A dynamically reconfigurable pattern matcher for regular expressions on FPGA

In this article we describe how to expand a partially dynamic reconfig- urable pattern matcher for regular expressions presented in previous work by Di- vyasree and Rajashekar [2]. The resulting, extended, pattern matcher is fully dynamically reconfigurable. First, the design is adapted for use with parameterisable configurations, a method for Dynamic Circuit Specialization. Using parameteris- able configurations allows us to achieve the same area gains as the hand crafted reconfigurable design, with the benefit that parameterisable configurations can be applied automatically. This results in a design that is more easily adaptable to spe- cific applications and allows for an easier design exploration. Additionally, the pa- rameterisable configuration implementation is also generated automatically, which greatly reduces the design overhead of using dynamic reconfiguration. Secondly, we propose a number of expansions to the original design to overcome several limitations in the original design that constrain the dynamic reconfigurability of the pattern matcher. We propose two different solutions to dynamically change the character that is matched in a certain block. The resulting pattern matcher, after these changes, is fully dynamically reconfigurable, all aspects of the implemented regular expression can be changed at run-time

Security of Cyber-Physical Systems

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

Cybersecurity Games: Mathematical Approaches for Cyber Attack and Defense Modeling

Cyber-attacks targeting individuals and enterprises have become a predominant part of the computer/information age. Such attacks are becoming more sophisticated and prevalent on a day-to-day basis. The exponential growth of cyber plays and cyber players necessitate the inauguration of new methods and research for better understanding the cyber kill chain, particularly with the rise of advanced and novel malware and the extraordinary growth in the population of Internet residents, especially connected Internet of Things (IoT) devices. Mathematical modeling could be used to represent real-world cyber-attack situations. Such models play a beneficial role when it comes to the secure design and evaluation of systems/infrastructures by providing a better understanding of the threat itself and the attacker\u27s conduct during the lifetime of a cyber attack. Therefore, the main goal of this dissertation is to construct a proper theoretical framework to be able to model and thus evaluate the defensive strategies/technologies\u27 effectiveness from a security standpoint. To this end, we first present a Markov-based general framework to model the interactions between the two famous players of (network) security games, i.e., a system defender and an attacker taking actions to reach its attack objective(s) in the game. We mainly focus on the most significant and tangible aspects of sophisticated cyber attacks: (1) the amount of time it takes for the adversary to accomplish its mission and (2) the success probabilities of fulfilling the attack objective(s) by translating attacker-defender interactions into well-defined games and providing rigorous cryptographic security guarantees for a system given both players\u27 tactics and strategies. We study various attack-defense scenarios, including Moving Target Defense (MTD) strategies, multi-stage attacks, and Advanced Persistent Threats (APT). We provide general theorems about how the probability of a successful adversary defeating a defender’s strategy is related to the amount of time (or any measure of cost) spent by the adversary in such scenarios. We also introduce the notion of learning in cybersecurity games and describe a general game of consequences meaning that each player\u27s chances of making a progressive move in the game depend on its previous actions. Finally, we walk through a malware propagation and botnet construction game in which we investigate the importance of defense systems\u27 learning rates to fight against the self-propagating class of malware such as worms and bots. We introduce a new propagation modeling and containment strategy called the learning-based model and study the containment criterion for the propagation of the malware based on theoretical and simulation analysis

Human-Centric Detection and Mitigation Approach for Various Levels of Cell Phone-Based Driver Distractions

abstract: Driving a vehicle is a complex task that typically requires several physical interactions and mental tasks. Inattentive driving takes a driver’s attention away from the primary task of driving, which can endanger the safety of driver, passenger(s), as well as pedestrians. According to several traffic safety administration organizations, distracted and inattentive driving are the primary causes of vehicle crashes or near crashes. In this research, a novel approach to detect and mitigate various levels of driving distractions is proposed. This novel approach consists of two main phases: i.) Proposing a system to detect various levels of driver distractions (low, medium, and high) using a machine learning techniques. ii.) Mitigating the effects of driver distractions through the integration of the distracted driving detection algorithm and the existing vehicle safety systems. In phase- 1, vehicle data were collected from an advanced driving simulator and a visual based sensor (webcam) for face monitoring. In addition, data were processed using a machine learning algorithm and a head pose analysis package in MATLAB. Then the model was trained and validated to detect different human operator distraction levels. In phase 2, the detected level of distraction, time to collision (TTC), lane position (LP), and steering entropy (SE) were used as an input to feed the vehicle safety controller that provides an appropriate action to maintain and/or mitigate vehicle safety status. The integrated detection algorithm and vehicle safety controller were then prototyped using MATLAB/SIMULINK for validation. A complete vehicle power train model including the driver’s interaction was replicated, and the outcome from the detection algorithm was fed into the vehicle safety controller. The results show that the vehicle safety system controller reacted and mitigated the vehicle safety status-in closed loop real-time fashion. The simulation results show that the proposed approach is efficient, accurate, and adaptable to dynamic changes resulting from the driver, as well as the vehicle system. This novel approach was applied in order to mitigate the impact of visual and cognitive distractions on the driver performance.Dissertation/ThesisDoctoral Dissertation Applied Psychology 201

