TrustAssess: D-S Evidence Theory Based Device Trustworthiness Assessment for Trusted Networks

The trustworthiness assessments of devices (e.g., routers, switches, and controllers, etc.) are essential to build a trusted network. However, due to the diversity of network devices and time-varying natures of security states, it is challenging to effectively assess the trustworthiness of devices in large-scale networks. To address this challenge, in this paper, we propose a device trustworthiness assessment scheme based on the Dempster-Shafer (D-S) evidence theory. Specifically, we first devise a whole life-cycle device assessment architecture to assess the trustworthiness of devices from startup, long-term operation to retirement. We then present a user-editable device assessment model to establish the trustworthiness attribute sets and trustworthiness level division strategies based on user requirements. Furthermore, we design a D-S evidence theory-based trustworthiness assessment algorithm to fuse the measurement values of multi-dimensional trustworthiness attributes for obtaining the trustworthiness level of devices. Finally, simulation results demonstrate that the proposed scheme can improve the accuracy and efficiency of device trustworthiness assessment.