Building an assurance case for assessing novel maritime border surveillance system

An assurance case is a documented body of evidence providing a convincing and valid argument that a system is adequately built for a given application in a given environment. It is a requirements-based approach, in which requirements provide a reference for the assessment of determined features of the target system. System adequacy is demonstrated by presenting evidence and by justifying why the evidence supports particular requirement-based claims. As follows, a systems assurance case is a conceptual procedure within which reasoning about system validity takes place. It is a hierarchical ordering of system-related data extending from an abstract understanding of system performance to a concrete proof of the validity system. In this paper, we discuss the development of an assurance case for a maritime border surveillance system which aims at enhancing the situational awareness of border authorities at external maritime borders of the European Union and third countries. This paper discusses the benefits of the assurance case in the context of applied civil security research, considering among others the suitability and comprehensiveness of the approach compared to other methods, such as checklists and compliance matrices. The strength of the approach in organizing information associated with complex systems is also addressed.