Key agreement plays a crucial role in ensuring secure communication in public networks. Although algorithms developed many years ago are still being used, the emergence of quantum computing has prompted the search for new solutions. Tree parity machines have been put forward as a potential solution. However, they possess inherent shortcomings, one of which is the uneven distribution of values in the secured key obtained after the key agreement process, especially when non-binary vectors are used during the synchronization process. This paper introduces a novel algorithm designed to address this issue. The results demonstrate a substantial enhancement in the quality of the secured key obtained.

Abstract Artificial intelligence, machine learning, and cybersecurity are the topics of discussion of contemporary information technology sector and computing research. This study investigates the integration of machine learning-based artificial intelligence in the context of cybersecurity. This paper presents an overview of the recent literature, focusing on selected popular areas related to the challenges and opportunities that such implementations introduce. The authors also assess how selected problems related to the application of machine learning algorithms affect the real effectiveness represented by the resulting models. To support this analysis, an experimental study was conducted using a real-world cybersecurity system. This demonstration illustrates the practical implementation of a machine learning-based software solution in cybersecurity and highlights the potential challenges encountered during such implementations.

Public key cryptography is nowadays a crucial component of global communications which are critical to our economy, security and way of life. The quantum computers are expected to be a threat and the widely used RSA, ECDSA, ECDH, and DSA cryptosystems will need to be replaced by quantum safe cryptography. The main objective of the HORIZON Europe PQ-REACT project is to design, develop and validate a framework for a faster and smoother transition from classical to quantum safe cryptography for a wide variety of contexts and usage domains that could have a potential interest for defence purposes. This framework will include Post Quantum Cryptography (PQC) migration paths and cryptographic agility methods and will develop a portfolio of tools for validation of post quantum cryptographic systems using Quantum Computing. A variety of real-world pilots using PQC and Quantum Cryptography, i.e., Smart Grids, 5G and Ledgers will be deployed to validate the defined framework.

Neural cryptography is the application of artificial neural networks (ANNs) in the subject of cryptography. The functionality of this solution is based on a tree parity machine (TPM). It uses ANNs to perform secure key exchange between network entities. This brief proposes improvements to the synchronization of two TPMs. The improvement is based on learning ANN using input vectors that have a wider range of values than binary ones. As a result, the duration of the synchronization process is reduced. Therefore, TPMs achieve common weights in a shorter time due to the reduction of necessary bit exchanges. This approach improves the security of neural cryptography.

Quantum cryptography can provide a very high level of data security. However, a big challenge of this technique is errors in quantum channels. Therefore, error correction methods must be applied in real implementations. An example is error correction based on artificial neural networks. This paper considers the practical aspects of this recently proposed method and analyzes elements which influence security and efficiency. The synchronization process based on mutual learning processes is analyzed in detail. The results allowed us to determine the impact of various parameters. Additionally, the paper describes the recommended number of iterations for different structures of artificial neural networks and various error rates. All this aims to support users in choosing a suitable configuration of neural networks used to correct errors in a secure and efficient way.

Abstract Supervision of repair and diagnostic works aimed at improving the safety of maintenance crews is one of the key objectives of the distributed INRED system. Working in a real industrial environment, the INRED system includes, among others, the so-called INRED-Workflow, which provides an infrastructure for process automation. Participants of the service processes, managed by the INRED-Workflow, are controlled at each stage of the performed service procedures, both by the system and other process participants, such as quality managers and technologists. All data collected from the service processes is stored in the System Knowledge Repository (SKR) for further processing by using advanced algorithms, and the so-called Smart Procedures merge services supplied by other INRED system modules. The applicability of workflow management systems in conjunction with image recognition and machine learning methods has not yet been thoroughly explored. The presented paper shows the innovative usage of such systems in the supervision of the repair and diagnostic works.

Oxford-style debating is a well-known tool in social sciences. However, when we try to go beyond standard thinking, it turns out that the debates can be a great educational tool in telecommunication and computer engineering. Oxford-style debating can be defined as a formal communication process where participants argue for and against a predetermined topic, known as a motion. The discussion has a competitive format where the participants are divided into two teams: proponents, who agree with the motion of debate, and opponents, who argue against the motion. The participants - including the listening rest of the class - take a broad view of the given subject without ignoring different points of view. This form of debating supports professional education and soft skills training, efficient teamwork and individual study, and effective verbal and non-verbal communication skills. All of these abilities are very important for IT engineers. The well-organized structure and competitive character makes this educational tool useful in academic study (especially for postgraduate students) as well as at special events (e.g. summer schools). Defining valid and interesting motions is certainly a challenge; however, given sufficient interest and research, there are plenty of topics suitable for a valuable debate related to computer science (e.g. 'Law enforcement agencies should be able to read confidential messages sent by citizens'). Oxford-style debates can be a great didactic tool at technical universities.

