Scanning activity is a common activity on the Internet today, representing malicious activity such as information gathering by a motivated adversary or automated tools searching for vulnerable hosts (e.g., worms). Many scan detection techniques have been developed; however, their focus has been on smaller networks where packet-level information is available, or where internal characteristics of the network are known. For large networks, such as those of ISPs, large corporations or government organizations, this information might not be available. This paper presents a model of scans that can be used given only unidirectional flow data. The model uses a Bayesian logistic regression, which was developed using a combination of expert opinion and manually-classified training data. It is shown to have a detection rate of 95.5% with a false positive rate of 0.4% overall when tested against a set of 300 TCP events.

In this paper, an empirical study that links software process consistency with product defects is reported. Various measurement issues such as validity, reliability, and other challenges in measuring process consistency at the project level are discussed. A measurement scale for software process consistency is introduced. An empirical study that uses this scale to measure consistency in achieving the CMM goal questions in various key process areas (KPAs) in 45 projects at a leading software vendor is reported. The results of this analysis indicate that consistent adoption of practices specified in the CMM is associated with a lower number of defects. Even a relatively modest improvement in the consistency of implementing these practices is associated with a significant reduction in field defects.

A defined software process is needed to provide organizations with a consistent framework for performing their work and im- proving the way they do it. An overall framework for modeling simplifies the task of producing process models, permits them to be tailored to individual needs, and facilitates process evolution. This paper outlines the principles of entity process, models and suggests ways in which they can help to address some of the problems with more conventional approaches to modeling software processes.

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This panel session includes an examination of: the modeling approaches the authors' groups are taking, the characteristics of the processes they are examining, the actual models that have been developed, and the lessons learned from these efforts.>

A discussion is presented of a software process modeling case study. The four primary objectives of software process modeling are summarized. Thirteen substantive requirements for a software modeling approach are identified. The author has developed a model of this process utilizing a commercially available automated system called STATEMATE. Although this system was originally developed to aid in specifying and designing real-time reactive systems software, successful experiences indicate that it is well suited for modeling software processes. STATEMATE offers a representation formalism that is highly visual, yet formally defined.>