ENTRUSTED online course dedicated to secure satellite communications will be available for free from June 2022 until February 2023. The training offers useful and practical information and is a great starting point for everyone interested in satellite-based connectivity, especially for governmental users.

Most people are familiar with satellite communications (SatCom) but associate them mainly with satellite television and satellite phones, which are a ‘must-have’ in mountaineering. Yet, over the years SatCom services have proved to be invaluable in a wide range of situations and operations. In general, communication satellites can provide three types of services:

• Telecommunications – electronic transmission of information in the form of voice telephone calls, data, text, images, or video;
• Broadcasting – distribution of audio or video content (e.g., delivery of radio and television transmissions);
• Data communications – transfer of data from one point to another (e.g., Internet service, exchange of financial information in the banking system).

Nowadays, SatCom services are accessed by commercial and non-governmental organisations, as well as by public institutions. Satellite communication technology is often used in remote areas to substitute overloaded, damaged, or lacking terrestrial networks. Most importantly, satellite-based connectivity becomes indispensable during natural disasters and in emergencies when land-based communication services are down. In fact, SatCom solutions support all conventional telecommunication services, especially for planning disaster recovery, remote communications, or emergency management communications. For this reason satellite-based connectivity can be considered as an important communication means for national public authorities managing security-related activities and critical missions and infrastructures.

There are many questions that come to mind regarding satellite communications, for instance: What are the main benefits and drawback of SatCom systems? Who is involved in the provision of SatCom services? Who are the main public institutional users? In which situations and operations, and for what purposes are SatCom services used? How can SatCom services be accessed? What are the typical devices that are used by users to access SatCom services? What is the concept of governmental satellites communications (GOVSATCOM)? Who will provide GOVSATCOM services and who can benefit from them?

Space-based technologies are considered high tech and thus too complex to comprehend. In addition, it is relatively difficult to find useful and practical information in one place. For this reason, the ENTRUSTED Consortium has developed a training on the fundaments of secure satellite communications. Although the training includes some theoretical concepts related to satellite communications, it focuses mostly on practical aspects.

The ENTRUSTED training has been designed for technical employees of public institutions, implementing or managing communication solutions used in security-critical missions, operations, or key infrastructures, who have no specific knowledge of SatCom. However, everyone who is interested in SatCom can take the course will gain substantial and valuable knowledge.

Check the Training section to find out more about our online course. If you are already convinced that this course is for you, go straight to the ENTRUSTED e-leaning platform!