An optimal control approach to malware filtering

Abstract

We study and develop an optimal control theoretic approach to malware filtering in the context of network security. We investigate the malware filtering problem by capturing the tradeoff between increased security on one hand and continued usability of the network on the other. We analyze the problem using a linear control system model with a quadratic cost structure and develop algorithms based on H∞-optimal control theory. A dynamic feedback filter is derived and shown to be an improvement over various heuristic approaches to malware filtering via numerical analysis. The results obtained are verified and demonstrated with packet level simulations on the Ns-2 network simulator. ©2007 IEEE.