The Implementation of a Cybersecurity Testbed for Education and Research

The Cyber Innovation Lab brings with it the understanding and collection of the threats, vulnerabilities, and risks that one’s IT resources present. Due to the increasing complexity and degree of cyber threats, innovation regarding current attack vectors and defense mechanisms are needed. The lack of realistic threat landscapes and the need for accurate security analysis and defense strategies prompted the implementation of a cyber physical system for defensive research. The project depicts the processes to establish the testbed, the methodology used in classifying the architecture, threat and attack analysis, as well as preliminary results. The paper presents the testbed architecture of the realistic corporate environment implemented at The University at Albany, known as the Cyber Innovation Lab. It elaborates on the development, setup, and initial results, along with the practical challenges faced during the early stages of development. In the development of the Cyber Innovation Lab, coordinated and random attacks were carried out on the testbed to determine how the data would propagate on the system allowing for current defense mechanisms to be reviewed. This innovation hub will serve as a breeding ground for new defense techniques and will be a testing environment for local businesses and students