Enhancing Cybersecurity Competency in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia:A Fuzzy Decision-Making Approach

The Kingdom of Saudi Arabia(KSA)has achieved significant milestones in cybersecurity.KSA has maintained solid regulatorymechanisms to prevent,trace,and punish offenders to protect the interests of both individual users and organizations from the online threats of data poaching and pilferage.The widespread usage of Information Technology(IT)and IT Enable Services(ITES)reinforces securitymeasures.The constantly evolving cyber threats are a topic that is generating a lot of discussion.In this league,the present article enlists a broad perspective on how cybercrime is developing in KSA at present and also takes a look at some of the most significant attacks that have taken place in the region.The existing legislative framework and measures in the KSA are geared toward deterring criminal activity online.Different competency models have been devised to address the necessary cybercrime competencies in this context.The research specialists in this domain can benefit more by developing a master competency level for achieving optimum security.To address this research query,the present assessment uses the Fuzzy Decision-Making Trial and Evaluation Laboratory(Fuzzy-DMTAEL),Fuzzy Analytic Hierarchy Process(F.AHP),and Fuzzy TOPSIS methodology to achieve segment-wise competency development in cyber security policy.The similarities and differences between the three methods are also discussed.This cybersecurity analysis determined that the National Cyber Security Centre got the highest priority.The study concludes by perusing the challenges that still need to be examined and resolved in effectuating more credible and efficacious online security mechanisms to offer amoreempowered ITES-driven economy for SaudiArabia.Moreover,cybersecurity specialists and policymakers need to collate their efforts to protect the country’s digital assets in the era of overt and covert cyber warfare.

Evaluating Security of Big Data Through Fuzzy Based Decision-Making Technique

In recent years,it has been observed that the disclosure of information increases the risk of terrorism.Without restricting the accessibility of information,providing security is difficult.So,there is a demand for time tofill the gap between security and accessibility of information.In fact,security tools should be usable for improving the security as well as the accessibility of information.Though security and accessibility are not directly influenced,some of their factors are indirectly influenced by each other.Attributes play an important role in bridging the gap between security and accessibility.In this paper,we identify the key attributes of accessibility and security that impact directly and indirectly on each other,such as confidentiality,integrity,availability,and severity.The significance of every attribute on the basis of obtained weight is important for its effect on security during the big data security life cycle process.To calculate the proposed work,researchers utilised the Fuzzy Analytic Hierarchy Process(Fuzzy AHP).Thefindings show that the Fuzzy AHP is a very accurate mechanism for determining the best security solution in a real-time healthcare context.The study also looks at the rapidly evolving security technologies in healthcare that could help improve healthcare services and the future prospects in this area.

Evolutionary Decision-Making and Planning for Autonomous Driving Based on Safe and Rational Exploration and Exploitation

Decision-making and motion planning are extremely important in autonomous driving to ensure safe driving in a real-world environment.This study proposes an online evolutionary decision-making and motion planning framework for autonomous driving based on a hybrid data-and model-driven method.First,a data-driven decision-making module based on deep reinforcement learning(DRL)is developed to pursue a rational driving performance as much as possible.Then,model predictive control(MPC)is employed to execute both longitudinal and lateral motion planning tasks.Multiple constraints are defined according to the vehicle’s physical limit to meet the driving task requirements.Finally,two principles of safety and rationality for the self-evolution of autonomous driving are proposed.A motion envelope is established and embedded into a rational exploration and exploitation scheme,which filters out unreasonable experiences by masking unsafe actions so as to collect high-quality training data for the DRL agent.Experiments with a high-fidelity vehicle model and MATLAB/Simulink co-simulation environment are conducted,and the results show that the proposed online-evolution framework is able to generate safer,more rational,and more efficient driving action in a real-world environment.

Repositioning fertilizer manufacturing subsidies for improving food security and reducing greenhouse gas emissions in China