Automating Security Risk and Requirements Management for Cyber-Physical Systems

Cyber-physische Systeme ermöglichen zahlreiche moderne Anwendungsfälle und Geschäftsmodelle wie vernetzte Fahrzeuge, das intelligente Stromnetz (Smart Grid) oder das industrielle Internet der Dinge. Ihre Schlüsselmerkmale Komplexität, Heterogenität und Langlebigkeit machen den langfristigen Schutz dieser Systeme zu einer anspruchsvollen, aber unverzichtbaren Aufgabe. In der physischen Welt stellen die Gesetze der Physik einen festen Rahmen für Risiken und deren Behandlung dar. Im Cyberspace gibt es dagegen keine vergleichbare Konstante, die der Erosion von Sicherheitsmerkmalen entgegenwirkt. Hierdurch können sich bestehende Sicherheitsrisiken laufend ändern und neue entstehen. Um Schäden durch böswillige Handlungen zu verhindern, ist es notwendig, hohe und unbekannte Risiken frühzeitig zu erkennen und ihnen angemessen zu begegnen. Die Berücksichtigung der zahlreichen dynamischen sicherheitsrelevanten Faktoren erfordert einen neuen Automatisierungsgrad im Management von Sicherheitsrisiken und -anforderungen, der über den aktuellen Stand der Wissenschaft und Technik hinausgeht. Nur so kann langfristig ein angemessenes, umfassendes und konsistentes Sicherheitsniveau erreicht werden. Diese Arbeit adressiert den dringenden Bedarf an einer Automatisierungsmethodik bei der Analyse von Sicherheitsrisiken sowie der Erzeugung und dem Management von Sicherheitsanforderungen für Cyber-physische Systeme. Das dazu vorgestellte Rahmenwerk umfasst drei Komponenten: (1) eine modelbasierte Methodik zur Ermittlung und Bewertung von Sicherheitsrisiken; (2) Methoden zur Vereinheitlichung, Ableitung und Verwaltung von Sicherheitsanforderungen sowie (3) eine Reihe von Werkzeugen und Verfahren zur Erkennung und Reaktion auf sicherheitsrelevante Situationen. Der Schutzbedarf und die angemessene Stringenz werden durch die Sicherheitsrisikobewertung mit Hilfe von Graphen und einer sicherheitsspezifischen Modellierung ermittelt und bewertet. Basierend auf dem Modell und den bewerteten Risiken werden anschließend fundierte Sicherheitsanforderungen zum Schutz des Gesamtsystems und seiner Funktionalität systematisch abgeleitet und in einer einheitlichen, maschinenlesbaren Struktur formuliert. Diese maschinenlesbare Struktur ermöglicht es, Sicherheitsanforderungen automatisiert entlang der Lieferkette zu propagieren. Ebenso ermöglicht sie den effizienten Abgleich der vorhandenen Fähigkeiten mit externen Sicherheitsanforderungen aus Vorschriften, Prozessen und von Geschäftspartnern. Trotz aller getroffenen Maßnahmen verbleibt immer ein gewisses Restrisiko einer Kompromittierung, worauf angemessen reagiert werden muss. Dieses Restrisiko wird durch Werkzeuge und Prozesse adressiert, die sowohl die lokale und als auch die großräumige Erkennung, Klassifizierung und Korrelation von Vorfällen verbessern. Die Integration der Erkenntnisse aus solchen Vorfällen in das Modell führt häufig zu aktualisierten Bewertungen, neuen Anforderungen und verbessert weitere Analysen. Abschließend wird das vorgestellte Rahmenwerk anhand eines aktuellen Anwendungsfalls aus dem Automobilbereich demonstriert.Cyber-Physical Systems enable various modern use cases and business models such as connected vehicles, the Smart (power) Grid, or the Industrial Internet of Things. Their key characteristics, complexity, heterogeneity, and longevity make the long-term protection of these systems a demanding but indispensable task. In the physical world, the laws of physics provide a constant scope for risks and their treatment. In cyberspace, on the other hand, there is no such constant to counteract the erosion of security features. As a result, existing security risks can constantly change and new ones can arise. To prevent damage caused by malicious acts, it is necessary to identify high and unknown risks early and counter them appropriately. Considering the numerous dynamic security-relevant factors requires a new level of automation in the management of security risks and requirements, which goes beyond the current state of the art. Only in this way can an appropriate, comprehensive, and consistent level of security be achieved in the long term. This work addresses the pressing lack of an automation methodology for the security-risk assessment as well as the generation and management of security requirements for Cyber-Physical Systems. The presented framework accordingly comprises three components: (1) a model-based security risk assessment methodology, (2) methods to unify, deduce and manage security requirements, and (3) a set of tools and procedures to detect and respond to security-relevant situations. The need for protection and the appropriate rigor are determined and evaluated by the security risk assessment using graphs and a security-specific modeling. Based on the model and the assessed risks, well-founded security requirements for protecting the overall system and its functionality are systematically derived and formulated in a uniform, machine-readable structure. This machine-readable structure makes it possible to propagate security requirements automatically along the supply chain. Furthermore, they enable the efficient reconciliation of present capabilities with external security requirements from regulations, processes, and business partners. Despite all measures taken, there is always a slight risk of compromise, which requires an appropriate response. This residual risk is addressed by tools and processes that improve the local and large-scale detection, classification, and correlation of incidents. Integrating the findings from such incidents into the model often leads to updated assessments, new requirements, and improves further analyses. Finally, the presented framework is demonstrated by a recent application example from the automotive domain

