Why decision advantage is now a data problem
Commanders and operators are not short of data. They are short of the right data, in time, in a form they can trust and share. Sensors, platforms, partners and AI tools produce more information than any team can read, while the rules about who may see it are still enforced by the network it happens to sit on. The result is familiar: information that exists but cannot be released, partners who see too little or too much, and decisions made on yesterday's picture.
NATO has set out the shift. Its Alliance Digital Strategy calls for data-centric operations with persistent access to mission-relevant data from the strategic level to the tactical edge, "thereby accelerating mission-critical decision-making", while preserving national data sovereignty. The UK Digital Targeting Web Challenge Book asks for the ability to "quickly share multi-source, multi-classification data via common data-centric applications", fully compatible with NATO standards.
Decision advantage comes from solving three problems together: protecting the data, making it interoperable, and deciding, by policy, where it should go.
From DCS to DCI to decision advantage
Each layer builds on the one below. Data-centric security makes data safe to move. Data-centric interoperability makes protected data usable between nations and systems. Decision advantage comes from using both to put the right information in front of the right person or system at the right moment.
| Layer | Question it answers | What it needs | Espanaro |
|---|---|---|---|
| Data-centric security (DCS) | Is this data protected wherever it goes? | Labels (STANAG 4774), binding (STANAG 4778), encryption and policy-based key release (DCS-3) | ByteHarbour. DCS Level 3 demonstrated for documents and live video, not independently certified |
| Data-centric interoperability (DCI) | Can a partner nation or another system open, understand and use it? | DCS plus zero trust, federated identity, attribute-based access control and common formats such as ZTDF | ByteHarbour and HarbourGuard, shown across NATO exercise networks at EFDI and CWIX; designed to align with FMN Spiral 6 DCI |
| Decision advantage | Does the right person or system get it, at the right time, for the right reason? | Attributes on everything, policy rules, playbooks, orchestration and a full audit trail | HarbourGuard decides, Consilium orchestrates and commands, the wider Espanaro stack senses and acts |
NATO's own guidance describes data-centric interoperability in exactly these terms: achieved "by leveraging Data-Centric Security (DCS) alongside Zero Trust and federated identity frameworks", using attribute-based access control and an access control framework (NATO Data Centric Reference Architecture). Read more: DCS and DCI: what is the difference?
Attributes on everything
Policy can only decide well if it knows enough. HarbourGuard gives every principal and every object in the mission a set of attributes, and evaluates them on every request. That includes people, but also systems, devices, sensors, networks and the data itself.
| What carries attributes | Examples of attributes | Why it matters |
|---|---|---|
| People | Nationality, clearance, organisation, role, mission assignment, need to know | Two people can watch the same feed with different rights |
| Systems and services | Owner, accreditation, mission, trust level, permitted data types | A partner's C2 system receives only what it is entitled to |
| Devices and sensors | Type, location, health, integrity, who controls it | A sensor whose health is in doubt can be down-weighted or isolated |
| Networks | Classification, owner nation, coalition mission network, connection state | Releases adapt when data crosses into a partner or tactical network |
| Data | Classification, releasability, caveats, source, time, mission | The label travels with the object and is checked every time it is opened |
| Context | Mission phase, threat state, time, location, alert level | Access can widen during an incident and close again when it ends |
Because decisions are made on attributes rather than fixed roles, one policy can cover a whole site, mission or coalition, and changing a single attribute changes every decision that depends on it, within seconds.
Policy decides. Playbooks act.
Policy rules say what is allowed. Playbooks say what should happen next. Think of them as orders and Actions On, for technology. Espanaro uses both, so information is not only protected but actively routed to the people and systems who need it.
The same approach works between whole command and control systems. Consilium can take the data from one C2 system, decide what is relevant and releasable to each of the others, and share it with them. See C2 integration.
Policy and playbooks stay separate on purpose. Operators and mission planners can change what happens in a playbook without touching security policy, and security owners can tighten policy without breaking the playbook. The data is protected either way.
The decision loop, end to end
- SenseSensors, cameras, platforms and partner feeds produce data. Pulse Sentinel shows whether each sensor is healthy and how far to trust what it reports. Cognisight applies AI analytics to surface the events that matter.
- Protect at sourceByteHarbour Edge encrypts and labels data where it is created, at the camera, sensor or file, so it is protected before it touches a network.
- AttributeHarbourGuard knows the attributes of the data, the people, the systems, the devices and the networks involved, and the current mission context.
- DecidePolicy is evaluated on every request and re-checked continuously for live streams. The answer can change within seconds when an attribute or the mission changes.
- OrchestrateConsilium playbooks route the right information to the right operator, partner or system, raise alerts, assign actions and escalate, with a human in control.
