Authorization constraints specification of RBAC

Abstract

Constraints are an important aspect of role-based access control (RBAC) and are often regarded as one of the principle motivations behind RBAC. Although the importance of the constraints in RBAC has been recognized for a long time, they have not received much attention. In this article, we introduce an intuitive formal language for specifying role-based authorization constraints named RCL2000 including its basic elements, syntax and semantics. We show how previously identified role-based authorization constraints such as separation of duty (SOD) can be expressed in this language, and that there are other significant SOD properties that have not been previously identified in the literature. Our work indicates that there are many alternate formulations of even the simplest SOD properties, with varying degree of flexibility and assurance. So this language provides us a rigorous foundation for systematic study of role-based authorization constraints. © Springer-Verlag Berlin Heidelberg 2007.