Vision-Based Control of a Full-Size Car by Lane Detection

Autonomous driving is an area of increasing investment for researchers and auto manufacturers. Integration has already begun for self-driving cars in urban environments. An essential aspect of navigation in these areas is the ability to sense and follow lane markers. This thesis focuses on the development of a vision-based control platform using lane detection to control a full-sized electric vehicle with only a monocular camera. An open-source, integrated solution is presented for automation of a stock vehicle. Aspects of reverse engineering, system identification, and low-level control of the vehicle are discussed. This work also details methods for lane detection and the design of a non-linear vision-based control strategy

Multilevel Runtime Verification for Safety and Security Critical Cyber Physical Systems from a Model Based Engineering Perspective

Advanced embedded system technology is one of the key driving forces behind the rapid growth of Cyber-Physical System (CPS) applications. CPS consists of multiple coordinating and cooperating components, which are often software-intensive and interact with each other to achieve unprecedented tasks. Such highly integrated CPSs have complex interaction failures, attack surfaces, and attack vectors that we have to protect and secure against. This dissertation advances the state-of-the-art by developing a multilevel runtime monitoring approach for safety and security critical CPSs where there are monitors at each level of processing and integration. Given that computation and data processing vulnerabilities may exist at multiple levels in an embedded CPS, it follows that solutions present at the levels where the faults or vulnerabilities originate are beneficial in timely detection of anomalies. Further, increasing functional and architectural complexity of critical CPSs have significant safety and security operational implications. These challenges are leading to a need for new methods where there is a continuum between design time assurance and runtime or operational assurance. Towards this end, this dissertation explores Model Based Engineering methods by which design assurance can be carried forward to the runtime domain, creating a shared responsibility for reducing the overall risk associated with the system at operation. Therefore, a synergistic combination of Verification & Validation at design time and runtime monitoring at multiple levels is beneficial in assuring safety and security of critical CPS. Furthermore, we realize our multilevel runtime monitor framework on hardware using a stream-based runtime verification language

Finite Element Simulation Of The Offset-Deformable Barrier Euro NCAP Crash Test Reproduction On A HYGE Sled For Assessing Ten-Year-Old Child Safety

This research focuses on the definition of the guidelines to simulate a sled test which reproduces the ODB Euro NCAP crash test, using LS-DYNA Finite Element code. In addition, the last sections are based on the validation of the model, comparing numerical results with those of an experimental sled test performed with the same equipment in late 2018, and on a sensitivity study on the friction coefficient of a virtual slip ring. Several FE models have been utilized, to represent vehicle body, seats and restraint system with LS-DYNA. The subject of the test is a ten-year-old child dummy (Q-series Q10), placed on a booster seat in the second-row seat of the vehicle. Both experimental and numerical dummies were provided by Humanetics®. All the pre-processing steps needed to perform this kind of simulation have been described throughout this thesis. The most investigated step was the generation and calibration of the virtual restraint system, built utilising ANSA by BetaCAE. The LS-DYNA pretensioner and retractor were calibrated using different data from the experimental test as reference. The model was verified and validated computing cumulative error and validation metric. The head accelerations showed values of V equal to 78, 79 and 76% respectively, reasonably predicting the trend of the experimental curves. Additionally, the HICs have been well predicted, with coincident time instants and peak relative error below 15%. Chest and pelvis accelerations were predicted with an average V equal to 85%, constituting the areas of highest performance of the FE model. Upper neck forces and moments displayed an acceptable level of prediction, with V at least equal to 70%, whereas the lower neck showed the lowest correlation of the results, mostly on x and z-moments. It is important to underline that all biomechanical data in this thesis document were normalized for confidentiality reasons. Lastly, a sensitivity study on the influence of the dynamic friction coefficient FC of the lower LS-DYNA slip ring on the dummy injury responses was performed, obtaining a more correlated operation of the belt with respect to the experimental setting. The analysis was performed comparing all values of E and V among the different configurations, concluding that the most correlated setting has FC = 0.4, with an increase in V of 10% in the upper neck region

