Cyber Resilience through Real-Time Threat Analysis in Information Security

This paper examines how cybersecurity is developing and how it relates to more conventional information security. Although information security and cyber security are sometimes used synonymously, this study contends that they are not the same. The concept of cyber security is explored, which goes beyond protecting information resources to include a wider variety of assets, including people [1]. Protecting information assets is the main goal of traditional information security, with consideration to the human element and how people fit into the security process. On the other hand, cyber security adds a new level of complexity, as people might unintentionally contribute to or become targets of cyberattacks. This aspect presents moral questions since it is becoming more widely accepted that society has a duty to protect weaker members of society, including children [1]. The study emphasizes how important cyber security is on a larger scale, with many countries creating plans and laws to counteract cyberattacks. Nevertheless, a lot of these sources frequently neglect to define the differences or the relationship between information security and cyber security [1]. The paper focus on differentiating between cybersecurity and information security on a larger scale. The study also highlights other areas of cybersecurity which includes defending people, social norms, and vital infrastructure from threats that arise from online in addition to information and technology protection. It contends that ethical issues and the human factor are becoming more and more important in protecting assets in the digital age, and that cyber security is a paradigm shift in this regard [1].

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.

Cyberspace Security Using Adversarial Learning and Conformal Prediction

This paper advances new directions for cyber security using adversarial learning and conformal prediction in order to enhance network and computing services defenses against adaptive, malicious, persistent, and tactical offensive threats. Conformal prediction is the principled and unified adaptive and learning framework used to design, develop, and deploy a multi-faceted?self-managing defensive shield to detect, disrupt, and deny intrusive attacks, hostile and malicious behavior, and subterfuge. Conformal prediction leverages apparent relationships between immunity and intrusion detection using non-conformity measures characteristic of affinity, a typicality, and surprise, to recognize patterns and messages as friend or foe and to respond to them accordingly. The solutions proffered throughout are built around active learning, meta-reasoning, randomness, distributed semantics and stratification, and most important and above all around adaptive Oracles. The motivation for using conformal prediction and its immediate off-spring, those of semi-supervised learning and transduction, comes from them first and foremost supporting discriminative and non-parametric methods characteristic of principled demarcation using cohorts and sensitivity analysis to hedge on the prediction outcomes including negative selection, on one side, and providing credibility and confidence indices that assist meta-reasoning and information fusion.

Global and International Security Under Spatial Grasp Paradigm

Global and international security cannot be provided from a single point or a set of separate points whatever powerful these might be(even with quantum supercomputers!).It should rather be deeply embedded and integrated with bodies of real systems wherever in physical,virtual,or combined spaces they may exist.So global security capabilities should not only be distributed,but rather be really spatial,self-organized,and dynamic,also exhibiting overall integrity,awareness,and consciousness features.The paper describes applicability of the patented and revealed in 10 books Spatial Grasp Model and Technology(SGT)and its basic Spatial Grasp Language(SGL)which conceptually and functionally match security problems of large distributed and heterogeneous systems.It investigates very practical security solutions for finding and tracing distribution of forbidden items,world roaming criminals,recovery from natural and human-made disasters,tracing and elimination of moving dangerous objects in terrestrial and celestial spaces,as well as analysis and restoration of damaged transport networks.It advises how different security infrastructures can be organized and managed,and how to cooperate and integrate within global security systems with higher awareness and consciousness levels over them.The provided security-oriented version of SGL can be quickly implemented and integrated with existing distributed management and security systems.

Modeling and Implementation of a Data Security and Protection Medium Using the Generated Key Based on Electromagnetic Wave Propagation Theories

Today, the advent of quantum computers and algorithms is calling into question the semantic security of symmetrical and asymmetrical cryptosystems. The security of objects connected to the network, which must provide a security service and protect the privacy of users by providing protection against attacks such as identity theft, denial of service, eavesdropping and unauthorised access to personal and sensitive data. It is therefore necessary to find a robust method of using the key that is effective in protecting and preventing data tampering. In this paper, we design and implement a security and data protection method using a key generated on the basis of electromagnetic wave propagation theories. Modelling and implementation of a data security and protection method using a key generated on the basis of electromagnetic wave propagation theories.