In recent years, noticeable progress has been made in the development of quantum equipment, reflected through the number of successful demonstrations of Quantum Key Distribution (QKD) technology. Although they showcase the great achievements of QKD, many practical difficulties still need to be resolved. Inspired by the significant similarity between mobile ad-hoc networks and QKD technology, we propose a novel quality of service (QoS) model including new metrics for determining the states of public and quantum channels as well as a comprehensive metric of the QKD link. We also propose a novel routing protocol to achieve high-level scalability and minimize consumption of cryptographic keys. Given the limited mobility of nodes in QKD networks, our routing protocol uses the geographical distance and calculated link states to determine the optimal route. It also benefits from a caching mechanism and detection of returning loops to provide effective forwarding while minimizing key consumption and achieving the desired utilization of network links. Simulation results are presented to demonstrate the validity and accuracy of the proposed solutions.

Quantum physics has a major influence on modern computer science and communications. New quantum-based solutions continue to be proposed by researchers. However, only a few techniques are possible to implement in practice. One of them is quantum key distribution, which ensures the confidentiality of digital data. This article introduces a new concept: quantum distribution of pre-shared keys. This approach provides end-users with very secure authentication, impossible to achieve using currently-available techniques. Secure authentication is a key requirement in virtual private networks (VPN)—popular protection in computer networks. The authors simulated quantum-based distribution of a shared secret in a typical VPN connection. Using a dedicated simulator, all individual steps of the quantum key distribution process were presented. Based on the created secret, a secure IPsec tunnel in a StrongSwan environment was established between AGH (Poland) and VSB (Czech Republic). It allows end-users to communicate at very high security levels.

In order to carry out their duty to serve and protect, law enforcement agencies (LEAs) must deploy new tools and applications to keep up with the pace of evolving technologies. However, police information and communication technology (ICT) systems have stringent security requirements that may delay the deployment of these new applications, since necessary security measures must be implemented first. This paper presents an integrated security architecture for LEAs that is able to provide common security services to novel and legacy ICT applications, while fulfilling the high security requirements of police forces. By reusing the security services provided by this architecture, new systems do not have to implement custom security mechanisms themselves, and can be easily integrated into existing police ICT infrastructures. The proposed LEA security architecture features state-of-the-art technologies, such as encrypted communications at network and application levels, or multi-factor authentication based on certificates stored in smart cards.

Abstract Traditional intrusion detection systems, managed by organizations themselves, have already evolved towards cloud architectures. While benefitting from all the advantages of the cloud computing paradigm, they are also suffering from one of its main drawbacks—privacy issues. As intrusion detection system security policies expose critical information regarding the organization such as vulnerabilities, sharing this information with cloud service providers raises serious privacy concerns. The following paper proposes and presents three novel solutions as a first step towards preserving the privacy of cloud‐based intrusion detection system security policies. All the solutions utilize hybrid cloud architecture, as this is a leading trend in the cloud‐based intrusion detection systems market, and share the concept of performing the most computationally expensive operations, which are pattern‐matching operations, in the public cloud. By taking the final decision regarding network packets in the private cloud on customer premises, the desired level of privacy is provided. Experimental results, received as an output from the performed simulations, confirm that all the presented solutions are efficient enough for the deployment of cloud‐based intrusion detection systems. Copyright © 2015 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.

This paper describes a new concept of security measurement in quantum cryptography (QC). The most popular quantum key distribution protocol BB84 and the key distillation process are briefly introduced first. Next, a new concept of entropy of security in QC is proposed, and a unique measure of security is defined. Using this quantitative approach to security, it is possible to manage security and personalize services based on QC. Two different security levels are defined: the basic security level and the advanced security level. This differentiation of security enables us to choose the appropriate security level for specific end-users' requirements and needs. The last section presents the results of simulation experiments which verified the proposed solution.