Vulnerability Assessment of Authorization System for USB-Based Storage Devices

Abstract

USB-based storage devices such as flash drives and external hard disks are very popular for data transfer because of their high speed and portability. But they also give rise to information security threats like data loss and spread of malware. In this paper, we present an authorization system to allow only authorized devices to be accessed on a computer for reducing the chances of data loss via USB-based removable storage media. The unique identification of devices is based on device parameters which are part of the USB standard. These parameters have been used for authorizing USB-based storage devices connected to a computer. A vulnerability assessment of the authorization system as well as device authorization parameters has been carried out.