Elsevier

Computers & Security

Volume 4, Issue 2, June 1985, Pages 143-147
Computers & Security

The development of a specification language for a computer security system

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Abstract

The primary goal of this paper is to define an initial step towards the definition of ‘systems grammar’ based on the notion of formal languages which can be used as a ‘tool’ in the formal representation of computer security systems. Currently all modelling done on computer security systems is written up as mathematical models. These mathematical models are usually based on the mathematics of relations amongst objects, as opposed to the model described in this paper which is based on the theory of formal languages. This paper is aimed at people who are doing research on the logical aspects of computer security. It is the first of a series of two papers. This paper will give interim results and make more specific the definition of a ‘formal language’ which suits the computer security environment. The second paper will illustrate the actual use of the defined ‘formal language’ and show how to represent the characteristics of a computer security environment by using this ‘formal language’.

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Jan H.P. Eloff received a B.Sc. (Computer Science) degree at the Rand Afrikaans University, Johannesburg, South Africa in 1978. In 1979, he received an honours degree and in 1980 an M.Sc. in Computer Science at the same university. His dissertation involved in-depth study of all the logical aspects of computer security and he delivered a paper on this work at the South African Computer symposium held in October 1981. Part of this research was published in “Computers & Security” (vol. 2, Nr. 3) under the title “Selection Process for Security Packages”.

Mr. Eloff is currently a senior systems analyst with SASOL, South Africa, and is completing his work for a Ph.D.

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