Using Exploit Similarities for Concise Representation of Attack Scenarios

Attack graphs have been used to simulate attack scenarios to provide solutions for vulnerability analysis. However the scalability issue of attack graphs is still a big challenge. In this paper we present a detailed analysis on the scalability issue for attack graph. We also propose an approach to simplify attack graphs based on the similarity features of hosts and exploits in networked environments. In this modeling process we focus on the outcomes of exploits and eliminate details of specific exploits. A case study is used to show the effectiveness of the approach. This approach can be highly-efficient for networks in which multiple similar hosts are deployed or similar vulnerabilities are discovered.