Critical Systems and Software Risk to Public Safety: Issues and Research Directions

Abstract: Standards concerned with the development of safety-critical systems, and software in such systems in particular, abound today as the software crisis increasingly affects the world of embedded computer-based systems. The risk due to failure of software in safety critical systems leads to severe consequences such as injury or death of humans. Medical instrumentation, railway signaling, and air traffic control are few examples of such systems. Safety-critical systems require the utmost care in their specification, design, implementation, operation, and maintenance. However, few other factors like timeliness, reusability, and cost are impaired. Safety Engineering Process is to identify, eliminate, or control hazards to acceptable levels of risk throughout a system’s life cycle. This paper gives a bird’s eye view of the impact of software failures on human society, outlines issues and concerns in this are