# An Evaluation of the Security of Bare Machine Computing (BMC) Systems against Cybersecurity Attacks
## 6 Significant Contributions  
The BMC paradigm results in a new approach to developing computer applications. If all computing devices are bare, including PCs, laptops, and smartphones, there are no resources to protect other than the hardware. Bare machines are ownerless and usable by any user at any time by loading their own bare applications. There is nothing to compromise on a bare machine other than a running application. A bare machine and bare machine applications can survive for a long period of time without obsolescence. A single bare machine can serve many users in a time-shared manner, one user at a time, without dedicating an individual machine to each user. The BMC paradigm forces applications to use abstractions and extensions instead of obsoleting them before their normal life span. The focus on end-user applications instead of computer platforms will reduce waste, dumping, and the obsolescence of hardware, software, and people skills.  
When the OS is eliminated, all OS vulnerabilities are eliminated. While a given BMC application suite is running, other applications cannot interfere with it since they cannot run at the same time. A BMC application suite runs only intended functions and nothing else. BMC systems are inherently secure by design and are likely to prevent many cybersecurity attacks. This paper will put a seed in the ground for building future systems that are highly secure. This paper also provides an alternative to conventional systems to build highly secure systems.  
Conventional systems are centralized, based on some flavor of an OS, and are potentially exposed to cybersecurity vulnerabilities by their design. Since BMC systems are closed systems, application information on system internals and security mechanisms is not readily available except through reverse engineering. Such information may only be useful for devising attacks against one BMC application, as other applications may have completely different characteristics. The absence of an OS enables applications and their hardware interfaces to be customized to improve security. Only a port currently used by an application can be targeted by a DoS or DDoS attack. There are no OS interfaces or protocols to easily compromise since they are hidden and integrated with the application. BMC systems are not accessible by unauthorized global users unless they steal the credentials of legitimate bare users. The inability to download software and open email attachments and the unavailability of free and open specifications limit cybersecurity vulnerabilities in BMC systems.  
In a bare Internet, all devices are bare, and all authorized users are authenticated. This offers an alternative to the current Internet, which is designed for a global market and global users. The Internet is large, complex, and global in nature, whereas a bare Internet is small and only serves a limited population of bare users. Solving cybersecurity problems on the current Internet using global solutions is not practical. In a bare Internet, it is possible to divide and conquer security problems by isolating bare users from the rest of the Internet.  
This work serves as a foundation for building secure computer and information systems based on the BMC paradigm. BMC systems are simple, secure by design, and easy to build. The BMC approach enables novel computer architectures and innovative information system design to support domain-specific applications that are independent of computer platforms.