DHS Awards $1.97M to Small Businesses for First Responder ICAM Technolo

Washington, D.C. – With a critical need for first responders to securely validate and share information between jurisdictions at public safety events, the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) Small Business Innovation Research (SBIR) Program awarded a total of $1.97 million to two small businesses to develop technologies that will support the security, scalability, and interoperability within a first responder organization’s information technology infrastructure.

“In the event of an emergency or other activity, first responders need to focus on the mission at hand and be confident that the right person is accessing the right information at the right time,” said William N. Bryan, DHS Senior Official Performing the Duties of the Under Secretary for Science and Technology. “The technologies developed through the SBIR Program will help enhance the security of first responder devices and allow them perform their jobs effectively.”

The DHS SBIR Program, administered by the DHS Science and Technology Directorate (S&T), selected Waverly Labs and Oasys International Corporation to participate in Phase II of the SBIR Program based on the successful demonstration of feasibility in Phase I for their Identity, Credential, and Access Management (ICAM) On-the-Fly technology solutions. 

In Phase II, both companies will continue their research and development (R&D) efforts. Waverly Labs, headquartered in Waterford, Virginia, will further develop their proposed Dynamic AccessID Network & Toolkit to improve ICAM used by crisis and emergency managers. Oasys International Corporation, headquartered in Fairfax, Virginia, will continue development on an Event Management System (EMS) that will support enhanced and streamlined ICAM functionality for federal, state, local and tribal first responders during large planned public events. 

“Historically, the required system administration used in first responder IT infrastructure is too complex to be practical,” said Norman Speicher, DHS S&T Program Manager. “DHS S&T’s ICAM-on-the-Fly is focused on modernizing access management solutions to support lead agencies in securely vetting identities and credentials of responders as they report to assist in a public safety event. The development of these technologies will greatly reduce the time it takes for first responders to allow for the auto-provisioning of users into information sharing applications to facilitate situational awareness and communications channels.”

At the completion of the 24-month Phase II SBIR contract, awardees will have received up to $1 million to develop and demonstrate a prototype to facilitate the pursuit of Phase III funding. For Phase III, SBIR performers will seek to secure funding from private or a non-SBIR government source. The objective of Phase III is for small business to pursue technology commercialization resulting from their Phase I and II efforts. 

For more information on the DHS SBIR Program visit the program portal https://sbir2.st.dhs.gov or contact [email protected]. 

For more information on S&T’s innovation programs and tools, visit https://www.dhs.gov/science-and-technology/business-opportunities.

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