Resolving vulnerability identification errors using security requirements on business process models

Purpose – In any information security risk assessment, vulnerabilities are usually identified by information-gathering techniques. However, vulnerability identification errors – wrongly identified or unidentified vulnerabilities – can occur as uncertain data are used. Furthermore, businesses’ security needs are not considered sufficiently. Hence, security functions may not protect business assets sufficiently and costeffectively. This paper aims to resolve vulnerability errors by analysing the security requirements of information assets in business process models. Design/methodology/approach – Business process models have been selected for use, because there is a close relationship between business process objectives and risks. Security functions are evaluated in terms of the information flow of business processes regarding their security requirements. The claim that vulnerability errors can be resolved was validated by comparing the results of a current risk assessment approach with the proposed approach. The comparison is conducted both at three entities of an insurance company, as well as through a controlled experiment within a survey among security professionals. Findings – Vulnerability identification errors can be resolved by explicitly evaluating security requirements in the course of business; this is not considered in current assessment methods. Originality/value – It is shown that vulnerability identification errors occur in practice. With the explicit evaluation of security requirements, identification errors can be resolved. Risk assessment methods should consider the explicit evaluation of security requirements. The project ClouDAT was supported by the Ministry of Innovation, Science, Research and Technology of the German State of North Rhine-Westphalia and EFRE under grant number 300267102 Resolving Vulnerability Identification Errors using Security Requirements on Business Process Models Stefan Taubenberger , Yijun Yu, Jan Jürjens, Bashar Nuseibeh 4 1 MunichRe, Munich, Germany, [email protected] 2 The Open University, Milton Keynes, United Kingdom [email protected] 3 TU Dortmund and Fraunhofer ISST, Germany, http://www.jurjens.de/jan 4 Lero, University of Limerick, Ireland, [email protected] Purpose In any information security risk assessment, vulnerabilities are usually identified by information-gathering techniques. However, vulnerability identification errors wrongly identified or unidentified vulnerabilities can occur as uncertain data are used. Furthermore, businesses’ security needs are not considered sufficiently. Hence, security functions may not protect business assets sufficiently and cost-effectively. Design/methodology/approach This paper aims to resolve vulnerability errors by analysing the security requirements of information assets in business process models. Business process models have been selected for use, because there is a close relationship between business process objectives and risks. Security functions are evaluated in terms of the information flow of business processes regarding their security requirements. The claim that vulnerability errors can be resolved was validated by comparing the results of a current risk assessment approach with the proposed approach. The comparison is conducted both at three entities of an insurance company, as well as through a controlled experiment within a survey among security professionals. Findings Vulnerability identification errors can be resolved by explicitly evaluating security requirements in the course of business; this is not considered in current assessment methods. Research limitations/implications Security requirements should be explicitly evaluated in risk assessments considering the business context. Results of any evaluation of security requirements could be used to indicate the security of information. The approach was only tested in the insurance domain and therefore results may not be applicable to other business sectors. Originality/value It is shown that vulnerability identification errors occur in practice. With the explicit evaluation of security requirements, identification errors can be resolved. Risk assessment methods should consider the explicit evaluation of security requirements.