Readout: ONCD Participates in the National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine Workshop on Secure Building Blocks for Trustworthy Systems

Technical Community Convenes to Accelerate Innovation on Memory Safe Technologies

August 6, 2024

On July 31, 2024, dozens of scientists, engineers, and mathematicians from across academia, industry, and government convened at the University of Washington, Seattle, for a workshop hosted by the National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine (NASEM). The workshop was inspired by ONCD’s critically acclaimed technical report, titled “Back to the Building Blocks: A Path Toward Secure and Measurable Software.” The report focuses on eliminating memory-safety vulnerabilities by utilizing memory-safe programming languages, memory-safe chip architecture, and formal methods. The outcome of this workshop will result in a future NASEM report summarizing workshop discussions and highlighting key knowledge, tools, best practices, and pathways toward secure building blocks.

The workshop held five sessions that addressed the following themes:

• Session 1: Recent progress and future opportunities on memory safe programming languages, memory safe hardware architecture, and formal methods;
• Session 2: Sector-specific engagement on building blocks and memory safe technologies and their applications;
• Session 3: Perspectives of big tech companies on adopting memory safety technologies for legacy systems;
• Session 4: Exploration of recent DARPA programs and their strong connection to ONCD’s Building Blocks thesis; and
• Session 5: Call to action for driving ecosystem-wide adoption of secure building blocks for the decisive decade ahead.

Assistant National Cyber Director for Technology Security, Anjana Rajan, delivered the keynote address for the event. “We need a paradigm shift in how we think about cybersecurity. Instead of taking a ‘perimeter in’ approach, we instead need a ‘building block out’ approach, ensuring that we are securing the atomic units of cyberspace and building with new raw materials that are secure by design,” said Rajan. “Together, these three building blocks – secure programming languages, secure chips and semiconductors, and mathematical proofs – can transform the way we approach cybersecurity threats moving forward.”

This workshop is the latest milestone in the U.S Government’s efforts to implement the ideas proposed in “Back to the Building Blocks.” Earlier this spring, ONCD met with government officials from a range of nations, including the UK, Australia, Canada, and Singapore, to harmonize international cyber policies on this topic.

In May, CISA launched a Secure-by-Design Pledge that calls upon the private sector to eliminate memory safety vulnerabilities using secure building blocks, garnering over 180 signatories.

In July, OMB released the Administration’s Cybersecurity Priorities for Fiscal Year 2026 Budget, which calls for the prioritization of secure-by-design efforts, including memory safe programming languages, memory safe hardware, formal methods, and advancement of software understanding and measurability.

Finally, DARPA is making critical investments that are aligned with “Back to the Building Blocks” by establishing three new programs: TRACTOR, CPM, and PROVERS.

Video recording of ANCD Rajan’s full remarks can be found below: