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Abstract: In modern warfare it is no longer sufficient to only focus on physical attacks and counter-measures; the threat against cyber networks is becoming increasingly significant. Modern military forces have to provide counter measures against these growing threats in the cyberspace. These forces thus find themselves in the position where they need the capability to perform cyber operations. This paper presents a Network Attack Planning ontology which is aimed at providing support for military cyber operations. The cyber network operation domain is growing at a rapid rate and involves an ever increasing volume of associated information. Semantic technologies can contribute towards the intelligent processing of information in this complex problem area. An ontology enables the representation of semantic information and automated reasoning that can support the complexity of planning cyber operations. It also contributes towards the sharing of information and the creation and maintenance of a common vocabulary. The inferences that can be made with the automated reasoning capabilities of ontologies provide a unique insight into the relationships between network targets and attacks that could be launched against them.
Keywords: ontology, network attack planning, command and control, cyber warfare
1. Introduction
As warfare begins to move away from the physical battlefield and onto the cyber realm, it becomes important to build the necessary capability to keep up with such advances. "Over the last two decades, the United States has witnessed significant and rapid technological advancements in digital communications (cyber communications) and information technology. Owners and operators of critical infrastructure have capitalised on these innovative technologies to operate their systems more efficiently and provide better service to customers. Despite the many benefits of an increasingly "wired" economy and defence, the nation's exposure to cyber threats have also increased." This statement by Dean (2013), the editor of the International Security Quarterly journal, expresses the fact that nations have to defend themselves against cyber threats; nations are vulnerable in terms of digital attacks with the intention of sabotage, espionage, terrorism and crime by people of ill intent. Symantec highlighted a 91% increase in targeted attacks in the 2014 threat report (Symantic Corporation, 2014). As a consequence, military forces have to include cyber attack counter-measures as part of their military power.
Within military forces there exist Electronic...