Re: [Smart] Future of SMART

[Bret Jordan <[e-mail]>]

Kirsty and Kathleen,

This makes me very sad.  I viewed this work as potential hope to improve things at the IETF.  I really think things need to change in the IETF / IRTF.  The way working groups and research groups get formed needs to be more transparent and needs to not be open to personal opinion and whims of chairs and area directors.

I will continue to help support this effort any way I can.  Maybe we need to figure out how to stand up a new organization or industry consortium to do this kind of work, an IETF / IRTF 2.0.

Thanks,
Bret
PGP Fingerprint: 63B4 FC53 680A 6B7D 1447  F2C0 74F8 ACAE 7415 0050
"Without cryptography vihv vivc ce xhrnrw, however, the only thing that can not be unscrambled is an egg."

> On Jun 6, 2019, at 12:24 AM, Kirsty P <Kirsty.p=[e-mail]> wrote:
> 
> 
> I'm sorry to say that SMART is not holding a formal meeting at IETF 105 in Montreal; the charter we
> proposed was not viewed as defining a programme of research activity suitable for the IRTF. Despite
> the attendance and interest at SMART's previous meeting at IETF 104 in Prague*, acknowledgement that
> the IETF’s current security threat model is outdated and under-researched, and contributions of
> new academic research on SMART topics, it has not been possible to secure a formal meeting at IETF
> 105 as a proposed IRTF RG. 
> 
> We plan to arrange a side-meeting in Montreal to review the drafts currently in development and
> discuss the way forward.  Work on the CLESS draft and research projects from CARIS2 will continue
> and the shape they take may guide the decision for a way forward.
> 
> We will continue to welcome the knowledge and experience of cyber security experts on this list and
> encourage these experts to attend IETF and IRTF meetings because their expertise is not commonplace
> there.  This means both assisting with developing drafts towards the goals of SMART and outcomes
> from CARIS2, but also integrating into working and research groups to assist with security
> improvements in developing work. For those who are already regular participants in the IRTF, we hope
> that you will welcome newcomers who are experts in their own field and learn from what they
> contribute. We encourage experts to post individual drafts on the topic of detecting and mitigating
> cyber attack threats, and where these drafts have no natural home in the IETF (and struggle to find
> one), to cross-post to SMART. SMART and its base will still aim to bring the cyber defence viewpoint
> and expertise into IETF groups more consistently.
> 
> Finally, a minor success. When I (Kirsty) first attended an IETF meeting, one concerning security
> aspect that stood out for me was the IETF view of the Internet threat model, which bizarrely doesn't
> major on the vast scale and variety of cyber attacks we see today. Now there are two drafts
> discussing this threat model and its need to be updated: draft-arkko-arch-internet-threat-model and
> draft-farrell-etm. Both drafts start a needed analysis of Internet security, which will need to be
> supported by robust research. Although the IRTF will not presently support the creation of a RG to
> stimulate research in this area, the SMART non-working group mailing list can still be a place to
> bring and share evidence on protocol-enabled attacks.
> 
> Thank you to everyone who continues to support improving cyber defence on the Internet. We hope that
> SMART has started enough conversations that, in future, every person who designs a part of the
> Internet will have a solid knowledge of attack defence. Ultimately, however SMART work happens and
> whoever leads the effort, the need to improve security and reduce all types of attacks (and not
> create new ones!) should be the most important priority for the people who design the Internet.
> 
> Kirsty & Kathleen
> 
> 
> *We were the 10th most attended session of the week, with 150 people at the meeting and roughly half
> of the room willing to work on these topics.
> This information is exempt under the Freedom of Information Act 2000 (FOIA) and may be exempt under other UK information legislation. Refer any FOIA queries to [e-mail] <mailto:[e-mail]> -- 
> Smart mailing list
> [e-mail] <mailto:[e-mail]>
> https://www.irtf.org/mailman/listinfo/smart <https://www.irtf.org/mailman/listinfo/smart>