Modeling Information Assurance

The ever-increasing speed of information systems allows decision-makers around the world to gather, process, and disseminate information almost instantaneously. However, with this benefit there comes a price. Information is valuable and therefore a target to those who do not have it or wish to destroy it. The Internet has allowed information to flow freely, but it has also made information vulnerable to many forms of corruption. The U. S. military controls much of the world's most sensitive information, and since it cannot sacrifice losing the speed at which this information is currently processed and disseminated, it must find a way to assure its protection. There has been some effort to model information assurance in recent years, however the no accepted quantifiable model currently exists. This study presents a strategy to aid organizations, specifically organizations within the Department of Defense (DoD), in their efforts to protect valuable information and information systems. The model is reviewed and results from an actual analysis are presented.