Modelling and analysing resilience as a security issue within UML

Abstract

Modelling system security is not common practise in software projects yet. Among other problems, there is not a widely accepted methodology which unifies the actual heterogeneity of security issues when addressing a whole security specification. Certainly, the reality is even worse since there is not an accepted or standard common notation for carrying out the security specification. In this work, we study how modelling security issues, specifically resilience, could be integrated in the MARTE-DAM framework, which allows the expression of performance and dependability requirements in UML models. We base this claim on the close relationship between security and dependability. Indeed, MARTE proposes a framework for non-functional properties specification (NFP), while DAM exploits it for dependability purposes. So, our goal is to take advantage of the common NFP framework while the dependability and security concerns are modelled in a unified view. On the other hand, we consider that the resulting security specification will be useful for developing model in which security related properties, such as availability, will be analysed. We will clarify these claims by means of an example.

On synergies of cyber and physical security modelling in vulnerability assessment of railway systems

“…SecAM [20,3] is an UML profile designed for the security analysis and mod-elling of software systems. It allows attack/resilience, cryptography, security mechanisms, and access control issues to be expressed within UML models.…”

“…This equipment is normally used by maintainers and other authorised 20 personnel, but can be potentially targeted by unauthorised personnel through the same physical access points. Since trackside shelters and technical rooms are nowadays equipped with physical security and environmental monitoring devices, security threat analysis can be advantageously fed with both physical and logical elements [2].…”

“…However, it does not consider cyber-security issues. Another 100 recent UML profile, SecAM [20,3], overcomes this issue since it allows specifying cyber-security aspects while enabling its assessment.…”

Modelling Security of Critical Infrastructures: A Survivability Assessment

“…It enables the specification in UML behavioural diagrams of attacks, vulnerabilities and intrusion concepts, and also their causal relationships (i.e., the attack-vulnerability-intrusion or AVI chain) [12]. The package was initially proposed in [13] to conduct a vulnerability stochastic analysis. Figure 2 details the package.…”

Integrating Fault-Tolerant Techniques into the Design of Critical Systems

“…On the other hand, since we focus our work in the context of intrusion-tolerant systems (i.e., those critical systems which apply FT techniques to tolerate intrusions), this implies also the necessity to report security requirements in the same UML designs. So, to avoid greater complexities, we rely on SecAM [8] (Security Analysis and Modelling profile), which is properly integrated in the MARTE-DAM framework. Although it may seem that the use of these profiles may bring some knottiness, in reality, a little part of the stereotypes proposed by the above mentioned profiles greatly helps designers of critical systems in their work.…”