Innovation and Evolving Security Standards – Catalysts for Global Satcoms Change

Andrew Bond, Sales & Marketing Director at ETL Systems

When it comes to adopting new and transformative communications technology, often government and defence organisations lead the charge, largely down to their R&D budgets and focus on delivering the latest security technology in an evolving theatre.

With the right solutions, they can access real-time data, ensure secure communication, and remain confident in their intelligence gathering capabilities.

These three elements are core to keeping government personnel, and the wider population, safe. However, this requires continuous involvement from the satcom industry, especially as global and domestic risk profiles change.

Keeping Pace with Global Threats

Unlike their commercial counterparts, government and defence organisations aren’t handcuffed by ROI or other financial metrics. If a technology provides a clear benefit to national security or operational effectiveness, it becomes a priority. This is why the sector often adopts innovative technologies ahead of the commercial sector.

This forward-thinking approach has been evident since the 1950s, when the first government satellites were launched into space. For example, the US Vanguard 1 provided the first-ever measurements of Earth’s outer atmosphere. Since then, the scope of what satcom technology can deliver has developed far beyond basic observational tasks, evolving to meet the dynamic demands of the modern defence landscape.

The introduction of Digital Intermediate Frequency (DIF) technology

The satcoms sector is in the midst of a transformative technology shift, driven by the rise of digitisation and virtualisation reshaping the industry. Underpinning this change is the introduction of Digital Intermediate Frequency (DIF) technology, also known as ‘RF over IP’.

DIF will enable digitisation to reach the satellite ground segment, unlocking a host of benefits. At ETL, we’ve been working on this solution for a number of years. This has involved collaboration with partners across the industry, including the UK Space Agency and the DIFI Consortium, and draws on extensive research and rigorous testing to ensure its reliability and performance in mission-critical environments.

However, the transition to a fully digitised environment is going to take time. In the interim, analogue and digital solutions need to work harmoniously to deliver a hybrid ground station setup as the industry gradually moves towards a fully virtualised environment.

At SATELLITE 2024, we showcased our new commercially available technology, GENUS DIGITAL 5000, which converts analogue RF signals to IP and vice versa on a live satellite link, meeting the Digital IF Interoperability (DIFI) Consortium 1.2 standard.

As we look ahead to 2025, there’s now no doubt that RF streams can now be efficiently transported over IP, offering a range of benefits. Most pressing for government and commercial organisations is the added security benefits – like the ability to encrypt these data packets ‘behind the wire’ – which are essential in an era of escalating cyber threats.

In addition to bolstering security, DIF technology also brings enhanced efficiency, improved scalability, and opens the door to new capabilities. As the industry moves towards increasingly flexible, scalable solutions, DIF technology will play a key role in helping organisations to future proof their satellite communications systems, ensuring they remain agile and resilient in the face of evolving challenges.

Raising Awareness

As I noted earlier, it’s often government and defence customers that are the early identifiers and adopters of cutting-edge technology.

In our discussions with representatives of these sectors, the focus has been on the financial, security and agility benefits that DIF brings. One notable shift is the growing interest in very narrow bandwidth solutions, more akin to a VSAT network than a broader bandwidth, control-room based model. In conjunction with this, we are seeing a move towards a decentralised approach where digitisation takes place directly at the Edge/Terminal. This type of solution is more cost effective to manufacture, but it’s also inherently more adaptable and flexible - two crucial requirements for the government sector.

The Dawn of a New Security Standard

The pace of transformation in the satcoms sector is rapid, yet alongside this change there is a need to consider security standards that must not be overlooked.

As the ground stations where RF signals are received, converted and redirected are growing in complexity, so too is the complexity of the threat landscape. Cybersecurity is a top priority as new vulnerabilities emerge. Protecting sensitive data and systems from increasingly sophisticated cyberattacks requires continuous updates to security protocols.

It wasn’t long ago that the Intelligence Community introduced a new mandate that any device connected to their network had to use secure protocols, namely SNMPv3 (Simple Network Management Protocol Version 3) and HTTPS (Hypertext Transfer Protocol Secure). The defence sector soon followed suit, mandating the use of secure communications protocols for any networked device operating within government facilities.

HTTPS ensures secure online communication by encrypting data in transit, safeguarding against interception and malicious activity. SNMPv3 is a standards-based protocol that facilitates secure access control and authorisation, enabling better management and monitoring of networked devices.

Adoption of products using these secure protocols is already widespread, and we expect this to continue given the threats posted by recent global events. While North America remains the largest market, our products are shipped worldwide and commercial satellite operators are likely to follow suit, adopting similar enhanced network security measures.

As this shift takes place, we can expect rapid worldwide adoption of these technologies, which will not only set new industry standards but also further establish the need for a secure, interoperable global communications infrastructure.

Data as a Critical Asset in the Defence Market

As the satcoms industry continues to evolve, it is clear that data handling plays a crucial role in supporting government and commercial organisations to address evolving threats. In today’s world, robust defence is just as much about data and information as it is about frontline deployments; network security is as important as physical security.

From the simplest of L-band splitters to more sophisticated RF matrix switches, ensuring malicious actors are denied any opportunity to access the network is paramount. At ETL, we are committed to safeguarding critical communications systems, providing our customers with the highest level of security to stay ahead of evolving risks.