  Dendritic cells are antigen presenting cells that provide a vital link
between the innate and adaptive immune system, providing the initial detection
of pathogenic invaders. Research into this family of cells has revealed that
they perform information fusion which directs immune responses. We have derived
a Dendritic Cell Algorithm based on the functionality of these cells, by
modelling the biological signals and differentiation pathways to build a
control mechanism for an artificial immune system. We present algorithmic
details in addition to experimental results, when the algorithm was applied to
anomaly detection for the detection of port scans. The results show the
Dendritic Cell Algorithm is sucessful at detecting port scans.

Artificial Intelligence;Cryptography and Security;Neural and Evolutionary Computing