China removed fertilizer manufacturing subsidies from 2015 to 2018 to bolster market-oriented reforms and foster environmentally sustainable practices.However,the impact of this policy reform on food security and the environment remains inadequately evaluated.Moreover,although green and low-carbon technologies offer environmental advantages,their widespread adoption is hindered by prohibitively high costs.This study analyzes the impact of removing fertilizer manufacturing subsidies and explores the potential feasibility of redirecting fertilizer manufacturing subsidies to invest in the diffusion of these technologies.Utilizing the China Agricultural University Agri-food Systems model,we analyzed the potential for achieving mutually beneficial outcomes regarding food security and environmental sustainability.The findings indicate that removing fertilizer manufacturing subsidies has reduced greenhouse gas(GHG)emissions from agricultural activities by 3.88 million metric tons,with minimal impact on food production.Redirecting fertilizer manufacturing subsidies to invest in green and low-carbon technologies,including slow and controlled-release fertilizer,organic-inorganic compound fertilizers,and machine deep placement of fertilizer,emerges as a strategy to concurrently curtail GHG emissions,ensure food security,and secure robust economic returns.Finally,we propose a comprehensive set of government interventions,including subsidies,field guidance,and improved extension systems,to promote the widespread adoption of these technologies.

Enhancing IoT Security:Quantum-Level Resilience against Threats

The rapid growth of the Internet of Things(IoT)operations has necessitated the incorporation of quantum computing technologies tomeet its expanding needs.This integration ismotivated by the need to solve the specific issues provided by the expansion of IoT and the potential benefits that quantum computing can offer in this scenario.The combination of IoT and quantum computing creates new privacy and security problems.This study examines the critical need to prevent potential security concerns from quantum computing in IoT applications.We investigate the incorporation of quantum computing approaches within IoT security frameworks,with a focus on developing effective security mechanisms.Our research,which uses quantum algorithms and cryptographic protocols,provides a unique solution to protecting sensitive information and assuring the integrity of IoT systems.We rigorously analyze critical quantum computing security properties,building a hierarchical framework for systematic examination.We offer concrete solutions flexible to diverse aswell as ambiguous opinions through using a unified computational model with analytical hierarchy process(AHP)multi-criteria decision-making(MCDM)as the technique for ordering preferences by similarity to ideal solutions(TOPSIS)in a fuzzy environment.This study adds practical benefit by supporting practitioners in recognizing,choosing,and prioritizing essential security factors from the standpoint of quantum computing.Our approach is a critical step towards improving quantum-level security in IoT systems,strengthening their resilience against future threats,and preserving the IoT ecosystem’s long-term prosperity.

Security Implications of Edge Computing in Cloud Networks

Security issues in cloud networks and edge computing have become very common. This research focuses on analyzing such issues and developing the best solutions. A detailed literature review has been conducted in this regard. The findings have shown that many challenges are linked to edge computing, such as privacy concerns, security breaches, high costs, low efficiency, etc. Therefore, there is a need to implement proper security measures to overcome these issues. Using emerging trends, like machine learning, encryption, artificial intelligence, real-time monitoring, etc., can help mitigate security issues. They can also develop a secure and safe future in cloud computing. It was concluded that the security implications of edge computing can easily be covered with the help of new technologies and techniques.

An Investigation on Open-RAN Specifications:Use Cases,Security Threats,Requirements,Discussions

The emergence of various technologies such as terahertz communications,Reconfigurable Intelligent Surfaces(RIS),and AI-powered communication services will burden network operators with rising infrastructure costs.Recently,the Open Radio Access Network(O-RAN)has been introduced as a solution for growing financial and operational burdens in Beyond 5G(B5G)and 6G networks.O-RAN promotes openness and intelligence to overcome the limitations of traditional RANs.By disaggregating conventional Base Band Units(BBUs)into O-RAN Distributed Units(O-DU)and O-RAN Centralized Units(O-CU),O-RAN offers greater flexibility for upgrades and network automation.However,this openness introduces new security challenges compared to traditional RANs.Many existing studies overlook these security requirements of the O-RAN networks.To gain deeper insights into the O-RAN system and security,this paper first provides an overview of the general O-RAN architecture and its diverse use cases relevant to B5G and 6G applications.We then delve into specifications of O-RAN security threats and requirements,aiming to mitigate security vulnerabilities effectively.By providing a comprehensive understanding of O-RAN architecture,use cases,and security considerations,thisworkserves as a valuable resource for future research in O-RAN and its security.

