Summer research:Cadets test use of personal devices at AFSPC work centers

  • Published
  • By Ray Bowden
  • U.S. Air Force Academy Public Affairs
U.S. AIR FORCE ACADEMY, Colo. --  Two Air Force Academy cadets are working on a summer research project at Peterson Air Force Base, Colorado, to integrate personal digital devices at U.S. Air Force Space Command.

Cadets 1st Class Jed Lyon and Matt Medara are investigating the 'Internet of Things' in Space Command.

'"The Internet of Things' expresses the phenomenon of more and more devices and machines, from phones to refrigerators, communicating with each other over the Internet," Lyon said.

Lyon and Medara hope to develop a plan to implement a 'bring your own device' policy at the AFSPC headquarters building at Peterson AFB to allow Airmen to use their personal devices instead of the government network.

Medara said the command was selected for the project because of AFSPC commander Gen. John Hyten's emphasis on innovation.

The best scenario would be renewed interest from AFSPC to allow personal devices in its workspace, Madera said.

"If employees were given new tools and accessibility, they could come up with new and innovative solutions to complex problems in their workplace," he said. "The concept allows for integration between different departments in a building, simply because you have a mobile workspace."

The cadets started the project by assessing AFSPC's policy concerning personal devices in its work stations.

"This is a massive project and a huge issue within the Defense Department," Lyon said. "If the solution was simple and easy to implement, it would already be done and there would be policy in place."

Lyon said the biggest obstacle so far is DOD policy.

"The actual technical implementation of 'bring your own device' seems to be relatively simple, but implementing it on an AFSPC or DOD-wide scale seems increasingly difficult in the areas of security and legality," he said. "Our project boils down to creating strong legal policy when it comes to policing personal devices and sound security measures."

The cadets flew to Joint-Base San Antonio, Texas, this week to visit cyber squadrons in the area.

"We were able to get important insight on potential security threats and policy issues," Medara said.

Lt. Col. Don Rhymer, AFSPC's deputy chief scientist, is the cadets' point-of-contact for the project and has assisted the cadets with some of the project's logistical issues.

"Having taught for many years at the Academy, I know cadet engineers are passionate about solving problems," he said. "Jed and Matt quickly got up to speed, gathering input from brilliant communication, cyber and legal experts in the command."

The cadets are scheduled to brief Hyten on their project's findings June 30.

"We hope to present the general with a solution to implementing a 'bring your own device policy' and frame the benefits and potential downfalls of such a policy," Lyon said.