Federal agency name: defense advanced research projects agency (DARPA), defense sciences office (DSO) funding opportunity title: young faculty award (YFA) funding opportunity number:…

The Department of the Interior Departmental Offices Interior Business Center awarded a $500,000 cooperative agreement to The Johns Hopkins University on September 30, 2025, under the Research and Technology Development program (CFDA 12.910) to develop a revolutionary approach for detecting sophisticated surveillance equipment in cellular networks that masquerade as legitimate infrastructure. The award funds research to recognize inherent differences in configurations and behavior between legitimate and surveillance equipment, enabling real-time detection of surveillance from mobile devices—addressing a critical threat to Department of Defense personnel, operatives, and missions that current defenses cannot detect.

The work is performed in Maryland, with a period of performance through September 29, 2027. The research investigates innovative approaches enabling revolutionary advances in science and devices, specifically excluding evolutionary improvements to existing practice. The proposed detection method will overcome current signature-based approaches that rely on metrics such as signal strength comparisons, instead identifying sophisticated surveillance attacks that compromise sensitive identifiers, patterns of life, and communications transmitted and received by user equipment.

Federal agency name: defense advanced research projects agency (DARPA), defense sciences office (DSO) funding opportunity title: young faculty award (YFA) funding opportunity number: DARPARA2501CATALOG of federal domestic assistance (cfda) number(s): 12.910 research and technology developmentprogram description: DARPA is soliciting innovative research proposals in the areas of interest to the following DARPA technical offices: defense sciences office (DSO), information innovation office (I2O), microsystems technology office (MTO), and the tactical technology office (TTO). Further detail regarding the specific technical areas of interest can be found below under open office topics. Proposed research should investigate innovative approaches that enable revolutionary advances in science, devices, or systems. Specifically excluded is research that primarily results in evolutionary improvements to the existing state of practice.summary: sophisticated surveillance equipment in cellular networks poses a critical threat to DOD personnel, operatives, and missions. Current defenses expect a constrained adversary, cannot detect the highly sophisticated surveillance attacks that DOD might face. We propose a revolutionary approach to detecting sophisticated surveillance that will recognize inherent differences in configurations and behavior between legitimate and surveillance equipment. As a result, we will be able to detect highly sophisticated surveillance in real-time, from phones.intro background: surveillance systems masquerade as legitimate cellular network infrastructure to trick phones and other user equipment (UES) into revealing information. Depending on the level of sophistication, the information can include SIM card and device identifiers (imsi imei catchers), patterns of life, or even the communications transmitted and received by the UE. Current approaches look for expected attack signaturese.g., detecting unusually high signal strength and comparing observed base station identifiers against known deploymentsbut the assumptions they make about surveillance attacks leaves them unable to detect the more sophisticated deployments DOD is likely to face. As a result, sophisticated surveillance attacks continue to put service members, communications, and missions at risk.impact: our successful project will have immediate impact for DOD personnel, providing protection for UES against sophisticated surveillance equipment deployed by adversaries. Our capability will also help protect members of the US diplomatic corps and industry executives from espionage. The methodology will impact the field of network security by demonstrating the potential for fingerprinting components of black box commercial networks.