SBIR/STTR Phase I: Securing Operating Systems Against Intruder Attacks

This Small Business Innovation Research (SBIR) Phase I project addresses security of operating systems. This approach is based on developing specifications that capture security-relevant behaviors of programs, and constraining their execution to ensure adherence to these specifications. Since all security-relevant operations are administered through system calls, program behaviors are modeled in terms of sequences of system calls made by them, together with their arguments. The system will achieve enhanced security without compromising on functionality by (a) being able to protect against known as well as novel kinds of attacks, (b) maintaining a very low false-alarm rate, and (c) reduced maintenance needs.