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Mason Rice

Director, Cyber Resilience and Intelligence Division

Contact

RICEMJ@ORNL.GOV

Bio

Dr. Mason Rice is the director of the Cyber Resilience and Intelligence Division at 91°µÍø. In this role, he is responsible for an R&D portfolio focused on advanced intelligent systems and resilient cyber-physical systems, including research into (1) AI for national security, (2) cybersecurity for critical systems, (3) machine-augmented intelligence, (4) vulnerability science, and (5) identity science.

Following retirement from the Army, Dr. Rice joined ORNL in 2017 as the Cyber-Physical R&D Manager and was soon appointed as the first Group Leader for Resilient Cyber-Physical Systems at ORNL. He ultimately grew the group into four focused research groups, at which point he was selected to be the first Section Head of the new Resilient Cyber-Physical Systems Section. 

Professional Experience

Before joining ORNL, Dr. Rice served in a wide variety of assignments during his 22 years of active-duty military service. His final assignment as an active-duty Army Officer was with the Air Force Institute of Technology (AFIT) as a professor in the Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering.

Previously, Dr. Rice was handpicked for an assignment with the White House Communications Agency, where he served as the Agency’s chief engineer and as the commander of the Washington Area Communications Command. He commanded 300+ personnel who provided direct and essential communications services to the President, Vice President, First Lady, Secret Service, and other entities. He engaged daily with top White House officials and ensured satisfaction with communications services for the most demanding governmental leaders in the world. 

He started his career as a platoon leader in the U.S. Army’s first Theater High Altitude Area Defense (THAAD) Battalion. In 2000, he was selected as the commander of the 94th Signal Company, 56th Signal Battalion, Fort Buchanan, Puerto Rico. Following his tenure in command, Dr. Rice was assigned as the operations officer for a joint-service, battalion-sized tactical satellite communications provider within the National Security Agency (NSA), where he earned the Officer of the Year Award. He also served as a senior engineer for the NSA, providing information assurance solutions to critical assets within DoD. 

Awards

He is a graduate of the U.S. Army Signal Officer Basic and Advanced Courses, Combined Arms and Staff Services School, Functional Area 24 (Telecom Systems Engineering) Course, US Army Command and General Staff College and the Advanced Management Program at the National Defense University. A Certified Information Systems Security Professional (CISSP), Dr. Rice is honored to be included in the White House Communications Agency Hall of Fame and the U.S. Army ROTC Hall of Fame.

Education

Dr. Rice earned a B.S. in electrical engineering with honors from the Florida Institute of Technology; an M.S. in electrical and computer engineering from the University of Florida; and a Ph.D. in computer science from the University of Tulsa. He has over 30 peer-reviewed publications and holds a U. S. patent. 

