General Dynamics C4 Systems has been awarded a $6.5 million contract option to produce Engineering Design Models of the Advanced Cryptographic Module (ACM) for the U.S. Army's Programmable Objective Encryption Technologies (POET) program, following a recent successful Critical Design Review. This option modifies a contract initially awarded in August 2006 and brings the total contract value to $11.5 million.

With the critical design review phase completed, the program is on schedule to deliver the embedded communications capability.

The POET program is aligned with the National Security Agency's Cryptographic Modernization Initiative, and will enable high data-rate, multi-level security for voice, video, data and imagery from a variety of military equipment and networks including U.S. Navy multi-band terminals, U.S. Air Force advanced broadband terminals and U.S. Army High Capacity Communications Capability terminals.

The Engineering Design Models are used to demonstrate a subset of cryptographic functions and features.

"The POET ACM is an embedded security device that meets the speed variant demands and size, weight and power requirements needed to secure very large amounts of information moving across widely distributed battlespace networks," says John Cole, vice president of Information Assurance at General Dynamics C4 Systems.

"Much of what we've learned in 40 years of fielding Type 1 secure chips, modules and communications has gone into developing this new generation of core encryption devices for the military and government agencies."