The SHIELD framework: How to control Security, Privacy and Dependability in complex systems

The purpose of this paper is to present the SHIELD holistic approach: an innovative methodology to address Security, Privacy and Dependability (SPD) in the context of Embedded Systems (ES) by means of control science theory. The SHIELD methodology consider the SPD functionalities offered by the generic atomic component of a complex system at 3 different levels: node, network and middleware. Then these technologies are enhanced with a fourth vertical layer named overlay that provides composability functionality, thus creating a framework able to dynamically reconfigure to satisfy the user needs in terms of SPD, in different scenarios. In order to achieve this objective, the use of specific SPD metrics (derived from recognized standards for security, like the ISO/IEC 15408), is proposed. The results presented in this work have been developed in the scope of the pSHIELD ARTEMIS-JU project and are currently under investigation in the nSHIELD project.