Fine-Tuning Cyber Security Defenses: Evaluating Supervised Machine Learning Classifiers for Windows Malware Detection

Malware attacks on Windows machines pose significant cybersecurity threats,necessitating effective detection and prevention mechanisms.Supervised machine learning classifiers have emerged as promising tools for malware detection.However,there remains a need for comprehensive studies that compare the performance of different classifiers specifically for Windows malware detection.Addressing this gap can provide valuable insights for enhancing cybersecurity strategies.While numerous studies have explored malware detection using machine learning techniques,there is a lack of systematic comparison of supervised classifiers for Windows malware detection.Understanding the relative effectiveness of these classifiers can inform the selection of optimal detection methods and improve overall security measures.This study aims to bridge the research gap by conducting a comparative analysis of supervised machine learning classifiers for detecting malware on Windows systems.The objectives include Investigating the performance of various classifiers,such as Gaussian Naïve Bayes,K Nearest Neighbors(KNN),Stochastic Gradient Descent Classifier(SGDC),and Decision Tree,in detecting Windows malware.Evaluating the accuracy,efficiency,and suitability of each classifier for real-world malware detection scenarios.Identifying the strengths and limitations of different classifiers to provide insights for cybersecurity practitioners and researchers.Offering recommendations for selecting the most effective classifier for Windows malware detection based on empirical evidence.The study employs a structured methodology consisting of several phases:exploratory data analysis,data preprocessing,model training,and evaluation.Exploratory data analysis involves understanding the dataset’s characteristics and identifying preprocessing requirements.Data preprocessing includes cleaning,feature encoding,dimensionality reduction,and optimization to prepare the data for training.Model training utilizes various supervised classifiers,and their performance is evaluated using metrics such as accuracy,precision,recall,and F1 score.The study’s outcomes comprise a comparative analysis of supervised machine learning classifiers for Windows malware detection.Results reveal the effectiveness and efficiency of each classifier in detecting different types of malware.Additionally,insights into their strengths and limitations provide practical guidance for enhancing cybersecurity defenses.Overall,this research contributes to advancing malware detection techniques and bolstering the security posture of Windows systems against evolving cyber threats.

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.

MV-Honeypot:Security Threat Analysis by Deploying Avatar as a Honeypot in COTS Metaverse Platforms

Nowadays,theuse of Avatars that are unique digital depictions has increased by users to access Metaverse—a virtual reality environment—through multiple devices and for various purposes.Therefore,the Avatar and Metaverse are being developed with a new theory,application,and design,necessitating the association of more personal data and devices of targeted users every day.This Avatar and Metaverse technology explosion raises privacy and security concerns,leading to cyber attacks.MV-Honeypot,or Metaverse-Honeypot,as a commercial off-the-shelf solution that can counter these cyber attack-causing vulnerabilities,should be developed.To fill this gap,we study user’s engagements with Avatars in Metaverse,analyze possible security vulnerabilities,and create a model named Simplified Avatar Relationship Association with Non-linear Gradient(SARANG)that draws the full diagram of infrastructure components and data flow through accessing Metaverse in this paper.We also determine the most significant threat for each component’s cyberattacks that will affect user data and Avatars.As a result,the commercial off-the-shelf(COTS)of the MV-Honeypot must be established.

Improving Smart Home Security via MQTT: Maximizing Data Privacy and Device Authentication Using Elliptic Curve Cryptography

The rapid adoption of Internet of Things(IoT)technologies has introduced significant security challenges across the physical,network,and application layers,particularly with the widespread use of the Message Queue Telemetry Transport(MQTT)protocol,which,while efficient in bandwidth consumption,lacks inherent security features,making it vulnerable to various cyber threats.This research addresses these challenges by presenting a secure,lightweight communication proxy that enhances the scalability and security of MQTT-based Internet of Things(IoT)networks.The proposed solution builds upon the Dang-Scheme,a mutual authentication protocol designed explicitly for resource-constrained environments and enhances it using Elliptic Curve Cryptography(ECC).This integration significantly improves device authentication,data confidentiality,and energy efficiency,achieving an 87.68%increase in data confidentiality and up to 77.04%energy savings during publish/subscribe communications in smart homes.The Middleware Broker System dynamically manages transaction keys and session IDs,offering robust defences against common cyber threats like impersonation and brute-force attacks.Penetration testing with tools such as Hydra and Nmap further validated the system’s security,demonstrating its potential to significantly improve the security and efficiency of IoT networks while underscoring the need for ongoing research to combat emerging threats.

