Methodology to Assess Risk from Strategic Competitor Acquisition of U.S. Biological Data and Application to an Agricultural Bioprocessing Case Study

Abstract

Strategic competitors have used a variety of licit and illicit methods to acquire U.S. biological data. The Director, Science and Technology Exploitation and Analytics, Maintaining Technology Advantage of the Office of the Undersecretary of Defense for Research and Engineering (OUSD(R and E)) is interested in assessing the potential risk resulting from strategic competitor acquisition of biological datasets and communicating the risk associated with that acquisition. This paper describes the repeatable methodology the Institute for Defense Analyses developed to assess the national security risk posed by the acquisition of U.S. biological datasets by strategic competitors and illustrative case studies that demonstrate the use of this methodology. This abridged paper documents a single illustrative case study pertaining to agricultural bioprocessing data. Specifically, the example examines Chinas use of privately held bioprocessing data to develop genetically engineered disease-resistant pigs. The methodology described in this study will be used as a framework to characterize the relationship between biological datasets, applications of those datasets, and national security risk in follow-on analyses.

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Document Details

Document Type
Technical Report
Publication Date
Aug 01, 2023
Accession Number
AD1219731

Entities

People

  • Ashley L. Farris
  • Janet C. Marroquin Pineda
  • Jay S. Shah
  • Joseph C. Hamill
  • Kristen A. Bishop
  • Robert L. Cubeta

Organizations

  • Institute for Defense Analyses

Tags

Fields of Study

  • Biology

Readers

  • Defense Acquisition Program Management
  • Economics
  • Life Cycle Cost Analysis

Technology Areas

  • Biotechnology