Introducing Security Access Control Policies into Legacy Business Processes

International audienceApplying separation of concerns approaches into business process context generally results in several initiatives oriented to automatic generation of aspect code, generation of specific code according to the kind of concern (code for mapping roles and permissions derived from RBAC model for example), or proposition of new mechanisms as dedicated aspectual languages. Most of these initiatives only consider functional behaviours of business process, omitting special behaviours derived from quality attributes such as security, which can be modelled as concerns that must be supported in the business process. In this paper we propose the integration of cross-cuttings standardized control access policies (based on RBAC model and Oasis XACML) into legacy business processes, using a separation of concerns approach

Will SDN be part of 5G?

For many, this is no longer a valid question and the case is considered settled with SDN/NFV (Software Defined Networking/Network Function Virtualization) providing the inevitable innovation enablers solving many outstanding management issues regarding 5G. However, given the monumental task of softwarization of radio access network (RAN) while 5G is just around the corner and some companies have started unveiling their 5G equipment already, the concern is very realistic that we may only see some point solutions involving SDN technology instead of a fully SDN-enabled RAN. This survey paper identifies all important obstacles in the way and looks at the state of the art of the relevant solutions. This survey is different from the previous surveys on SDN-based RAN as it focuses on the salient problems and discusses solutions proposed within and outside SDN literature. Our main focus is on fronthaul, backward compatibility, supposedly disruptive nature of SDN deployment, business cases and monetization of SDN related upgrades, latency of general purpose processors (GPP), and additional security vulnerabilities, softwarization brings along to the RAN. We have also provided a summary of the architectural developments in SDN-based RAN landscape as not all work can be covered under the focused issues. This paper provides a comprehensive survey on the state of the art of SDN-based RAN and clearly points out the gaps in the technology.Comment: 33 pages, 10 figure

PEP4Django - A Policy Enforcement Point for Python Web Applications

Traditionally, access control mechanisms have been hard-coded into application components. Such approach is error-prone, mixing business logic with access control concerns, and affecting the flexibility of security policies, as is the case with IFRN SUAP Django-based system. The externalization of access control rules allows their decoupling from business logic, through the use of authorization servers where access control policies are stored and queried for computing access decisions. In this context, this paper presents an approach that allows a Django Web application to delegate access control decisions to an external authorization server. The approach has been integrated into an enterprise level system, which has been used for experimentation. The results obtained indicate a negligible overhead, while allowing the modification of access control policies without interrupting the system

Benefits and challenges of applying Semantic Web Services in the e-Government domain

Joining up services in e-Government usually implies governmental agencies acting in concert without a central control regime. This requires the sharing of scattered and heterogeneous data. Semantic Web Service (SWS) technology can help to integrate, mediate and reason between these datasets. However, since few real-world applications have been developed, it is still unclear which are the actual benefits and issues of adopting such a technology in the e-Government domain. In this paper, we contribute to raising awareness of the potential benefits in the e-Government community by analyzing motivations, requirements, and expected results, before proposing a reusable SWS-based framework. We demonstrate the application of this framework by a compelling use case: a GIS-based emergency planning system. We illustrate the obtained benefits and the key challenges which remain to be addressed

A survey on cyber security for smart grid communications

A smart grid is a new form of electricity network with high fidelity power-flow control, self-healing, and energy reliability and energy security using digital communications and control technology. To upgrade an existing power grid into a smart grid, it requires significant dependence on intelligent and secure communication infrastructures. It requires security frameworks for distributed communications, pervasive computing and sensing technologies in smart grid. However, as many of the communication technologies currently recommended to use by a smart grid is vulnerable in cyber security, it could lead to unreliable system operations, causing unnecessary expenditure, even consequential disaster to both utilities and consumers. In this paper, we summarize the cyber security requirements and the possible vulnerabilities in smart grid communications and survey the current solutions on cyber security for smart grid communications. © 2012 IEEE