Satellite Red Team vs Blue Team Workshop

Satellite Red Team vs Blue Team Workshop by Tonex

Satellites depend on coordinated security across spacecraft components, mission ground systems, communications links, and trusted operators. The Satellite Red Team vs Blue Team Workshop by Tonex provides a framework for controlled adversarial assessment and defensive decision making across those interconnected areas. Participants examine realistic attack surface categories, command authorization dependencies, ground access controls, firmware assurance, and the limits of available telemetry. Emphasis is placed on assessment authorization, flight safety restrictions, monitoring requirements, and evidence-based remediation. The workshop keeps mission assurance central, recognizing that poorly chosen security actions can create operational hazards even when the underlying threat is credible.

Coordinated assessment improves cybersecurity by identifying weaknesses before unauthorized activity disrupts satellite services. Evidence-led defensive operations strengthen cybersecurity resilience while maintaining command integrity and safe flight operations.

The practical training approach includes exercises, real-world case studies, and examples of processes and documentation used in satellite red and blue team assessment projects, including rules of engagement, segment inventories, security observations, response decision records, and engineering remediation trackers.

Learning Objectives

• Map satellite cyber exposures across space, ground, communications, and user segments.
• Specify permitted assessment activity and high consequence mission exclusions.
• Identify defensive evidence for suspicious access and command authorization failures.
• Evaluate preventive controls, detection gaps, and operational response tradeoffs.
• Document cross-team security findings with reproducible engineering context.
• Prioritize remediation according to mission impact and safety constraints.
• Improve cybersecurity assurance through accountable assessment and defense coordination.

Audience

• Cybersecurity Professionals
• Satellite Security Engineers
• Space Mission Operations Leads
• Authorized Red Team Assessors
• Blue Team Detection Analysts
• Satellite Communications Engineers
• Ground Systems Administrators
• Space Mission Risk Specialists

Course Modules

Module 1: Satellite Security Assessment Boundaries

• Decompose satellite services into space, ground, and communications functions
• Classify mission critical commands and safety constrained operational interfaces
• Establish written assessment permissions and prohibited interaction categories
• Map system owners and vendor dependencies for investigation coordination
• Identify suitable records for evidence collection without affecting live operations
• Develop engagement objectives aligned with satellite cybersecurity priorities

Module 2: Ground Infrastructure Threat Assessment

• Review remote administration and privileged ground station access controls
• Assess network segregation between enterprise and mission command services
• Identify risks from exposed support interfaces and third party connections
• Evaluate update approvals and security controls on mission application servers
• Define expected audit events for authentication and configuration changes
• Document defensive improvement opportunities and remaining assessment limitations

Module 3: Spacecraft Command and Firmware Assurance

• Explain command acceptance boundaries and authenticated command prerequisites
• Review software provenance and authorized firmware update governance
• Assess exposure from stale credentials and poorly controlled operational privileges
• Consider spacecraft resource constraints when planning security safeguards
• Identify telemetry indicating unexpected command or configuration behavior
• Record safety dependencies that influence security incident response options

Module 4: Communications and Link Security Review

• Assess link security requirements without treating interference as cyber compromise
• Review protection of command uplinks and mission telemetry downlinks
• Identify evidence for suspicious ground transmitters and link abnormalities
• Correlate communications observations with mission operations and weather conditions
• Map protective measures to approved data link security requirements
• Define boundaries for response actions affecting communication service continuity

Module 5: Blue Team Triage and Response Decisions

• Develop indicators for compromised ground accounts and unauthorized configuration
• Correlate ground security events with spacecraft operations timelines
• Define joint assessment of ambiguous telemetry and abnormal command patterns
• Evaluate isolation decisions that may affect spacecraft positive control
• Prepare incident communication templates and restoration approval procedures
• Capture evidence uncertainty, decision ownership, and containment tradeoffs

Module 6: Joint Reporting and Mission Remediation

• Compare observed defenses against agreed assessment criteria and risk priorities
• Describe findings using traceable evidence and mission relevant consequences
• Allocate remediation work to engineering, operations, and supplier owners
• Review credential, software, and network mitigation dependencies across segments
• Establish reassessment criteria for security improvement verification
• Present final risk decisions with operational constraints and residual exposure

Advance satellite defense through authorized, mission-aware assessment. Join Satellite Red Team vs Blue Team Workshop by Tonex to improve threat evaluation, defensive coordination, and practical remediation priorities.