Survey on Video Security:Examining Threats,Challenges,and Future Trends

Videos represent the most prevailing form of digital media for communication,information dissemination,and monitoring.However,theirwidespread use has increased the risks of unauthorised access andmanipulation,posing significant challenges.In response,various protection approaches have been developed to secure,authenticate,and ensure the integrity of digital videos.This study provides a comprehensive survey of the challenges associated with maintaining the confidentiality,integrity,and availability of video content,and examining how it can be manipulated.It then investigates current developments in the field of video security by exploring two critical research questions.First,it examine the techniques used by adversaries to compromise video data and evaluate their impact.Understanding these attack methodologies is crucial for developing effective defense mechanisms.Second,it explores the various security approaches that can be employed to protect video data,enhancing its transparency,integrity,and trustworthiness.It compares the effectiveness of these approaches across different use cases,including surveillance,video on demand(VoD),and medical videos related to disease diagnostics.Finally,it identifies potential research opportunities to enhance video data protection in response to the evolving threat landscape.Through this investigation,this study aims to contribute to the ongoing efforts in securing video data,providing insights that are vital for researchers,practitioners,and policymakers dedicated to enhancing the safety and reliability of video content in our digital world.

Toward Trustworthy Decision-Making for Autonomous Vehicles:A Robust Reinforcement Learning Approach with Safety Guarantees

While autonomous vehicles are vital components of intelligent transportation systems,ensuring the trustworthiness of decision-making remains a substantial challenge in realizing autonomous driving.Therefore,we present a novel robust reinforcement learning approach with safety guarantees to attain trustworthy decision-making for autonomous vehicles.The proposed technique ensures decision trustworthiness in terms of policy robustness and collision safety.Specifically,an adversary model is learned online to simulate the worst-case uncertainty by approximating the optimal adversarial perturbations on the observed states and environmental dynamics.In addition,an adversarial robust actor-critic algorithm is developed to enable the agent to learn robust policies against perturbations in observations and dynamics.Moreover,we devise a safety mask to guarantee the collision safety of the autonomous driving agent during both the training and testing processes using an interpretable knowledge model known as the Responsibility-Sensitive Safety Model.Finally,the proposed approach is evaluated through both simulations and experiments.These results indicate that the autonomous driving agent can make trustworthy decisions and drastically reduce the number of collisions through robust safety policies.

Orientation and Decision-Making for Soccer Based on Sports Analytics and AI:A Systematic Review

Due to ever-growing soccer data collection approaches and progressing artificial intelligence(AI) methods, soccer analysis, evaluation, and decision-making have received increasing interest from not only the professional sports analytics realm but also the academic AI research community. AI brings gamechanging approaches for soccer analytics where soccer has been a typical benchmark for AI research. The combination has been an emerging topic. In this paper, soccer match analytics are taken as a complete observation-orientation-decision-action(OODA) loop.In addition, as in AI frameworks such as that for reinforcement learning, interacting with a virtual environment enables an evolving model. Therefore, both soccer analytics in the real world and virtual domains are discussed. With the intersection of the OODA loop and the real-virtual domains, available soccer data, including event and tracking data, and diverse orientation and decisionmaking models for both real-world and virtual soccer matches are comprehensively reviewed. Finally, some promising directions in this interdisciplinary area are pointed out. It is claimed that paradigms for both professional sports analytics and AI research could be combined. Moreover, it is quite promising to bridge the gap between the real and virtual domains for soccer match analysis and decision-making.

Ethical Decision-Making Framework Based on Incremental ILP Considering Conflicts

Humans are experiencing the inclusion of artificial agents in their lives,such as unmanned vehicles,service robots,voice assistants,and intelligent medical care.If the artificial agents cannot align with social values or make ethical decisions,they may not meet the expectations of humans.Traditionally,an ethical decision-making framework is constructed by rule-based or statistical approaches.In this paper,we propose an ethical decision-making framework based on incremental ILP(Inductive Logic Programming),which can overcome the brittleness of rule-based approaches and little interpretability of statistical approaches.As the current incremental ILP makes it difficult to solve conflicts,we propose a novel ethical decision-making framework considering conflicts in this paper,which adopts our proposed incremental ILP system.The framework consists of two processes:the learning process and the deduction process.The first process records bottom clauses with their score functions and learns rules guided by the entailment and the score function.The second process obtains an ethical decision based on the rules.In an ethical scenario about chatbots for teenagers’mental health,we verify that our framework can learn ethical rules and make ethical decisions.Besides,we extract incremental ILP from the framework and compare it with the state-of-the-art ILP systems based on ASP(Answer Set Programming)focusing on conflict resolution.The results of comparisons show that our proposed system can generate better-quality rules than most other systems.

