Influence of time-dependent factors in the evaluation of critical infrastructure protection measures.

The examination of which protective measures are the most appropriate to be implemented in order to prevent, protect against, respond to, and recover from attacks on critical infrastructures and key resources typically involves a comparison of the consequences that could occur when the protective measure is implemented to those that could occur when it is not. This report describes a framework for evaluation that provides some additional capabilities for comparing optional protective measures. It illustrates some potentially important time-dependent factors, such as the implementation rate, that affect the relative pros and cons associated with widespread implementation of protective measures. It presents example results from the use of protective measures, such as detectors and pretrained responders, for an illustrative biological incident. Results show that the choice of an alternative measure can depend on whether or not policy and financial support can be maintained for extended periods of time. Choice of a time horizon greatly influences the comparison of alternatives.