Biological Models of Security for Virus Propagation in Computer Networks

This article discusses the similarity between propagation of pathogens (viruses and worms) on computer networks with proliferation of pathogens in cellular organisms (organisms with genetic material contained within a membrane encased nucleus). It introduces several biological mechanisms that are used in these organisms to protect against such pathogens and presents security models for networked computers inspired by biological paradigms. Models for computer security can be based on several different biological paradigms, including, genomics (RNA Interference), proteomics (pathway mapping) and physiology (Immune System). In addition, the study of disease control under the rubric of epidemiological models can inspire models for controlling the spread of pathogens across multiple nodes of a network. The paper discusses these models and presents results based on the authors’ research in immune system modeling.