Harris has announced that it has been awarded a five-year, $41.6 million Indefinite Delivery Indefinite Quantity (IDIQ) contract by the National Security Agency (NSA) to supply its new SecNet 54 Secure Wireless Local Area Network (SWLAN) product to U.S. federal government and other approved customers.
Designed to be crypto-modernization compliant, SecNet 54 can be used in secure communications applications up to Top Secret/SCI Level Data. SecNet 54 can operate with a High Assurance Internet Protocol Interoperability Specification-compliant Inline Network Encryptor (INE) using a pre-placed, symmetric key.
“This is a very important contract for Harris and the first order for SecNet 54, a first-of-its-kind cryptographic communications device,” said Dan Pearson, president of the Department of Defense Programs business unit of Harris Government Communications Systems Division.
“The development of SecNet 54 was a direct result of listening to our customers. It fills the near-term needs of DoD, federal and international customers, and is an enabling technology for several large programs and pursuits such as the U.S. Army’s Warfighter Information Network-Tactical, Command Post Platform, and Joint Network Node programs, as well as the U.S. Air Force’s Combat Information Transportation Systems and Theater Deployable Communications programs. We expect this new product will open exciting opportunities in the secure wireless communications market as well as provide entry into the wired encryption market.”
SecNet 54, in its 802.11 a/b/g configuration, is a SWLAN (Type 1 encryption) solution for data, video and voice over IP requirements. Using standard, IEEE 802.11 wireless protocols, the product’s high data rate transmissions of 54 M/bps, coupled with low-packet latency, facilitate its use in multimedia applications. It features operating line-of-sight ranges of up to 100 meters indoors and up to 600 meters outdoors. Further extended ranges are possible with the use of external antennas and/or power amplifiers.
The SecNet 54 product has a unique dual module architecture that supports numerous transmission mediums. In its first release, SecNet 54 consists of an 802.11a/b/g radio module attached to a cryptographic module, enabling it to function as a SWLAN device.
SecNet 54 combines the Harris RF Communications Division’s Sierra(R) II encryption processor with IP and Ethernet digital processing, packaged in a flexible, split-module design. This allows for quick and easy utilization of standard communication technologies such as wired 802.3 Ethernet, ISDN/PSTN and wireless 802.11 802.16. SecNet 54 offers users significant flexibility due to its modularity, its ability to accommodate many different data transmission modules, and its small size (3.17 x 5.25 x 1.11 inches) and weight (less than 13oz.).