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.

AssessITS: Integrating Procedural Guidelines and Practical Evaluation Metrics for Organizational IT and Cybersecurity Risk Assessment

In today’s digitally driven landscape, robust Information Technology (IT) risk assessment practices are essential for safeguarding systems, digital communication, and data. This paper introduces “AssessITS,” an actionable method designed to provide organizations with comprehensive guidelines for conducting IT and cybersecurity risk assessments. Drawing extensively from NIST 800-30 Rev 1, COBIT 5, and ISO 31000, “AssessITS” bridges the gap between high-level theoretical standards and practical implementation challenges. The paper outlines a step-by-step methodology that organizations can simply adopt to systematically identify, analyze, and mitigate IT risks. By simplifying complex principles into actionable procedures, this framework equips practitioners with the tools needed to perform risk assessments independently, without too much reliance on external vendors. The guidelines are developed to be straightforward, integrating practical evaluation metrics that allow for the precise quantification of asset values, threat levels, vulnerabilities, and impacts on confidentiality, integrity, and availability. This approach ensures that the risk assessment process is not only comprehensive but also accessible, enabling decision-makers to implement effective risk mitigation strategies customized to their unique operational contexts. “AssessITS” aims to enable organizations to enhance their IT security strength through practical, actionable guidance based on internationally recognized standards.

Security Analysis in Smart Agriculture: Insights from a Cyber-Physical System Application

Smart agriculture modifies traditional farming practices,and offers innovative approaches to boost production and sustainability by leveraging contemporary technologies.In today’s world where technology is everything,these technologies are utilized to streamline regular tasks and procedures in agriculture,one of the largest and most significant industries in every nation.This research paper stands out from existing literature on smart agriculture security by providing a comprehensive analysis and examination of security issues within smart agriculture systems.Divided into three main sections-security analysis,system architecture and design and risk assessment of Cyber-Physical Systems(CPS)applications-the study delves into various elements crucial for smart farming,such as data sources,infrastructure components,communication protocols,and the roles of different stakeholders such as farmers,agricultural scientists and researchers,technology providers,government agencies,consumers and many others.In contrast to earlier research,this work analyzes the resilience of smart agriculture systems using approaches such as threat modeling,penetration testing,and vulnerability assessments.Important discoveries highlight the concerns connected to unsecured communication protocols,possible threats from malevolent actors,and vulnerabilities in IoT devices.Furthermore,the study suggests enhancements for CPS applications,such as strong access controls,intrusion detection systems,and encryption protocols.In addition,risk assessment techniques are applied to prioritize mitigation tactics and detect potential hazards,addressing issues like data breaches,system outages,and automated farming process sabotage.The research sets itself apart even more by presenting a prototype CPS application that makes use of a digital temperature sensor.This application was first created using a Tinkercad simulator and then using actual hardware with Arduino boards.The CPS application’s defenses against potential threats and vulnerabilities are strengthened by this integrated approach,which distinguishes this research for its depth and usefulness in the field of smart agriculture security.

Network Security Enhanced with Deep Neural Network-Based Intrusion Detection System

