INDUSTRY

Nortel, in collaboration with global research institutions, has demonstrated the world's first successful prototype of an optical switch with integrated encryption, securing information from intrusion and theft as it is transmitted at the speed of light among users around the world. Nortel is the first to achieve integrated data encryption for 10 Gbps optical networks using the Advanced Encryption Standard (AES) approved by the U.S. National Security Agency to ensure that the highest levels of security are met for confidential and sensitive communications. Institutions collaborating on the demonstration with Nortel included CANARIE, the International Center for Advanced Internet Research at Northwestern University, SURFnet, the University of Amsterdam, and the University of Illinois at Chicago. "Security has become one of the world's greatest challenges in the new information age, and the advanced technology Nortel is demonstrating has the potential to revolutionize the way networks are secured," said Brian McFadden, chief research officer, Nortel. "Providing a global-scale approach to security that is transparent to users has the potential to make the integration of encryption security a standard component of tomorrow's transport networks." The ability to use real-time encryption to secure the transport of large amounts of time sensitive information has applications in many industries, providing the potential to fuel growth of optical networks. Potential applications include media distribution in the entertainment industry, global scientific collaboration using grid computing by the research community, and real-time data back-up for the financial industry. The U.S. National Security Agency has already approved AES for the transport of all 'Top Secret' information. "As sensitive information and intellectual property become more distributed across multiple networks through VPNs and applications like grid computing, concerns arise about ensuring security across these networks," said Tom DeFanti, professor of Computer Science and director of Electronic Visualization Laboratory (EVL) at the University of Illinois at Chicago, and research scientist and director of visualization, California Institute for Telecommunications and Information Technology (Calit2) at the University of California, San Diego. "The security of the network is critical, and the encryption technology that Nortel is demonstrating today can provide a significant step in this direction." Nortel is demonstrating its integrated encryption technology for super-fast optical networks this week at iGrid in San Diego, an event showcasing ongoing global collaborations in grid computing. The demonstration transmits real-time encrypted data from an electronic visualization application over a 10 Gbps SONET network that spans thousands of fiber miles. Application data is encrypted from source locations in Amsterdam, Chicago, and Ottawa and transported to the iGrid show floor in San Diego where the data is viewed and manipulated on an integrated 55 screen, 100 million pixel video display. To enable this proof of concept demonstration, hardware capable of 256-bit AES encryption at 10 Gbps line speeds has been integrated into a standard Nortel Optical Multiservice Edge (OME) 6500 switch. By encrypting the application data payload before packaging it into a SONET envelope for transport, the encrypted traffic can travel across today's standards-based SONET networks to be decrypted on the other side. This integration of encryption functionality into the optical switch enables reduced network complexity, lower operational expenses through reduced power and space requirements, and higher network reliability through the inherent carrier-grade attributes of the optical switch. The live demonstration uses an electronic visualization application provided by the University of Illinois at Chicago. Network connectivity for the demonstration is being provided by CANARIE and SURFnet through international peering points on Northwestern's Chicago campus (StarLight) and in Amsterdam (NetherLight). Facilities participating in the demonstration include the University of Illinois at Chicago, the University of Amsterdam, the Calit2 facility at the University of California, San Diego, and the Nortel research and development lab in Ottawa.