Cárdenas, Alvaro A.

Permanent URI for this collectionhttps://hdl.handle.net/10735.1/6610

Alvaro Cárdenas is an Associate Professor of Computer Science and a Fellow of the Eugene McDermott Professorships. In 2016 he received a Faculty Early Career Development (CAREER) Award from the National Science Foundation for his work on cyber-physical systems. He also serves as Principal Investigator of the Cy-Phy Security Lab. His research interests include:

  • Cyber-Physical Systems Security and Privacy
  • Intrusion Detection Systems
  • Smart Grid Networks, Security and Privacy
  • Internet of Things and Wireless Embedded Systems
  • Application of machine learning and (big data) analytics to computer security

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    Paramilitary Violence in Colombia: A Multilevel Negative Binomial Analysis
    (Routledge, 2019-06-14) Holmes, Jennifer S.; Mendizabal, Agustin Palao; De La Fuente, David Saucedo; Callenes, Mercedez; Cárdenas, Álvaro; 0000-0003-3117-0080 (Palao Mendizabal, A); Holmes, Jennifer S.; Mendizabal, Agustin Palao; De La Fuente, David Saucedo; Callenes, Mercedez; Cárdenas, Álvaro
    Although Colombia is well known for its persistent leftist guerrilla conflict, the country also suffers from paramilitary violence. This study examines the potential factors related to persistent paramilitary violence in the form of human rights violations. How has paramilitary activity, and its causes, changed over time? Why does it persist in some areas after Uribe’s demobilization process but not in others? We use multilevel modeling to explore the determinants of paramilitary human rights violations. A varied range of aspects potentially associated with the paramilitary presence at the municipal level for the period 2002–2015, such as state presence, resources, greed, grievances and conflict are analyzed. The study uses information about paramilitary human rights violations from the Centro de Investigación y Educación Popular (CINEP). Results suggest that the demobilization process reduced the initial paramilitary motivation to fight against leftist guerrilla. However, other factors such as coca cultivation or ranching remained significantly related to the paramilitary activity. The analysis at the municipal level provides clear warnings for continued violence cycles threatening any undergoing or future peace processes or demobilizations and calls for a more nuanced concept of state capacity to understand paramilitary violence. © 2019 Informa UK Limited, trading as Taylor & Francis Group.
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    Measuring the Growth in Complexity of Models from Industrial Control Networks
    (Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers Inc.) Faisal, Mustafa Amir; Cárdenas, Alvaro A.; Faisal, Mustafa Amir; Cárdenas, Alvaro A.
    Profiling communication patterns between industrial devices is important for detecting anomalies and potential cyber-attacks. In this paper we do deep-packet inspection of various industrial protocols to generate models of communications between pairs of devices; in particular, we use two models (deterministic finite automata and discrete-time Markov chains) applied to three different industrial networks: (1) an electrical substation, (2) a small-scale water testbed, and (3) a large-scale water treatment facility. Overall these datasets represent a variety of industrial protocols, including EtherNet/IP, DNP3, and Modbus/TCP.
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    Constraining Attacker Capabilities through Actuator Saturation
    (Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers Inc.) Kafash, Sahand Hadizadeh; Giraldo, Jairo; Murguia, C.; Cardenas, Alvaro A.; Ruths, Justin; Kafash, Sahand Hadizadeh; Giraldo, Jairo; Cardenas, Alvaro A.; Ruths, Justin
    For LTI control systems, we provide mathematical tools - in terms of Linear Matrix Inequalities - for computing outer ellipsoidal bounds on the reachable sets that attacks can induce in the system when they are subject to the physical limits of the actuators. Next, for a given set of dangerous states, states that (if reached) compromise the integrity or safe operation of the system, we provide tools for designing new artificial limits on the actuators (smaller than their physical bounds) such that the new ellipsoidal bounds (and thus the new reachable sets) are as large as possible (in terms of volume) while guaranteeing that the dangerous states are not reachable. This guarantees that the new bounds cut as little as possible from the original reachable set to minimize the loss of system performance. Computer simulations using a platoon of vehicles are presented to illustrate the performance of our tools.

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