A system and method facilitate substantially secure communication of messages in an architecture that allows a user-level application or process direct access to hardware, such as may include a storage device. A process directly provides to a storage device a message having address information and validation data associated with its destination. Prior to sending the message from the storage device, the stored message is validated based on its validation data and other validation information that has been associated with the storage device. The validation information is not available to the user-level process sending the message. The message may be sent from the storage device provided that its validation data is proper.