A Unifying Theory of Security Metrics with Applications

A large number of measures have been proposed under the umbrella of "security metrics". Some of these measures are percentages, others are frequencies, numbers, monetary amounts or other units. This absence of a basic unit of measurement is aggravated by a general lack of theory and consistency in the field of security metrics. This paper tries to fill the void by proposing a unifying theory of security metrics. Towards this end, we define security metrics by the properties (validity, accuracy, and precision) they have to fulfill. We clearly differentiate security metrics from the related concepts of risk metrics, compliance metrics, and threat metrics. We further introduce a new classification scheme for security metrics, which helps us review the prior work and identify pitfalls that metrics authors should be aware of. Finally, we show how the theory developed in this paper can be applied to help managers make IT security decisions. Most importantly, the presented theory implies two novel rules for deciding how much money to spend on security and how to allocate this money among multiple systems.

By: Klaus Julisch

Published in: RZ3758 in 2009

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