Tools and frameworks for computer security alternatives

我们的社会严重依赖于我们的计算机、设备和网络，但即使经过几十年的计算机安全研究，仍有许多问题使我们的计算机安全。考虑到计算机安全方面的大量研究，相对而言，很少有研究转化为新的、改进的防御措施，用于保护最终用户。可以说，计算机用户已经看到了他们的防御停滞不前，或者充其量只是略有改善，而与此同时，威胁的数量却急剧增加。我的研究计划的长期目标是找到新的安全方法，打破这种现状，在某些情况下从根本上，找到用户体验的当前计算机安全状态的全新替代方案，并使用户更加安全。实际上，我将通过构建软件工具和框架来实现这一长期目标，这意味着我的研究工作不仅可以在学术出版物上看到，而且可以使软件被其他人使用。***在短期内，在这项资助的任期内，我将着眼于在三个领域推进我的长期目标：代码混淆（保护计算机代码），程序执行监控和采样（观察计算机代码）和计算机系统（创建和表达计算机代码的新方法）。这些领域和其中的倡议不是任意选择的。我提出的安全替代方案的一个指导原则是，如何利用我们目前或未来5- 10年拥有的丰富资源（例如，计算能力、网络带宽、互联网连接用户）。正在采取若干举措，作为一项深思熟虑的减轻风险战略；这是一个必要的考虑，因为我建议的是高风险的工作，而不仅仅是增量研究。***这里的一个新奇之处在于识别和挑战与安全相关的根深蒂固的假设，例如，反病毒软件必须以某种方式工作，解决方案必须在x86/ARM/Windows/Mac上工作……，计算机编程必须以某种方式完成。提供自我相同的防御是根本不起作用的，需要努力寻求革命性的安全方法，而不是渐进的不那么糟糕的方法。我们的计算机的安全必须得到改善，用新的方法而不是跟随其他人是加拿大的一项很好的投资。********

Our society is heavily reliant on our computers, devices, and networks, but there are still any number of problems making our computers secure, even- after decades of computer security research. Given the sheer volume of research in computer security, relatively little of it has translated into new, improved defenses that are deployed for the protection of end users. Arguably, computer users have seen stagnation or at best marginal improvements in their defenses, while at the same time the number of threats has increased dramatically. The long--term goal of my research program is to find novel methods for security that break from this status quo, radically in some cases, to find entirely new alternatives to the current state of computer security that users experience, and make users more secure. Practically speaking, I will be realizing this long--term goal through the construction of software tools and frameworks, meaning that the research work is not just seen in academic publications, but will result in software usable by others.***    In the shorter term, for the tenure of this grant, I will be looking at advancing my long--term goal in three areas: code obfuscation (protecting computer code), program execution monitoring and sampling (watching computer code), and computer systems (new ways to create and express computer code). These areas and the initiatives within them are not arbitrarily chosen. One guiding principle that underlies the security alternatives I'm proposing is how to employ the abundance of resources (e.g., computing power, network bandwidth, Internet--connected users) we either have presently, or will have in the next 5--10 years. A number of initiatives are being undertaken as a deliberate strategy of risk mitigation; this is a necessary consideration because what I am proposing is higher-risk work and not just incremental research.***    One novelty here is in identifying and challenging deeply- engrained assumptions related to security, e.g., anti--virus software must work a certain way, a solution must work on x86/ARM/Windows/Mac..., computer programming must be done a certain way. Proffering self-same defenses is simply not working, and effort needs to be expended on seeking revolutionary approaches to security rather than incrementally less-bad ones. The security of our computers must be improved, and leading the way with new approaches instead of following others is a good investment for Canada to make.********