830 research outputs found

    Identifying Security-Critical Cyber-Physical Components in Industrial Control Systems

    Get PDF
    In recent years, Industrial Control Systems (ICS) have become an appealing target for cyber attacks, having massive destructive consequences. Security metrics are therefore essential to assess their security posture. In this paper, we present a novel ICS security metric based on AND/OR graphs that represent cyber-physical dependencies among network components. Our metric is able to efficiently identify sets of critical cyber-physical components, with minimal cost for an attacker, such that if compromised, the system would enter into a non-operational state. We address this problem by efficiently transforming the input AND/OR graph-based model into a weighted logical formula that is then used to build and solve a Weighted Partial MAX-SAT problem. Our tool, META4ICS, leverages state-of-the-art techniques from the field of logical satisfiability optimisation in order to achieve efficient computation times. Our experimental results indicate that the proposed security metric can efficiently scale to networks with thousands of nodes and be computed in seconds. In addition, we present a case study where we have used our system to analyse the security posture of a realistic water transport network. We discuss our findings on the plant as well as further security applications of our metric.Comment: Keywords: Security metrics, industrial control systems, cyber-physical systems, AND-OR graphs, MAX-SAT resolutio

    A Multi-Agent Systems Approach for Analysis of Stepping Stone Attacks

    Get PDF
    Stepping stone attacks are one of the most sophisticated cyber-attacks, in which attackers make a chain of compromised hosts to reach a victim target. In this Dissertation, an analytic model with Multi-Agent systems approach has been proposed to analyze the propagation of stepping stones attacks in dynamic vulnerability graphs. Because the vulnerability configuration in a network is inherently dynamic, in this Dissertation a biased min-consensus technique for dynamic graphs with fixed and switching topology is proposed as a distributed technique to calculate the most vulnerable path for stepping stones attacks in dynamic vulnerability graphs. We use min-plus algebra to analyze and provide necessary and sufficient convergence conditions to the shortest path in the fixed topology case. A necessary condition for the switching topology case is provided. Most cyber-attacks involve an attacker launching a multi-stage attack by exploiting a sequence of hosts. This multi-stage attack generates a chain of ``stepping stones” from the origin to target. The choice of stepping stones is a function of the degree of exploitability, the impact, attacker’s capability, masking origin location, and intent. In this Dissertation, we model and analyze scenarios wherein an attacker employs multiple strategies to choose stepping stones. The problem is modeled as an Adjacency Quadratic Shortest Path using dynamic vulnerability graphs with multi-agent dynamic system approach. With this approach, the shortest stepping stone path with maximum node degree and the shortest stepping stone path with maximum impact are modeled and analyzed. Because embedded controllers are omnipresent in networks, in this Dissertation as a Risk Mitigation Strategy, a cyber-attack tolerant control strategy for embedded controllers is proposed. A dual redundant control architecture that combines two identical controllers that are switched periodically between active and restart modes is proposed. The strategy is addressed to mitigate the impact due to the corruption of the controller software by an adversary. We analyze the impact of the resetting and restarting the controller software and performance of the switching process. The minimum requirements in the control design, for effective mitigation of cyber-attacks to the control software that implies a “fast” switching period is provided. The simulation results demonstrate the effectiveness of the proposed strategy when the time to fully reset and restart the controller is faster than the time taken by an adversary to compromise the controller. The results also provide insights into the stability and safety regions and the factors that determine the effectiveness of the proposed strategy

    The future of Cybersecurity in Italy: Strategic focus area

    Get PDF
    This volume has been created as a continuation of the previous one, with the aim of outlining a set of focus areas and actions that the Italian Nation research community considers essential. The book touches many aspects of cyber security, ranging from the definition of the infrastructure and controls needed to organize cyberdefence to the actions and technologies to be developed to be better protected, from the identification of the main technologies to be defended to the proposal of a set of horizontal actions for training, awareness raising, and risk management

    Security of Cyber-Physical Systems

    Get PDF
    Cyber-physical system (CPS) innovations, in conjunction with their sibling computational and technological advancements, have positively impacted our society, leading to the establishment of new horizons of service excellence in a variety of applicational fields. With the rapid increase in the application of CPSs in safety-critical infrastructures, their safety and security are the top priorities of next-generation designs. The extent of potential consequences of CPS insecurity is large enough to ensure that CPS security is one of the core elements of the CPS research agenda. Faults, failures, and cyber-physical attacks lead to variations in the dynamics of CPSs and cause the instability and malfunction of normal operations. This reprint discusses the existing vulnerabilities and focuses on detection, prevention, and compensation techniques to improve the security of safety-critical systems

    Vulnerability and resilience of cyber-physical power systems: results from an empirical-based study

    Full text link
    Power systems are undergoing a profound transformation towards cyber-physical systems. Disruptive changes due to energy system transition and the complexity of the interconnected systems expose the power system to new, unknown and unpredictable risks. To identify the critical points, a vulnerability assessment was conducted, involving experts from power as well as information and communication technologies (ICT) sectors. Weaknesses were identified e.g.,the lack of policy enforcement worsened by the unreadiness of involved actors. The complex dynamics of ICT makes it infeasible to keep a complete inventory of potential stressors to define appropriate preparation and prevention mechanisms. Therefore, we suggest applying a resilience management approach to increase the resilience of the system. It aims at a better ride through failures rather than building higher walls. We conclude that building resilience in cyber-physical power systems is feasible and helps in preparing for the unexpected

    Smart Urban Water Networks

    Get PDF
    This book presents the paper form of the Special Issue (SI) on Smart Urban Water Networks. The number and topics of the papers in the SI confirm the growing interest of operators and researchers for the new paradigm of smart networks, as part of the more general smart city. The SI showed that digital information and communication technology (ICT), with the implementation of smart meters and other digital devices, can significantly improve the modelling and the management of urban water networks, contributing to a radical transformation of the traditional paradigm of water utilities. The paper collection in this SI includes different crucial topics such as the reliability, resilience, and performance of water networks, innovative demand management, and the novel challenge of real-time control and operation, along with their implications for cyber-security. The SI collected fourteen papers that provide a wide perspective of solutions, trends, and challenges in the contest of smart urban water networks. Some solutions have already been implemented in pilot sites (i.e., for water network partitioning, cyber-security, and water demand disaggregation and forecasting), while further investigations are required for other methods, e.g., the data-driven approaches for real time control. In all cases, a new deal between academia, industry, and governments must be embraced to start the new era of smart urban water systems
    • …
    corecore