This study describes improving network security by implementing and assessing an intrusion detection system(IDS)based on deep neural networks(DNNs).The paper investigates contemporary technical ways for enhancing intrusion detection performance,given the vital relevance of safeguarding computer networks against harmful activity.The DNN-based IDS is trained and validated by the model using the NSL-KDD dataset,a popular benchmark for IDS research.The model performs well in both the training and validation stages,with 91.30%training accuracy and 94.38%validation accuracy.Thus,the model shows good learning and generalization capabilities with minor losses of 0.22 in training and 0.1553 in validation.Furthermore,for both macro and micro averages across class 0(normal)and class 1(anomalous)data,the study evaluates the model using a variety of assessment measures,such as accuracy scores,precision,recall,and F1 scores.The macro-average recall is 0.9422,the macro-average precision is 0.9482,and the accuracy scores are 0.942.Furthermore,macro-averaged F1 scores of 0.9245 for class 1 and 0.9434 for class 0 demonstrate the model’s ability to precisely identify anomalies precisely.The research also highlights how real-time threat monitoring and enhanced resistance against new online attacks may be achieved byDNN-based intrusion detection systems,which can significantly improve network security.The study underscores the critical function ofDNN-based IDS in contemporary cybersecurity procedures by setting the foundation for further developments in this field.Upcoming research aims to enhance intrusion detection systems by examining cooperative learning techniques and integrating up-to-date threat knowledge.

A Review on Security and Privacy Issues Pertaining to Cyber-Physical Systems in the Industry 5.0 Era

The advent of Industry 5.0 marks a transformative era where Cyber-Physical Systems(CPSs)seamlessly integrate physical processes with advanced digital technologies.However,as industries become increasingly interconnected and reliant on smart digital technologies,the intersection of physical and cyber domains introduces novel security considerations,endangering the entire industrial ecosystem.The transition towards a more cooperative setting,including humans and machines in Industry 5.0,together with the growing intricacy and interconnection of CPSs,presents distinct and diverse security and privacy challenges.In this regard,this study provides a comprehensive review of security and privacy concerns pertaining to CPSs in the context of Industry 5.0.The review commences by providing an outline of the role of CPSs in Industry 5.0 and then proceeds to conduct a thorough review of the different security risks associated with CPSs in the context of Industry 5.0.Afterward,the study also presents the privacy implications inherent in these systems,particularly in light of the massive data collection and processing required.In addition,the paper delineates potential avenues for future research and provides countermeasures to surmount these challenges.Overall,the study underscores the imperative of adopting comprehensive security and privacy strategies within the context of Industry 5.0.

A Review of Lightweight Security and Privacy for Resource-Constrained IoT Devices

The widespread and growing interest in the Internet of Things(IoT)may be attributed to its usefulness in many different fields.Physical settings are probed for data,which is then transferred via linked networks.There are several hurdles to overcome when putting IoT into practice,from managing server infrastructure to coordinating the use of tiny sensors.When it comes to deploying IoT,everyone agrees that security is the biggest issue.This is due to the fact that a large number of IoT devices exist in the physicalworld and thatmany of themhave constrained resources such as electricity,memory,processing power,and square footage.This research intends to analyse resource-constrained IoT devices,including RFID tags,sensors,and smart cards,and the issues involved with protecting them in such restricted circumstances.Using lightweight cryptography,the information sent between these gadgets may be secured.In order to provide a holistic picture,this research evaluates and contrasts well-known algorithms based on their implementation cost,hardware/software efficiency,and attack resistance features.We also emphasised how essential lightweight encryption is for striking a good cost-to-performance-to-security ratio.

清华大学计算机系和网研院团队获得USENIX Security 2024杰出论文奖和互联网防御奖

8月14日~16日,国际网络安全四大会议之一的“第三十三届USENIX安全大会(USENIX Security Symposium)”在美国费城举行。清华大学网络科学与网络空间研究院教师李琦、刘卓涛和计算机系教师徐恪、徐明伟、吴建平团队发表的论文“语义驱动的互联网路由异常检测系统”(Learning with Semantics:Towards a Semantics-Aware Routing Anomaly Detection System)同时获得杰出论文奖(Distinguished Paper Award)和互联网防御奖(Internet Defense Prize)。论文的第一作者为计算机系2021级博士研究生陈熠豪,导师为吴建平院士。

Cluster DetectionMethod of Endogenous Security Abnormal Attack Behavior in Air Traffic Control Network

