-related elements into systems engineering processes, supply chain risk management and software development efforts.

“These new cyber security approaches will enhance data integrity, speed problem discovery and mitigation, and reduce the volume of regression testing, which results in reduced schedule risk,” said Lockheed Martin VP Ron Bessire. “The faster our developers can discover issues, the faster we can deliver.”

Lockheed Martin plans to leverage Guardtime Federal’s Black Lantern appliances, and the nationally distributed Guardtime Federal Core blockchain infrastructure, to realize more efficient and secure software development and supply chain risk management.

“Guardtime Federal is excited about collaborating with such a high quality team for delivering capabilities to Lockheed Martin with whom we share a common vision regarding cyber and software development challenges,” says David Hamilton, president of Guardtime Federal, in a Guardtime press release.

With the KSI (Keyless Signature Infrastructure) blockchain technology stack, Guardtime offers tools to protect the integrity of client networks, prevent loss of critical digital assets and track data securely throughout its supply chain. KSI consists of a specialized Black Lantern security appliance hardware with advanced anti-tamper functionality, a software suite for real-time monitoring network integrity, and a service that provides KSI blockchain based signatures needed for network instrumentation.

Besides a wide range of high technology systems for both military and commercial use, Lockheed Martin is the main NASA contractor for several high-profile space projects. It’s worth noting that NASA and other US federal agencies are relying more and more on smaller, nimble commercial contractors, which threatens the near-monopoly of the tech giants. “Lockheed Martin regularly partners with small businesses to augment its robust cyber capabilities,” notes the Lockheed Martin press release. “This new aerospace collaboration between a prime and a small business cyber consortium not only meets Department of Defense guidelines for small businesses set-aside, it also leverages the innovative dynamic nature of small, agile industry partners.”

Guardtime, which exemplifies the new wave of small high-tech firms open to emerging approaches such as blockchain technology, is part of a consortium of small businesses in the cyber-defense sector. The consortium, which also includes Galois, ForAllSecure, and Trail of Bits, participates in DARPA projects on formal methods, vulnerability analysis, and automated vulnerability discovery and patching.

It seems likely that the adoption of blockchain technology for mission-critical secure applications, by a major contractor such as Lockheed Martin, will stimulate blockchain technology awareness and interest in the US federal government and defense establishment.

Image from Wikimedia Commons.