Abstract: An adaptive security system having a hierarchy of security servers. The security system maintains a primary security server for each task or process executing within a computing environment. An enforcement mechanism receives resource requests from the tasks and queries the corresponding primary security server which resolves the request based on a set of security associations. If the primary security server is unable to resolve the request, the enforcement mechanism queries a parent security server. Security servers are dynamically created and terminated in response to changing organizational policies. The present invention facilitates the dynamic creation and termination of security servers to adapt to organizational policy changes.