About The Security Technology Institute

Wednesday, August 19th, 2009 in News & Events

Ten Years ago in America, there was no Department of Homeland Security, nor was there a Department of Defense Cyber Command. Global terrorism and the emergence of Cyber Space as the fifth battlefield have changed all that.Today we live in a world where a commercial airliner can be turned into a weapon, and a 20 year old computer hacker can cause over a billion dollars in economic disruption with the click of a computer key.

Securing our Nation from these types of threats and others yet imagined represents a challenge that is historically unprecedented. Meeting that challenge will require two things.

First, we must be prepared to think and act in ways that may be contrary to our traditional defense and security methods and techniques.

Second, we must be prepared to take on this challenge as a community. A challenge of this magnitude is too daunting a task for any single organization, no matter how large and well funded. Responding to this challenge will require a new type of collaboration and commitment from all sectors, Government, private industry, and academia.

The Security Technology Institute (STI) has been established as a public/private partnership with a mission that we believe is a critical first step toward making our Nation more secure. Our goal is to foster the development of a global security technology center in and around the home of the US Government’s Cyber Security hub.

Ft.MeadeBuilding

Welcome to Ft. Meade, Maryland

This decades old military base is located just 15 minutes from Baltimore. By the end of 2010, it will be the home of the largest buyer and user of security technology in the world, with annual budgets in the tens of billions of dollars.

The National Security Agency (NSA), a long term resident at Fort Meade has two important new neighbors. With the move from Virginia of the Defense Information Systems Agency (DISA) and the establishment of the new Department of Defense (DoD) Cyber Command, central Maryland has become the undisputed center for communication and security technology for the US Government.

The Security Technology Institute believes that by helping the private sector access this growing Government market for innovative new security technology, we can begin to build a much larger community of security technology enterprise.
This is critical to not just meeting US Government needs but to addressing an even larger commercial markets need for similar technology.

Cyber Security, not just a Government concern

The emerging Cyber Security industry is unique. While the Government market represents the best initial target of opportunity, the greatest business opportunity lies in taking those Government proven security solutions into the much larger global commercial market.

The development and growth of this security technology epicenter will help foster the creation of new technologies to deal with the next generation of threats. In the Cyber Security world of today, that next generation of threat can be less than a second from our door.

A “Do Tank” not a Think Tank

The Security Technology Institute will focus its efforts tactically on developing, launching, and managing a series of programs that we believe will ultimately become important engines to the development and expansion of this industrial hub.

Why the focus on Security Technology?

Historically, successful new technology products don’t just generate license revenue for their developers. They generate:

New revenue opportunities for the IT services companies that integrate, install, test and support solutions based on those new products.
New opportunities for the companies that will develop other new products to expand or enhance the capabilities of that successful new technology.
They often even inspire competitors to attempt to build even better new products with unique or enhanced functionality.

The US Government Market as “Seed Capital”

The US Government market is a great place to bring innovative new security technology. They have the need, the infrastructure and the willing-ness to test and evaluate innovative technologies that can support their security mission requirements. These engagements often lead not just to Government sales, but to feedback that can help make the product even more effective and compelling to the much larger global government and commercial marketplace.

The Security Technology Institute Rapid to Revenue™ Program

The STI recently announced our first program, Rapid to Revenue™. Rapid to Revenue™ is a program designed to assist both US companies lacking US Government market expertise and foreign (non-US) companies gain access to the US Government market for security related products.

Delivered through a partnership of over a dozen experienced security technology services companies both large and small, this program is designed to address all of the hurdles that might otherwise prevent that technology or company from successfully entering the market. As the name indicates, speed is of the essence, and this program establishes new benchmark for both speed and effectiveness. For more information on this and other programs, visit the Programs section of the site.