Week 5

● A weekly narrative of the beneficiaries you interviewed

DJ – This week we interviewed DJ Hovermale about the CAT. He is a user/administrator of the program who wants to see the program succeed and become something that can be used as a cyber assessment tool. We learned that normally when users are using the tool for the first time, they go through an introduction and practice exercise to help train them on how to use the tool if it is their first time. We learned about the development cycle of the tool and how it got to the current state. Finally, we learned that the current state of virtualization is that they were hard built into the tool and are not easily editable by any sort of tool

Kevin – We also interviewed Kevin about the tool in question. We learned how data is imported and what it looks like in the spreadsheet before being input into the program. We learned how important it is for data to be formatted correctly otherwise issues can/will arise. We learned how this program had a different type of development compared to a normal enterprise tool. We learned about and verified the types of tests that the tool is currently being used for and know that currently there are multiple different ways that the tool is used, such as verifying performance and effectiveness and that assessors need to know what they are rating. Finally, we learned that the type of data that may be stored on the tool should be considered sensitive and we need to remember this when looking at the types of databases to ensure that data is stored in a proper and secure manner.

Ryan – We also interviewed Ryan Moore about the CAT. We learned that the user had minimal experience with the tool and that they did not have the normal training for the tool that other users have had. The user was told going into the program that it was a mess and appears that they just trusted this information and believed it from day one. This user complained about things being hard to find and review as items are in different locations, based on the user’s training/knowledge it is hard to know if they are speaking the truth or if they just need more training on the tool.

Ray – In addition to our previous contacts we also interviewed Ray Ozment regarding the CAT application. Although Ray did not have any prior experience with cyber his user experience was highly valued. He allowed our group to understand a completely new user perspective, outside of the cyber realm. His input has allowed us to broaden our scope for such a tool from cyber exercises to a vast majority of exercises and simulations that are government run.

Tyler - We interviewed Tyler about the approach towards solving the problem. His insight into system analysis and design allowed us to learn from his experience about approaching system redesign methodologies. Although not a beneficiary of CAT, he was able to provide subject matter expertise allowing us to better understand the type of questions we should be asking various user archetypes.

● Hypotheses you tested

This week we tested hypotheses on data views in the program. We also tested our hypotheses about how the program needs to have improvements made to it rather than the issues being user-based issues.

● Results you found

While there are some good aspects to the dashboard, like visualizing where the measurables are in progress, it needs to be less taxing to enter in the observations and the CAT has a hard time quantifying the measurables. Kibana may be a possibility, but there are options to be explored.

● Photos, videos, or other media regarding your meetings and interviews

There were no photos, videos, or other media regarding our meetings and interviews. We took notes during the interviews for the purpose of bringing questions and observations to our mentor and sponsor.

● Changes to your Mission Model Canvas

This week, the only change is adding one new beneficiary, Ray Ozment. No other changes noted.