Power system security boundary visualization using intelligent techniques

In the open access environment, one of the challenges for utilities is that typical operating conditions tend to be much closer to security boundaries. Consequently, security levels for the transmission network must be accurately assessed and easily identified on-line by system operators;Security assessment through boundary visualization provides the operator with knowledge of system security levels in terms of easily monitorable pre-contingency operating parameters. The traditional boundary visualization approach results in a two-dimensional graph called a nomogram. However, an intensive labor involvement, inaccurate boundary representation, and little flexibility in integrating with the energy management system greatly restrict use of nomograms under competitive utility environment. Motivated by the new operating environment and based on the traditional nomogram development procedure, an automatic security boundary visualization methodology has been developed using neural networks with feature selection. This methodology provides a new security assessment tool for power system operations;The main steps for this methodology include data generation, feature selection, neural network training, and boundary visualization. In data generation, a systematic approach to data generation has been developed to generate high quality data. Several data analysis techniques have been used to analyze the data before neural network training. In feature selection, genetic algorithm based methods have been used to select the most predicative precontingency operating parameters. Following neural network training, a confidence interval calculation method to measure the neural network output reliability has been derived. Sensitivity analysis of the neural network output with respect to input parameters has also been derived. In boundary visualization, a composite security boundary visualization algorithm has been proposed to present accurate boundaries in two dimensional diagrams to operators for any type of security problem;This methodology has been applied to thermal overload, voltage instability problems for a sample system

Security-Driven Software Evolution Using A Model Driven Approach

High security level must be guaranteed in applications in order to mitigate risks during the deployment of information systems in open network environments. However, a significant number of legacy systems remain in use which poses security risks to the enterprise’ assets due to the poor technologies used and lack of security concerns when they were in design. Software reengineering is a way out to improve their security levels in a systematic way. Model driven is an approach in which model as defined by its type directs the execution of the process. The aim of this research is to explore how model driven approach can facilitate the software reengineering driven by security demand. The research in this thesis involves the following three phases. Firstly, legacy system understanding is performed using reverse engineering techniques. Task of this phase is to reverse engineer legacy system into UML models, partition the legacy system into subsystems with the help of model slicing technique and detect existing security mechanisms to determine whether or not the provided security in the legacy system satisfies the user’s security objectives. Secondly, security requirements are elicited using risk analysis method. It is the process of analysing key aspects of the legacy systems in terms of security. A new risk assessment method, taking consideration of asset, threat and vulnerability, is proposed and used to elicit the security requirements which will generate the detailed security requirements in the specific format to direct the subsequent security enhancement. Finally, security enhancement for the system is performed using the proposed ontology based security pattern approach. It is the stage that security patterns derived from security expertise and fulfilling the elicited security requirements are selected and integrated in the legacy system models with the help of the proposed security ontology. The proposed approach is evaluated by the selected case study. Based on the analysis, conclusions are drawn and future research is discussed at the end of this thesis. The results show this thesis contributes an effective, reusable and suitable evolution approach for software security

The importance to manage data protection in the right way: Problems and solutions

Information and communication technology (ICT) has made remarkable impact on the society, especially on companies and organizations. The use of computers, databases, servers, and other technologies has made an evolution on the way of storing, processing, and transferring data. However, companies access and share their data on internet or intranet, thus there is a critical need to protect this data from destructive forces and from the unwanted actions of unauthorized users. This thesis groups a set of solutions proposed, from a company point of view, to reach the goal of \u201cManaging data protection\u201d. The work presented in this thesis represents a set of security solutions, which focuses on the management of data protection taking into account both the organizational and technological side. The work achieved can be divided into set of goals that are obtained particularly from the needs of the research community. This thesis handles the issue of managing data protection in a systematic way, through proposing a Data protection management approach, aiming to protect the data from both the organizational and the technological side, which was inspired by the ISO 27001 requirements. An Information Security Management System (ISMS) is then presented implementing this approach, an ISMS consists of the policies, procedures, guidelines, and associated resources and activities, collectively managed by an organization, in the pursuit of protecting its information assets. An ISMS is a systematic approach for establishing, implementing, operating, monitoring, reviewing, maintaining and improving an organization\u2019s information security to achieve business objectives, The goal of ISMS is to minimize risk and ensure continuity by pro-actively limiting the impact of a security breach. To be well-prepared to the potential threats that could occur to an organization, it is important to adopt an ISMS that helps in managing the data protection process, and in saving time and effort, minimizes cost of any loss. After that, a comprehensive framework is designed for the security risk management of Cyber Physical Systems (CPSs), this framework represents the strategy used to manage the security risk management, and it falls inside the ISMS as a security strategy. Traditional IT risk assessment methods can do the job (security risk management for a CPS); however, and because of the characteristics of a CPS, it is more efficient to adopt a solution that is wider than a method that addresses the type, functionalities and complexity of a CPS. Therefore, there is a critical need to follow a solution that breaks the restriction to a traditional risk assessment method, and so a high-level framework is proposed, it encompasses wider set of procedures and gives a great attention to the cybersecurity of these systems, which consequently leads to the safety of the physical world. In addition, inside the ISMS, another part of the work takes place, suggesting the guidelines to select an applicable Security Incident and Event Management (SIEM) solution. It also proposes an approach that aims to support companies seeking to adopt SIEM systems into their environments, suggesting suitable answers to preferred requirements that are believed to be valuable prerequisites a SIEM system should have; and to suggest criteria to judge SIEM systems using an evaluation process composed of quantitative and qualitative methods. This approach, unlike others, is customer driven which means that customer needs are taken into account when following the whole approach, specifically when defining the requirements and then evaluating the suppliers\u2019 solutions. At the end, a research activity was carried out aiming classify web attacks on the network level, since any information about the attackers might be helpful and worth a lot to the cyber security analysts. And so, using network statistical fingerprints and machine learning techniques, a two-layers classification system is designed to detect the type of the web attack and the type of software used by the attackers