A Practical Regular LDPC Coded Scheme for Physical-Layer Information Security

In this paper,we aim to design a practical low complexity low-density parity-check(LDPC)coded scheme to build a secure open channel and protect information from eavesdropping.To this end,we first propose a punctured LDPC coded scheme,where the information bits in a codeword are punctured and only the parity check bits are transmitted to the receiver.We further propose a notion of check node type distribution and derive multi-edge type extrinsic information transfer functions to estimate the security performance,instead of the well-known weak metric bit error rate.We optimize the check node type distribution in terms of the signal-to-noise ratio(SNR)gap and modify the progressive edge growth algorithm to design finite-length codes.Numerical results show that our proposed scheme can achieve a lower computational complexity and a smaller security gap,compared to the existing scrambling and puncturing schemes.

Information Security in the Cloud: Emerging Trends and Challenges

This article explores the evolution of cloud computing, its advantages over traditional on-premises infrastructure, and its impact on information security. The study presents a comprehensive literature review covering various cloud infrastructure offerings and security models. Additionally, it deeply analyzes real-life case studies illustrating successful cloud migrations and highlights common information security threats in current cloud computing. The article concludes by offering recommendations to businesses to protect themselves from cloud data breaches and providing insights into selecting a suitable cloud services provider from an information security perspective.

Stroke Risk Assessment Decision-Making Using a Machine Learning Model:Logistic-AdaBoost

Stroke is a chronic cerebrovascular disease that carries a high risk.Stroke risk assessment is of great significance in preventing,reversing and reducing the spread and the health hazards caused by stroke.Aiming to objectively predict and identify strokes,this paper proposes a new stroke risk assessment decision-making model named Logistic-AdaBoost(Logistic-AB)based on machine learning.First,the categorical boosting(CatBoost)method is used to perform feature selection for all features of stroke,and 8 main features are selected to form a new index evaluation system to predict the risk of stroke.Second,the borderline synthetic minority oversampling technique(SMOTE)algorithm is applied to transform the unbalanced stroke dataset into a balanced dataset.Finally,the stroke risk assessment decision-makingmodel Logistic-AB is constructed,and the overall prediction performance of this new model is evaluated by comparing it with ten other similar models.The comparison results show that the new model proposed in this paper performs better than the two single algorithms(logistic regression and AdaBoost)on the four indicators of recall,precision,F1 score,and accuracy,and the overall performance of the proposed model is better than that of common machine learning algorithms.The Logistic-AB model presented in this paper can more accurately predict patients’stroke risk.

The Role of Plantain in Promoting Food Security: A Review

Plantain is a food security crop of significant nutritional value in the global south. Yet there are significant post-harvest losses, especially at the senescent stage. This review seeks to give a general overview of the crop, its nutritional significance and the technologies that can be adopted to enhance its utilisation at its senescent stage. In West Africa, plantains are eaten at all ripening stages, yet processing is limited to the unripe and semi-ripe. Adoptable technologies such as foam-mat drying will enhance its utilisation in indigenous meals and other food applications. This review provides useful insight to optimize the use of plantain to prevent food waste.

Research on Maneuver Decision-Making of Multi-Agent Adversarial Game in a Random Interference Environment

The strategy evolution process of game players is highly uncertain due to random emergent situations and other external disturbances.This paper investigates the issue of strategy interaction and behavioral decision-making among game players in simulated confrontation scenarios within a random interference environment.It considers the possible risks that random disturbances may pose to the autonomous decision-making of game players,as well as the impact of participants’manipulative behaviors on the state changes of the players.A nonlinear mathematical model is established to describe the strategy decision-making process of the participants in this scenario.Subsequently,the strategy selection interaction relationship,strategy evolution stability,and dynamic decision-making process of the game players are investigated and verified by simulation experiments.The results show that maneuver-related parameters and random environmental interference factors have different effects on the selection and evolutionary speed of the agent’s strategies.Especially in a highly uncertain environment,even small information asymmetry or miscalculation may have a significant impact on decision-making.This also confirms the feasibility and effectiveness of the method proposed in the paper,which can better explain the behavioral decision-making process of the agent in the interaction process.This study provides feasibility analysis ideas and theoretical references for improving multi-agent interactive decision-making and the interpretability of the game system model.