In order to enhance the accuracy of Air Traffic Control(ATC)cybersecurity attack detection,in this paper,a new clustering detection method is designed for air traffic control network security attacks.The feature set for ATC cybersecurity attacks is constructed by setting the feature states,adding recursive features,and determining the feature criticality.The expected information gain and entropy of the feature data are computed to determine the information gain of the feature data and reduce the interference of similar feature data.An autoencoder is introduced into the AI(artificial intelligence)algorithm to encode and decode the characteristics of ATC network security attack behavior to reduce the dimensionality of the ATC network security attack behavior data.Based on the above processing,an unsupervised learning algorithm for clustering detection of ATC network security attacks is designed.First,determine the distance between the clustering clusters of ATC network security attack behavior characteristics,calculate the clustering threshold,and construct the initial clustering center.Then,the new average value of all feature objects in each cluster is recalculated as the new cluster center.Second,it traverses all objects in a cluster of ATC network security attack behavior feature data.Finally,the cluster detection of ATC network security attack behavior is completed by the computation of objective functions.The experiment took three groups of experimental attack behavior data sets as the test object,and took the detection rate,false detection rate and recall rate as the test indicators,and selected three similar methods for comparative test.The experimental results show that the detection rate of this method is about 98%,the false positive rate is below 1%,and the recall rate is above 97%.Research shows that this method can improve the detection performance of security attacks in air traffic control network.

华中科技大学博士研究生论文被网络安全与隐私计算领域会议USENIX Security录用

近日,第33届USENIX安全研讨会(33rd USENIX Security Symposium 2024)录用结果揭晓,华中科技大学博士研究生冯思乐(导师邹德清教授)的论文“FIRE:Combining Multi-Stage Filtering with Taint Analysis for Scalable Recurring Vulnerability Detection”被录用。随着软件开源的不断发展,重用开源软件已成为软件开发中的一种普遍做法,这一趋势导致越来越多的漏洞。

Security-Reliability Analysis and Optimization for Cognitive Two-Way Relay Network with Energy Harvesting

This paper investigates the security and reliability of information transmission within an underlay wiretap energy harvesting cognitive two-way relay network.In the network,energy-constrained secondary network(SN)nodes harvest energy from radio frequency signals of a multi-antenna power beacon.Two SN sources exchange their messages via a SN decode-and-forward relay in the presence of a multiantenna eavesdropper by using a four-phase time division broadcast protocol,and the hardware impairments of SN nodes and eavesdropper are modeled.To alleviate eavesdropping attacks,the artificial noise is applied by SN nodes.The physical layer security performance of SN is analyzed and evaluated by the exact closed-form expressions of outage probability(OP),intercept probability(IP),and OP+IP over quasistatic Rayleigh fading channel.Additionally,due to the complexity of OP+IP expression,a self-adaptive chaotic quantum particle swarm optimization-based resource allocation algorithm is proposed to jointly optimize energy harvesting ratio and power allocation factor,which can achieve security-reliability tradeoff for SN.Extensive simulations demonstrate the correctness of theoretical analysis and the effectiveness of the proposed optimization algorithm.

Adaptive Network Sustainability and Defense Based on Artificial Bees Colony Optimization Algorithm for Nature Inspired Cyber Security

Cyber Defense is becoming a major issue for every organization to keep business continuity intact.The presented paper explores the effectiveness of a meta-heuristic optimization algorithm-Artificial Bees Colony Algorithm(ABC)as an Nature Inspired Cyber Security mechanism to achieve adaptive defense.It experiments on the Denial-Of-Service attack scenarios which involves limiting the traffic flow for each node.Businesses today have adapted their service distribution models to include the use of the Internet,allowing them to effectively manage and interact with their customer data.This shift has created an increased reliance on online services to store vast amounts of confidential customer data,meaning any disruption or outage of these services could be disastrous for the business,leaving them without the knowledge to serve their customers.Adversaries can exploit such an event to gain unauthorized access to the confidential data of the customers.The proposed algorithm utilizes an Adaptive Defense approach to continuously select nodes that could present characteristics of a probable malicious entity.For any changes in network parameters,the cluster of nodes is selected in the prepared solution set as a probable malicious node and the traffic rate with the ratio of packet delivery is managed with respect to the properties of normal nodes to deliver a disaster recovery plan for potential businesses.