Synthesising Efficient and Effective Security Protocols

Abstract

The logical correctness of security protocols is important. So are efficiency and cost. This paper shows that meta-heuristic search techniques can be used to synthesise protocols that are both provably correct and satisfy various non-functional efficiency criteria. Our work uses a subset of the SVO logic, which we view as a specification language and proof system and also as a “protocol programming language”. Our system starts from a set of initial security assumptions, carries out meta-heuristic search in the design space, and ends with a protocol (described at the logic level) that satisfies desired goals.