Security, Privacy and Safety Risk Assessment for Virtual Reality Learning Environment Applications

Social Virtual Reality based Learning Environments (VRLEs) such as vSocial render instructional content in a three-dimensional immersive computer experience for training youth with learning impediments. There are limited prior works that explored attack vulnerability in VR technology, and hence there is a need for systematic frameworks to quantify risks corresponding to security, privacy, and safety (SPS) threats. The SPS threats can adversely impact the educational user experience and hinder delivery of VRLE content. In this paper, we propose a novel risk assessment framework that utilizes attack trees to calculate a risk score for varied VRLE threats with rate and duration of threats as inputs. We compare the impact of a well-constructed attack tree with an adhoc attack tree to study the trade-offs between overheads in managing attack trees, and the cost of risk mitigation when vulnerabilities are identified. We use a vSocial VRLE testbed in a case study to showcase the effectiveness of our framework and demonstrate how a suitable attack tree formalism can result in a more safer, privacy-preserving and secure VRLE system.Comment: Tp appear in the CCNC 2019 Conferenc

A model and framework for online security benchmarking

The variety of threats and vulnerabilities within the online business environment are dynamic and thus constantly changing in how they impinge upon online functionality, compromise organizational or customer information, contravene security implementations and thereby undermine online customer confidence. To nullify such threats, online security management must become proactive, by reviewing and continuously improving online security to strengthen the enterpriseis online security measures and policies, as modelled. The benchmarking process utilises a proposed benchmarking framework to guide both the development and application of security benchmarks created in the first instance, from recognized information technology (IT) and information security standards (ISS) and then their application to the online security measures and policies utilized within online business. Furthermore, the benchmarking framework incorporates a continuous improvement review process to address the relevance of benchmark development over time and the changes in threat focus.<br /

Towards Automating the Construction & Maintenance of Attack Trees: a Feasibility Study

Security risk management can be applied on well-defined or existing systems; in this case, the objective is to identify existing vulnerabilities, assess the risks and provide for the adequate countermeasures. Security risk management can also be applied very early in the system's development life-cycle, when its architecture is still poorly defined; in this case, the objective is to positively influence the design work so as to produce a secure architecture from the start. The latter work is made difficult by the uncertainties on the architecture and the multiple round-trips required to keep the risk assessment study and the system architecture aligned. This is particularly true for very large projects running over many years. This paper addresses the issues raised by those risk assessment studies performed early in the system's development life-cycle. Based on industrial experience, it asserts that attack trees can help solve the human cognitive scalability issue related to securing those large, continuously-changing system-designs. However, big attack trees are difficult to build, and even more difficult to maintain. This paper therefore proposes a systematic approach to automate the construction and maintenance of such big attack trees, based on the system's operational and logical architectures, the system's traditional risk assessment study and a security knowledge database.Comment: In Proceedings GraMSec 2014, arXiv:1404.163

Crime scripting: A systematic review

The file attached to this record is the author's final peer reviewed version.More than two decades after the publication of Cornish’s seminal work about the script-theoretic approach to crime analysis, this article examines how the concept has been applied in our community. The study provides evidence confirming that the approach is increasingly popular; and takes stock of crime scripting practices through a systematic review of over one hundred scripts published between 1994 and 2018. The results offer the first comprehensive picture of this approach, and highlights new directions for those interested in using data from cyber-systems and the Internet of Things to develop effective situational crime prevention measures

Run-time risk management in adaptive ICT systems

We will present results of the SERSCIS project related to risk management and mitigation strategies in adaptive multi-stakeholder ICT systems. The SERSCIS approach involves using semantic threat models to support automated design-time threat identification and mitigation analysis. The focus of this paper is the use of these models at run-time for automated threat detection and diagnosis. This is based on a combination of semantic reasoning and Bayesian inference applied to run-time system monitoring data. The resulting dynamic risk management approach is compared to a conventional ISO 27000 type approach, and validation test results presented from an Airport Collaborative Decision Making (A-CDM) scenario involving data exchange between multiple airport service providers