Computer Security Software Gets Tested by SPP

The Critical Infrastructure Protection Project and SPP are working with HP Labs to test the feasibility of new software that could make computers more secure against viruses, worms and spyware.

“George Mason University is very pleased to be actively involved in this research effort as this software has the potential to drastically reduce the damage from viruses and spyware," said GMU President Alan Merten. SPP Professor Jack High explained, “We’re trying to look from an economic and legal point of view to see if this approach to security will work.” According to High, the new software does not prevent viruses and other intruders from entering a computer; however, the software drastically limits the harm that malicious code can cause. It works better than a patch because “once a virus, worm or spyware gets inside your computer, it can’t do anything,” he explained. In a paper written for HP Labs, High and co-author Bill Tulloh, a consultant for SPP, refer to HP’s invention as a “property rights approach to cyber security.” Explaining this concept during an interview, High said that the software uses computer coding to regulate where a virus can go. “If you introduce property rights inside a computer, then a virus has to ask the hard drive if it’s okay to attack and the hard drive can say ‘no,’” he explained.		High is testing security software for HP Labs.
		Hear Professor High's talk with Currents Editor Stephanie Kriner

High and Tulloh are also working with Anne Marchant, an instructor in Mason’s School of Information Technology and Engineering, where a group of undergraduate students is testing the software as a part of their course work. In addition, High and Tulloh are both using an experimental prototype of the software on their computers.

Although he has noticed a few bugs, High said that the software has kept his computer free of all invaders. He added, “We don’t know if it’s going to be the wave of the future because it’s still being developed. But right now it’s looking pretty good.”

The Critical Infrastructure Protection Project (CIP Project) is a joint effort of George Mason University and James Madison University to develop a nationally recognized program that fully integrates the disciplines of law, policy and technology for enhancing the security of cyber networks and economic processes supporting the nation's critical infrastructures. The consideration of all three disciplines--law, policy, and technology--is what makes the CIP Project unique. The CIP Project is funded by a grant from the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST).