Raytheon [RTN] is launching a new National Security Agency (NSA)-certified KG-350 Ethernet encryption system that can work for classified systems, the company said Wednesday.
The KG-350 can protect network communications for sensitive information leading up to Top Secret/Sensitive Compartmented Information (TS/SCI) classified information. The NSA certified this system as Type 1, allowing the company to sell the KG-350 to commercial, military, and government customers immediately, the company said.
Raytheon highlighted the KG-30 works in the Layer 2 encryption market, the faster network speed section of the market. The system offers a lower battery and higher throughput than current encryption technology, Raytheon said.
“Raytheon’s KG-350 provides the world’s fastest, highest-capacity networking system for secure communications. Layer 2 encryption preserves bandwidth – increasing information throughput up to 45 percent – and enables uninterrupted real-time data, voice and video,” said John Droge, director of Raytheon’s Secure Information Systems subsidiary.
The KG-350 is ruggedized for tactical vehicle use and fixed-site applications, the company said. The encryptor is also the first to conform to the NSA’s newest Ethernet Security Specification (ESS) standard.
“The advantage of ESS compliance is that ESS encryptors are interoperable with one another, which means keeping pace with growing networking needs simply requires adding new encryptors rather than replacing entire networks,” Droge added.
The KG-350 can operate at three speed options: 100 MBps, 1 Gbps, or 10 Gbps.
“As network data speeds keep increasing, so does the need for lower latency networking systems. That’s where Layer 2 encryption comes in – it allows network administrators to achieve higher and higher degrees of throughput while efficiently protecting user data,” Paul Pittelli, NSA Deputy Director for Trusted Engineering Solutions, said in a statement.
The NSA certification of KG-350 has also allowed Raytheon to begin filling a backlog of product orders, the company said.