A study of the effects of current and proposed restraint concepts on the child occupants of vehicles

This research evaluates the performance of automotive child restraint systems (CRS) that conform to international proposals for a universal restraint concept to be adopted by both restraint and vehicle manufacturers. The concept is known as Isofix (International Standards Organisation FIXing), and is intended to ensure optimum compatibility and coupling between vehicle and CRS. In order to quantify the benefits of the proposed Isofix concept it has been necessary to establish the performance limits and benefits offered by current commercially available adult belt retained CRS. A considerable body of knowledge existed on the performance and limitations of the then current CRS. However, during 1995 a significant amendment was introduced affecting ECE R44, the compliance standards applicable to CRS in Europe to which most rnanufacturers require their products to conform (separate national standards also exist). In 1995 amendment 03 was added to ECE R44 and became a catalyst for considerable development activity by manufacturers of child restraints, that resulted in new or revised product ranges. These new products, in particular forward facing Group 1 (9-15 kg) child restraints have significantly improved dynamic performance in frontal impacts, notably in modern vehicles whose seat belt anchorage positions have been optimised for restraint of adults, but are commonly less effective in restraining framed CRS. It was important therefore to re-assess existing systems as the baseline for a realistic evaluation of the proposed Isofix concepts (chapter 10). It was evident that, of the different Isofix concepts being proposed, no overall evaluation of their relative performance had, to that date, been undertaken. A programme involving the design and manufacture of not only suitable test equipment but, in a number of cases, prototype devices, was undertaken. The resulting data have formed the basis of input to the ISO Working Group 1, the body responsible for the evolution of the Isofix concept. This programme also highlighted a number of shortfalls in the proposed concepts. The major results of this test programme have been published at international level, and were used to inform the Isofix discussions. During the programme of comparative evaluation of not only the Isofix but the current belt retained devices, it became clear to the writer that in a frontal impact the orientation of the occupant with respect to the direction of travel had significance. A literature survey produced evidence of minimal research in this area. Hence it was decided by the writer to include a programme of parametric tests to investigate the significance of occupant orientation, given that commercially available CRS often include a feature to vary the recline angle of the seat. The Isofix set-up was particularly suitable for this exercise in that it eliminated many of the variables associated with belt retained devices. The results of this work have been published at intemationallevel. A review of the available accident data indicates that side impacts are potentially more life threatening than the more common frontal impacts due to the proximity of the occupant to an intruding vehicle or object. However, current European certification standards do not require the evaluation of CRS in a side impact. This is considered to be an area where improvements, particularly aided by an Isofix type attachment concept, can be made. Therefore the final area of research undertaken by the writer was to develop and propose a test to evaluate CRS in a realistic side impact scenario. This involved the simulation of not only the acceleration imparted to the target vehicle occupant but in addition the intrusion component. This work, which again has been presented at international level, contributed towards a proposal to amend the European certification standard for CRS to include a side impact evaluation. This thesis commences with a review of the accident data currently available, and looks at how the physiological and anatomical properties of the child, vehicle design, and the inherent potential for misuse and mis-installation of the current generation of CRS, impact upon child safety. This is followed by an overview of the lsofix proposal before the results of the writer's detailed testing of both current belt retained and proposed Isofix CRS concepts (chapters 10 and 11) are reported. The subsequent chapters (12 and 13) detail the results of the writer's investigation into CRS orientation in a frontal impact and the development of a representative side impact test, based on a single sled, for inclusion in the European certification procedure. The document concludes with discussion and conclusions relating to the future of CRS design and evaluation. The major findings of this research were: • contrary to initial expectations, significant CRS recline angle in a forward facing device has been proven to be undesirable; • Isofix CRS with rigid lower anchors have been shown to be beneficial, particularly in side impacts, their efficacy in a forward impact being compromised by rotation in devices that do not incorporate an anti-rotation device; • a side impact test has been developed which more accurately represents the input to a CRS seen in a rear vehicle incident. Such a test is not only desirable but essential to drive CRS manufacturers into improving side impact protection for occupants