A History of Computer Security Standards

This chapter discusses the history of computer security standards. Computer security has been a fundamental aspect of digital computing for decades, with both getting their start and early funding from the Department of Defense (DoD), but with developments in the industry and the academy becoming all the more prevalent over the past two decades. While the DoD continues to be a force in both networked computing and computer security, its relative place has diminished to an extent because the large and vibrant computer industry has been the epicenter of many computer technology developments and the software security trade has become a fundamental sector of IT security. The preeminent position of the United States in computer security standards has declined as the importance of research throughout the world, and international standards have become more critical in an increasingly global environment and economy. Standards today are created by the marketplace and corporate interactions to a greater extent than ever relative to the military.