Control of worm outbreak by optimal epidemic strategy

The threats of worms have become a major problem for the security of networks. This paper studies the application of the optimal control theory for the worm outbreaks control via the Pontryagin´s Maximum Principle. Two control mechanisms representing the immunization and removal treatment strategies are introduced into the proposed worm propagation model. Optimal solutions are numerically solved for various possible cases of worm control. Simulation results illustrate the effectiveness and efficiency of the proposed methods. It also demonstrates that, for obtaining a minimum cost, the implementation of maximum controls in the early stage is critically important to control the outbreaks.