TEL AVIV – An in-house "compass" is guiding the Israel Defense Forces’ (IDF) growing foothold in the world of big data with user-tailored, self-analyzing, cyber-resistant C4I networked systems.
Matzpen, Hebrew for "compass" and the acronym for Military Systems for Command and Control, is a relatively new department within the Lotem Information Technology Division of the IDF's C4I Directorate.
Established in May 2013, Matzpen provides the systems and networks used by combat, planning and support organizations throughout the IDF. It's also leading an estimated 1 billion shekel (US $250 million) multiyear program to harness the benefits of big data for all IDF consumers.
In interviews here, officers said Matzpen now manages hundreds of terabytes of information culled from a multitude of sources across the IDF.
"We're in the beginning stage, so we're still talking about terabytes. Hundreds of terabytes," said Col. O., a Matzpen IT officer said. His full name was withheld due to the sensitivity of his position.
"We've been in this world of big data for a few years now, and we're advancing nicely," said the colonel.
"In the future, we expect our capabilities to grow significantly."
A new big data center planned by the C4I Directorate will be capable of supporting much larger quantities of information, sources here said. The new center should be operational by the end of the decade, once the C4I Directorate and key intelligence and information technology units relocate from IDF headquarters in Tel Aviv to Israel's new national cyber hub down south.
Brig. Gen. Eyal Zelinger is IDF chief signals officer and chief of staff of the C4I Directorate. In an interview earlier this year, he described the planned big data center as "a system that knows exactly what information to extract from a huge data base."
Based on business intelligence and a combination of open-source and in-house developed software, Zelinger said the program would connect all parts of an increasingly network-centric IDF.
"We want this system to stream relevant, needed information directly to the end user or allow the end user to extract what he needs," he said.
Beyond the obvious surge in operational effectiveness and organizational efficiency, the Matzpen officer said big data is bolstering the IDF's ability to guard against cyber attack.
"The more data we have, the better are the opportunities to detect patterns, forecast behavior and analyze the network," said Col. O.
"If you're using a flashlight to detect cyber attacks, your chances are not that great. But when you look at it from a vast spectrum of data, each containing huge amounts of information, you're more likely to start finding anomalies [that will help detect attacks]," he said.
Big data is also helping the IDF improve readiness and elevate combat effectiveness by assessing capability gaps and past operational mistakes.
In a Dec. 1 interview, Col. O. said Matzpen has helped numerous users throughout the IDF assess lessons learned from the latest Protective Edge operation in Gaza.
"We can now run simulations from all the data collected and measure with very good accuracy what went right and what went wrong. It's a significant tool that provides enormous added value," he said.
Beyond the hundreds of Matzpen specialists who provide IDF-wide systems, the department also deploys representatives in the field to help combat and support units operate its systems.
Matzpen's Operational Data Analysis Unit deployed with multiple end-users during last summer's 50-day Gaza war, Col. O. said.
"Matzpen is providing the systems, but we're not only about technology. There's a cadre of top-quality people behind what we do. We're all about bridging the human and technological elements." ■
Email: bopallrome@defensenews.com.