Publications

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Other Publications

  • M. Rice, J. Butts, R. Miller and S. Shenoi, An analysis of the legality of government-mandated computer inoculations, International Journal of Critical Infrastructure Protection, vol. 3(1), pp. 5-15, 2010.
  • M. Rice, J. Butts, R. Miller and S. Shenoi, Applying public health strategies to the protection of cyberspace, International Journal of Critical Infrastructure Protection, vol. 3(3), pp. 118-127, 2010.
  • J. Butts, M. Rice and S. Shenoi, Modeling control system failures and attacks -- Waterloo campaign to oil pipelines, in Critical Infrastructure Protection IV, T. Moore and S. Shenoi (Eds.), Springer, Germany, pp. 43-62, 2010.
  • M. Rice, R. Miller and S. Shenoi, May the U.S. government monitor private critical infrastructure assets to combat foreign cyberspace threats? International Journal of Critical Infrastructure Protection, vol. 4(1), pp. 3-13, 2011.
  • M. Rice, J. Butts, and S. Shenoi, A signaling framework to deter aggression in cyberspace, International Journal of Critical Infrastructure Protection, vol. 4(2), pp. 57-65, 2011.
  • M. Rice, D. Guernsey and S. Shenoi, Using deception to shield cyberspace sensors, in Critical Infrastructure Protection V, J. Butts and S. Shenoi (Eds.), Springer, Germany, pp. 3-18, 2011.
  • D. Guernsey, M. Rice and S. Shenoi, Implementing novel defense functionality in MPLS networks using hyperspeed signaling, in Critical Infrastructure Protection V, J. Butts and S. Shenoi (Eds.), Springer, Germany, pp. 91-106, 2011.
  • J. Butts, M. Rice and S. Shenoi, An adversarial model for expressing attacks on control protocols, Journal of Defense Modeling and Simulation: Applications, Methodology, Technology, vol. 9(2), 2012.
  • D. Guernsey, M. Rice and S. Shenoi, Implementing novel reactive defense functionality in networks using hyperspeed signaling, International Journal of Critical Infrastructure Protection, vol. 5(1), pp. 40-52, 2012.
  • J. Rowland, M. Rice, S. Shenoi, The anatomy of a cyber power, International Journal of Critical Infrastructure Protection, vol. 7(1), pp. 3-11, 2014.
  • J. Rowland, M. Rice, S. Shenoi, Whither cyberpower?, International Journal of Critical Infrastructure Protection, vol. 7(2), pp. 124-137, 2014.
  • M. Winn, M. Rice, S. Dunlap, J. Lopez and B. Mullins, Constructing cost-effective and targetable industrial control system honeypots for production networks, International Journal of Critical Infrastructure Protection, vol. 10, pp. 47-58, 2015.
  • M. Rice, J. Butts, R. Miller and S. Shenoi, An analysis of the legality of government-mandated computer inoculations, International Journal of Critical Infrastructure Protection, vol. 3(1), pp. 5-15, 2010.
  • M. Rice, J. Butts, R. Miller and S. Shenoi, Applying public health strategies to the protection of cyberspace, International Journal of Critical Infrastructure Protection, vol. 3(3), pp. 118-127, 2010.
  • J. Butts, M. Rice and S. Shenoi, Modeling control system failures and attacks -- Waterloo campaign to oil pipelines, in Critical Infrastructure Protection IV, T. Moore and S. Shenoi (Eds.), Springer, Germany, pp. 43-62, 2010.
  • M. Rice, R. Miller and S. Shenoi, May the U.S. government monitor private critical infrastructure assets to combat foreign cyberspace threats? International Journal of Critical Infrastructure Protection, vol. 4(1), pp. 3-13, 2011.
  • M. Rice, J. Butts, and S. Shenoi, A signaling framework to deter aggression in cyberspace, International Journal of Critical Infrastructure Protection, vol. 4(2), pp. 57-65, 2011.
  • M. Rice, D. Guernsey and S. Shenoi, Using deception to shield cyberspace sensors, in Critical Infrastructure Protection V, J. Butts and S. Shenoi (Eds.), Springer, Germany, pp. 3-18, 2011.
  • D. Guernsey, M. Rice and S. Shenoi, Implementing novel defense functionality in MPLS networks using hyperspeed signaling, in Critical Infrastructure Protection V, J. Butts and S. Shenoi (Eds.), Springer, Germany, pp. 91-106, 2011.
  • J. Butts, M. Rice and S. Shenoi, An adversarial model for expressing attacks on control protocols, Journal of Defense Modeling and Simulation: Applications, Methodology, Technology, vol. 9(2), 2012.
  • D. Guernsey, M. Rice and S. Shenoi, Implementing novel reactive defense functionality in networks using hyperspeed signaling, International Journal of Critical Infrastructure Protection, vol. 5(1), pp. 40-52, 2012.
  • J. Rowland, M. Rice, S. Shenoi, The anatomy of a cyber power, International Journal of Critical Infrastructure Protection, vol. 7(1), pp. 3-11, 2014.
  • J. Rowland, M. Rice, S. Shenoi, Whither cyberpower?, International Journal of Critical Infrastructure Protection, vol. 7(2), pp. 124-137, 2014.
  • M. Winn, M. Rice, S. Dunlap, J. Lopez and B. Mullins, Constructing cost-effective and targetable industrial control system honeypots for production networks, International Journal of Critical Infrastructure Protection, vol. 10, pp. 47-58, 2015.
  • J. Daoud, M. Rice, S. Dunlap and J. Pecarina, Multi-controller exercise environments for training industrial control system First Responders, in Critical Infrastructure Protection XI, M. Rice and S. Shenoi (Eds.), Springer, Cham, Switzerland, pp. 273-296, 2017.
  • A. Rose, J. Bindewald, B. Ramsey, M. Rice and B. Mullins, Securing Bluetooth Low Energy locks from unauthorized access and surveillance, in Critical Infrastructure Protection XI, M. Rice and S. Shenoi (Eds.), Springer, Cham, Switzerland, pp. 319-338, 2017.
  • M. Rice and S. Shenoi (Eds.), Critical Infrastructure Protection XI, Springer, Cham, Switzerland, 2017.
  • B. Yerkes, B. Ramsey, M. Rice, J. Pecarina and S. Dunlap, Security analysis of software-defined radar, Proceedings of the Twelfth International Conference on Cyber Warfare and Security, pp. 386-396, 2017.
  • I. Stine, M. Rice, S. Dunlap and J. Pecarina, A cyber risk scoring system for medical devices, International Journal of Critical Infrastructure Protection, vol. 19, pp. 32-46, 2017.
  • J. Rosson, M. Rice, J. Lopez and D. Fass, Incentivizing cyber security investment in the power sector using an extended cyber insurance framework, Homeland Security Affairs, vol. 15(2), 2019.
  • M. Sabiga, R. Mills, M. Rice and S. Dunlap, Applying cyber threat intelligence to industrial control systems, Journal of Cyber Security and Information Systems, vol. 7(2), 2019.
  • A. Van Socktom, E. Kurkowski, T. Potok, C. Taylor, J. Dawson, M. Rice and S. Shenoi, Attack-defense modeling of material extrusion additive manufacturing systems, in Critical Infrastructure Protection XVI, J. Staggs and S. Shenoi (Eds.), Springer, Cham, Switzerland, pp. 121-153, 2022.
  • E. Kurkowski, M. Rice and S. Shenoi, Detecting part anomalies induced by cyber attacks on a powder bed fusion additive manufacturing system, in Critical Infrastructure Protection XVI, J. Staggs and S. Shenoi (Eds.), Springer, Cham, Switzerland, pp. 175-203, 2022.
  • J. Price, R. Dill, S. Dunlap and M. Rice, Joint Test Action Group data acquisition for cyber-physical systems security, Proceedings of the International Conference on Smart Systems and Technologies, pp. 179-186, 2022.
  • Department of Energy, National Cyber-Informed Engineering Strategy, 2022 (Member of the Senior Technical Group).

Organizations