PALO ALTO, Calif., Oct. 09, 2024 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Xage Security Government (Xage), a global leader in Zero Trust access and protection, today announced a $1.5 million Sequential Phase II Small Business Innovation Research (SBIR) contract with the United States Navy to prove out Xage’s Zero Trust Access and Protection and Federated Identity Management capabilities in support of multiple strategic initiatives.

This initiative supports compliance with the U.S. Department of Defense Chief Information Officer (DOD CIO) Zero Trust Target Strategy to enhance the protection of data, systems, and services with a Zero Trust model/architecture by 2027. Additionally, Xage will be used in pursuit of the strategic goal shared by the U.S. Navy’s Program Executive Office Command, Control, Communications, Computers and Intelligence (PEO C4I), Tactical Shore & Expeditionary Integration program office (PMW 790) and Program Executive Office Digital and Enterprise Services (PEO Digital) to create an extraordinary future involving battle networks to support the warfighter. This will support the Naval Information Warfare Systems Command (NAVWAR) DevSecOps (DSO) Overmatch Software Armory (OSA) to deliver the Navy's contribution to Combined Joint All Domain Command & Control (CJADC-2) and tactical edge cloud Battlenet Landing IT Zone Engineering Development Model (BLITZ EDM) Infrastructure as a Service (IaaS) tactical edge capability.

Xage Meets Robust Navy Security Requirements
The Xage Fabric Platform is a resilient, highly available cybersecurity mesh, that underpins three core capabilities––Zero Trust identity and access management (IAM), Privileged Access Management (PAM), and Zero Trust remote access (ZTRA)––to enable secure, least privilege access both for internal users and external coalition partners. Xage also provides Zero Trust data exchange capability to ensure the integrity and authenticity of data as it is shared internally and with coalition partners.

Fulfilling the DOD’s Zero Trust Mandate
The selection of Xage as a key technology solution provider is based on its robust Zero Trust capabilities in critical areas such as microsegmentation, data integrity and management, least privilege, and multi-factor authentication (MFA). These features are essential across all domains—whether IT, operational technology (OT), or cloud environments—ensuring comprehensive Zero Trust security at every layer.

Unique Architecture to Support the Warfighter
In addition to fulfilling DOD Zero Trust requirements, Xage was selected for its ability to fulfill unique requirements for Navy environments.

The Xage Fabric Platform, deployed as a secure overlay with a distributed architecture and equips the Navy with the following three key capabilities, among others:

• DDIL: Xage enables the Navy to provide Zero Trust Access and protection to any asset without requiring internet connection, while maintaining the operation of its identity and access functions even in denied, disrupted, intermittent, and limited impact (DDIL) environments. Access and privilege enforcement can still be enforced, even if a remote site or edge device loses connectivity to the central network.
• Agentless: The Xage Fabric allows the Navy to deploy Zero Trust access and protection without requiring the installation of agents on any endpoints nor the replacement of any existing infrastructure, eliminating a significant management burden and attack vector. The approach enables the Navy to extend the lifespan of legacy mission-critical assets.
• Data Exchange: The Xage Zero Trust data exchange enables the Navy to securely exchange data with joint coalition and allied partners by providing just enough access, just in time. When access is no longer needed, administrators can easily wipe the identity and access of these external users within seconds. All user activity is tracked, logged, and recorded by Xage and all activity is untraceable by an adversary.
  

“Xage was built to cyber-harden the most challenging and mission critical environments and we proudly partner with entities like the USSF Space Systems Command to do so, which will now include an extension of our ‘Never Trust, Always Verify’ support to the Navy,” said Xage Security CEO, Geoffrey Mattson. “Legacy devices, DDIL environments, as well as allied and coalition data exchange are just some of the critical use cases that the Navy is responsible for keeping secure and has an unwavering commitment to defend. Xage is proud to be in service of this mission and national security.”

About the Contract

PMW 790 delivers resilient, adaptable, interoperable, and affordable shore and expeditionary C4I capability for the Navy, enabling all domain mission success. PEO Digital is the service office that helps the Navy and Marine Corps with accelerating innovation and security.

The contract awarded to Xage is spearheaded by PMW 790 and PEO Digital, in collaboration with USSF Space Systems Command (SSC). Together, PMW 790 and PEO Digital are responsible for testing Xage’s Zero Trust capabilities against simulated sophisticated attacks. The PMW 790 Program Manager is requesting this special study to evaluate the approach to Zero Trust across multiple efforts within the Navy. The special study will establish the overarching applicability of Zero Trust concepts across multiple networks to support modern and legacy operational systems.

It will also test Xage’s ability to establish an enterprise data analytics architecture to provide a subset of data collection goals as stated in the DOD Data Strategy across the Navy enterprise. Included in these concepts is the reduction of the potential attack surface associated with network complexity and controls used today to connect the operational unit networks to larger more accessible enterprise networks and systems. The objective is to demonstrate and test secure data access and exchange across complex network types between systems while ensuring data integrity and authenticity services to various applications where data is being consumed. Zero Trust for the Navy requires a cohesive strategy to reach effective adoption of Zero Trust principles across a diversity of missions within the Navy’s domain.

PMW 790 is requesting BLITZ onboard Xage Security Government as a Zero Trust Identity software candidate. Xage’s software will also be added to the OSA, which is the Navy’s Tactical DSO ecosystem that supports accelerated application development.

PMW 790 is looking to leverage the USAF Cloud One DSO accreditation of Xage that supports the DOD CIO Zero Trust and reciprocity directives supported by complementary Department of the Navy CIO and Assistant Secretary of the Navy for Research, Development and Acquisition (ASN RDA) directives for cloud, Zero Trust and starting with dollar one focusing on Identity.

Other focus areas of Zero Trust principles are data integrity and management in support of Chief Digital and Artificial Office (CDAO) initiatives as well as leveraging microsegmentation edge cloud technology for Zero Trust governance.

About Xage Security Gov
Xage Security Gov, LLC is a wholly-owned affiliate of Xage Security, Inc., a global leader in Zero Trust access and protection on a mission to pioneer a secure tomorrow. Xage’s solutions and services accelerate and simplify the way organizations secure, manage, and transform digital operations across Operational Technology, IT, and the cloud. Xage products include zero trust access, privileged access management, zero trust data exchange, all powered by the Xage Fabric Platform. Learn why organizations like the U.S. Space Force, PETRONAS, and Kinder Morgan choose Xage at xage.com.

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