Model Checking Usage Policies

We propose a model for specifying, analysing and enforcing safe usageof resources. Our usage policies allow for parametricity over resources,and they can be enforced through finite state automata. The patternsof resource access and creation are described through a basic calculus ofusages. In spite of the augmented flexibility given by resource creationand by policy parametrization, we devise an efficient (polynomial-time)model-checking technique for deciding when a usage is resource-safe, i.e.when it complies with all the relevant usage policies.