- ActOperators and effectors act on a trusted picture. WayForge tasks uncrewed systems and RibbonFlow lets services find each other and connect without a central hub.
- RecordEvery request, decision and action is written to a tamper-evident audit record, so the mission can show who saw what, when and why.
An illustrative example
This is an illustrative scenario, not a description of a specific operation.
A coalition base is protected by cameras and radar from two nations. A drone is detected near the perimeter. Cognisight flags the track and Pulse Sentinel confirms the sensors reporting it are healthy. The camera feed is already encrypted and labelled at the device by ByteHarbour Edge.
A Consilium playbook raises the alert, opens the feed on the duty officer's screen and shares it with the partner nation's force protection cell. HarbourGuard allows the share because the feed's releasability includes that nation, the cell is assigned to the mission and the base is in an alert state. A contractor's system on the same network is refused, because it does not have the attributes the policy requires.
When the incident is closed, the alert state ends. Access narrows automatically, without anyone touching a screen, and the record shows every share, refusal and acknowledgement.
One stack, used in parts or as a whole
Espanaro covers the path from raw sensor data to a governed operational decision. Each product runs on its own and works alongside the systems you already have, so programmes can start with the layer they need most.
| Product | Role in decision advantage |
|---|---|
| ByteHarbour | Protect: data-centric security for documents, chat and live video, DCS Level 3 demonstrated |
| HarbourGuard | Decide: attribute-based policy on people, systems, devices, networks and data |
| Consilium | Orchestrate and command: common picture, rules, playbooks, alerts and escalation |
| Cognisight | Understand: AI analytics on video, sensor and intelligence data |
| Pulse Sentinel | Trust: health and trustworthiness of sensors and devices |
| WayForge | Act: planning, tasking and deployment of uncrewed systems |
| RibbonFlow | Connect: services find each other and connect without a central hub |
Everything is software, system and hardware agnostic, and deployable on-premises, in private cloud, in hybrid environments and at the edge. Espanaro is UK sovereign, UK owned and veteran owned.
Faster, but always accountable
Decision advantage is not about removing people from decisions. It is about removing the delay and doubt around the information they decide on. Playbooks can require acknowledgement or approval before an action continues, policies are owned by named people, and the audit record shows the basis of every release. That is what lets commanders move faster and still answer for what was shared.
Aligned to where NATO and the UK are going
- NATO Alliance Digital Strategy: data-centric operations and federated data sharing that preserves national sovereignty
- NATO Data Centric Reference Architecture: DCS alongside zero trust, federated identity and attribute-based access control
- Federated Mission Networking: Espanaro's capability is designed to align with FMN Spiral 6 data-centric interoperability (no formal conformance is claimed)
- UK Digital Targeting Web: sharing multi-source, multi-classification data through common data-centric applications
Sources: NATO Alliance Digital Strategy; NATO Data Centric Reference Architecture for the Alliance; MOD Digital Targeting Web Challenge Book 2026; techUK: The MOD's Digital Targeting Web, data-centric interoperability compliant solutions.
Common questions
What is decision advantage?
Decision advantage is deciding and acting faster and better than an adversary, using information that is trusted, timely and releasable. It depends on getting the right information to the right person or system, at the right time, for the right reason.
What is the difference between DCS and DCI?
DCS protects each item of data wherever it goes. DCI builds on DCS so that partners can open, trust and use that protected data. DCS makes data safe to move; DCI makes it safe and useful to share.
What does it mean to give people, systems and networks attributes?
Each person, system, device, network and item of data carries attributes such as nationality, clearance, mission, owner, classification or health. HarbourGuard evaluates them against policy on every request, so access follows the facts of the situation rather than fixed roles.
How do policy rules and playbooks work together?
HarbourGuard policy decides what is allowed. Consilium playbooks decide what should happen next, such as raising an alert, sharing a feed with a team or requiring acknowledgement. ByteHarbour enforces the policy on the data itself, so a playbook can never release data the policy does not permit.
Does Espanaro provide the whole stack?
Espanaro covers the path from sensor to decision: Pulse Sentinel and Cognisight for sensing and understanding, ByteHarbour for protection, HarbourGuard for policy decisions, Consilium for orchestration and command, WayForge for uncrewed tasking and RibbonFlow for connection. Each works on its own or alongside existing systems.
Are people still in control?
Yes. Playbooks can require acknowledgement or approval before an action continues, policies have named owners, and every request, decision and action is recorded in a tamper-evident audit trail.
Has Espanaro achieved DCS Level 3?
Espanaro has achieved data-centric security Level 3 (DCS-3) for document and live stream sharing, demonstrated at NATO EFDI Accelerator 2.0 in September 2026. This is Espanaro's own assessment against the ACP 240 maturity levels; it has not been independently certified.