SBIR Phase II: Dynamically Assessing Network Security Policy Compliance with NP-Live

小型企业创新研究(SBIR)第二阶段项目的更广泛影响/商业潜力源于它显著增强了网络运营商和安全管理员实施正确规则集的能力，使关键资产远离网络对手。电网被认为是人类最重要的工程成就。现代文明对电力的依赖程度如此之高，以至于我们无法想象一个没有电力的世界。事实上，电力基础设施的中断很快就会导致混乱的局势，使人的生命处于危险之中。随着电网控制中心对IT基础设施的依赖，通过有条不紊的IT安全防护、监控和响应来确保系统和网络的弹性变得至关重要。通过自动化持续核查技术，该项目直接影响到我国提高复原力的能力。这对电力行业、计算机科学安全和整个社会的好处是提高我们最重要资源的安全性的技术进步。这个小型企业创新研究(SBIR)第二阶段项目计划开发一种建设性的方法来提供网络安全。网络安全工具往往是出于响应市场需求的需要，没有时间和资源来开发适当的形式和算法来解决长期问题。这里提出的创新具有独特的地位，可以改变这种模式，这要归功于扎根于基本的学术背景和与行业合作伙伴的广泛合作。因此，该项目响应关键客户需求，同时提供关键基础设施安全的科学、技术和工程创新。所采用的合规性评估方法已经在现场进行了评估，并为新的研究提供了基础，从而为网络安全建模提供了理论上合理的解决方案，并进一步开发了创新的和可证明正确的算法和工具，用于在真实行业约束下进行准确和可扩展的网络安全评估。

The broader impact/commercial potential of this Small Business Innovation Research (SBIR) Phase II project results from it significantly strengthening the ability of network operators and security administrators to implement the correct set of rules to keep critical assets out of reach of cyber adversaries. The power grid has been said to be the most important engineering achievement of humankind. Modern civilisation depends on electricity at such an intrinsic level that we cannot imagine a world without it. In fact, disruptions of power infrastructures quickly lead to chaotic situations in which human lives are at risk. Now that power grid control centers are relying on IT infrastructures, it has become of the utmost importance to ensure the resiliency of systems and networks through methodical IT security protection, monitoring, and response. Through automated continuous verification technologies, this project has a direct impact on the capabilities of our nation to improve its resiliency. The benefit to the power industry, to computer science security, and for society at large is a technological advance to improve the security of our most important resources.This Small Business Innovation Research (SBIR) Phase II project plans to develop a constructive approach to providing cyber security. Cyber security tools are often driven by the necessity to respond to market demand without having the time and resources to develop the proper formalisms and algorithms to solve long-term issues. The innovation proposed here is uniquely positioned to change this paradigm thanks to having roots in both a fundamental academic background and an extensive collaboration with industry partners. Consequently, this project responds to critical customer needs while providing innovations in science, technology, and engineering of critical infrastructure security. The approach taken to compliance assessment has been evaluated in the field and provides a basis for new research leading to theoretically sound solutions to network security modeling, and further development of innovative and provably correct algorithms and tools for accurate and scalable cyber security assessment under real industry constraints.