Enhancing Security in QR Code Technology Using AI: Exploration and Mitigation Strategies

The widespread adoption of QR codes has revolutionized various industries, streamlined transactions and improved inventory management. However, this increased reliance on QR code technology also exposes it to potential security risks that malicious actors can exploit. QR code Phishing, or “Quishing”, is a type of phishing attack that leverages QR codes to deceive individuals into visiting malicious websites or downloading harmful software. These attacks can be particularly effective due to the growing popularity and trust in QR codes. This paper examines the importance of enhancing the security of QR codes through the utilization of artificial intelligence (AI). The abstract investigates the integration of AI methods for identifying and mitigating security threats associated with QR code usage. By assessing the current state of QR code security and evaluating the effectiveness of AI-driven solutions, this research aims to propose comprehensive strategies for strengthening QR code technology’s resilience. The study contributes to discussions on secure data encoding and retrieval, providing valuable insights into the evolving synergy between QR codes and AI for the advancement of secure digital communication.

Systematic Security Guideline Framework through Intelligently Automated Vulnerability Analysis

This research aims to propose a practical framework designed for the automatic analysis of a product’s comprehensive functionality and security vulnerabilities,generating applicable guidelines based on real-world software.The existing analysis of software security vulnerabilities often focuses on specific features or modules.This partial and arbitrary analysis of the security vulnerabilities makes it challenging to comprehend the overall security vulnerabilities of the software.The key novelty lies in overcoming the constraints of partial approaches.The proposed framework utilizes data from various sources to create a comprehensive functionality profile,facilitating the derivation of real-world security guidelines.Security guidelines are dynamically generated by associating functional security vulnerabilities with the latest Common Vulnerabilities and Exposure(CVE)and Common Vulnerability Scoring System(CVSS)scores,resulting in automated guidelines tailored to each product.These guidelines are not only practical but also applicable in real-world software,allowing for prioritized security responses.The proposed framework is applied to virtual private network(VPN)software,wherein a validated Level 2 data flow diagram is generated using the Spoofing,Tampering,Repudiation,Information Disclosure,Denial of Service,and Elevation of privilege(STRIDE)technique with references to various papers and examples from related software.The analysis resulted in the identification of a total of 121 vulnerabilities.The successful implementation and validation demonstrate the framework’s efficacy in generating customized guidelines for entire systems,subsystems,and selected modules.

A Holistic Secure Communication Mechanism Using a Multilayered Cryptographic Protocol to Enhanced Security

In an era characterized by digital pervasiveness and rapidly expanding datasets,ensuring the integrity and reliability of information is paramount.As cyber threats evolve in complexity,traditional cryptographic methods face increasingly sophisticated challenges.This article initiates an exploration into these challenges,focusing on key exchanges(encompassing their variety and subtleties),scalability,and the time metrics associated with various cryptographic processes.We propose a novel cryptographic approach underpinned by theoretical frameworks and practical engineering.Central to this approach is a thorough analysis of the interplay between Confidentiality and Integrity,foundational pillars of information security.Our method employs a phased strategy,beginning with a detailed examination of traditional cryptographic processes,including Elliptic Curve Diffie-Hellman(ECDH)key exchanges.We also delve into encrypt/decrypt paradigms,signature generation modes,and the hashes used for Message Authentication Codes(MACs).Each process is rigorously evaluated for performance and reliability.To gain a comprehensive understanding,a meticulously designed simulation was conducted,revealing the strengths and potential improvement areas of various techniques.Notably,our cryptographic protocol achieved a confidentiality metric of 9.13 in comprehensive simulation runs,marking a significant advancement over existing methods.Furthermore,with integrity metrics at 9.35,the protocol’s resilience is further affirmed.These metrics,derived from stringent testing,underscore the protocol’s efficacy in enhancing data security.

Security and Privacy in Solar Insecticidal Lamps Internet of Things:Requirements and Challenges

Solar insecticidal lamps(SIL) can effectively control pests and reduce the use of pesticides. Combining SIL and Internet of Things(IoT) has formed a new type of agricultural IoT,known as SIL-IoT, which can improve the effectiveness of migratory phototropic pest control. However, since the SIL is connected to the Internet, it is vulnerable to various security issues.These issues can lead to serious consequences, such as tampering with the parameters of SIL, illegally starting and stopping SIL,etc. In this paper, we describe the overall security requirements of SIL-IoT and present an extensive survey of security and privacy solutions for SIL-IoT. We investigate the background and logical architecture of SIL-IoT, discuss SIL-IoT security scenarios, and analyze potential attacks. Starting from the security requirements of SIL-IoT we divide them into six categories, namely privacy, authentication, confidentiality, access control, availability,and integrity. Next, we describe the SIL-IoT privacy and security solutions, as well as the blockchain-based solutions. Based on the current survey, we finally discuss the challenges and future research directions of SIL-IoT.