LogicDetect: Real-Time Detection of Faults in Access Control Policy with Logic Circuits

Published

July 25, 2024

Author(s)

Yatish Dubasi, Vincent C. Hu, Qinghua Li, Jia Di

Abstract

Ensuring the correctness of access control (AC) policies is crucial for system security, particularly for complex systems with numerous subjects, objects, roles, and actions. However, crafting errorfree policies becomes increasingly challenging due to the complexity of system and the potential inconsistencies among different system administrators when they generate the policy rules. Traditional methods for detecting faults in AC policies often suffer from limitations, including time-consuming analysis and inability to perform real-time verification. This paper introduces LogicDetect, a novel approach that leverages logic circuits for real-time detection of AC rule faults. LogicDetect translates AC rules into logic circuits, and checks policy faults by invoking relevant circuit branches and observing if there is any conflict in the circuit outputs. It could be implemented in either software or hardware, enabling real-time identification of inconsistencies as new rules are added or modified. This paper details the design of logic circuits for various AC policies, properties, and models. We present a hardware and software implementation of LogicDetect and evaluate their performance against traditional AC policy verification tools. Our findings show that LogicDetect runs faster, and is a promising approach for enhancing the security and integrity of access control systems.

Citation

Cyber Security and Applications

Pub Type

Journals

Download Paper

https://doi.org/10.2139/ssrn.4904892

Local Download

Keywords

access control, fault detection, logic circuit

Citation

Dubasi, Y. , Hu, V. , Li, Q. and Di, J. (2024), LogicDetect: Real-Time Detection of Faults in Access Control Policy with Logic Circuits, Cyber Security and Applications, [online], https://doi.org/10.2139/ssrn.4904892, https://tsapps.nist.gov/publication/get_pdf.cfm?pub_id=958434 (Accessed May 9, 2026)

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