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Explore the cutting-edge world of space cybersecurity through this 21-minute DEF CON 33 conference talk that unveils the Moonlight Defender purple team exercise series. Discover how The Aerospace Corporation, MITRE, and AFRL developed a revolutionary low-cost, modular, and scalable framework for realistic space-cyber training that operates effectively even in environments with restricted access, limited visibility, and contested information flows. Learn about the integration of purple teaming methodologies that enable both offensive and defensive cyber operators to refine their Tactics, Techniques, and Procedures (TTPs) in high-fidelity, live-fire settings. Examine the evolution from Moonlight Defender 1, which utilized the Moonlighter satellite and Aerospace's Dark Sky cyber range for adversarial emulation and space asset defense training, to Moonlight Defender 2, which expanded capabilities by introducing virtual satellite simulators, ICS/OT systems, and enterprise environments. Understand how these groundbreaking exercises broke down traditional operational silos and operationalized space hacking, demonstrating that security through obscurity fails in space environments just as it does on Earth. Gain behind-the-scenes insights into real-world space-cyber exercises, including attack chain development, defense strategy refinement, and operations under limited access and denied environments, while exploring methodologies, tools, lessons learned, and opportunities for the hacker community to influence the future of space-cyber operations.
