A risk probability estimation method for security assessment in global computing

Abstract

Global Computing is a massively networked infrastructure supporting a large population of diverse but cooperating entities. The composition and characteristics of this infrastructure will be both dynamic and unpredictable. An entity in this heterogeneous, unreliable context is required to be capable of dealing with unexpected interactions and previously unknown entities. The properties of the global computing infrastructure introduce new security challenges that are not adequately addressed by existing security models and mechanisms. Human society has developed the mechanism of trust to overcome initial suspicion and gradually evolve privileges. Fundamentally, it is the ability to reason about trust that allows entities to accept risk when they are interacting with other entities.