Cybersecurity and Resilience in IoT and Distributed Networks (Including AI‑Enabled Approaches)

A special issue of Future Internet (ISSN 1999-5903). This special issue belongs to the section "Cybersecurity".

Deadline for manuscript submissions: 31 March 2027 | Viewed by 244

Special Issue Editors


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Guest Editor
Department of Computer Science, University of Lancashire, Lancashire PR1 2HE, UK
Interests: IoT security; privacy; blockchain-based cybersecurity solutions; wireless sensor networks; cryptography; risk analysis; digital forensics; cyber–physical energy systems

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Guest Editor
Department of Computer Science, Faculty of Arts and Sciences, Edge Hill University, Ormskirk L39 4QP, UK
Interests: cyber security; IoT security; ethical hacking; network security; cyber attack and defence; artificial intelligence; block chain; cryptography and cryptanalysis
Special Issues, Collections and Topics in MDPI journals

E-Mail Website
Guest Editor
Department of Computer Science, Faculty of Arts and Science, Edge Hill University, Ormskirk L39 4QP, Lancashire, UK
Interests: image-based malware detection; IoT security; adversarial ML attacks; distributed systems; digital forensics; secure machine learning; randomized defences for adversarial robustness, post-quantum cryptography, machine and deep learning

Special Issue Information

Dear Colleagues,

The accelerating evolution of modern digital ecosystems including IoT networks, cyber physical systems, cloud and edge infrastructures, AI‑enabled services and next-generation communication technologies has significantly expanded the global cyber-threat landscape. While IoT deployments continue to grow across smart homes, healthcare, industrial automation, transportation and critical infrastructure, broader cybersecurity domains face increasingly sophisticated challenges such as advanced malware, large scale data breaches, AI‑driven attacks, ransomware campaigns and emerging quantum‑era risks.

As the future internet becomes more autonomous, distributed, interconnected and data‑intensive, the demand for scalable, intelligent and resilient security mechanisms has never been greater. Traditional defences are insufficient in the face of dynamic adversarial techniques, expanding attack surfaces and heterogeneous environments that combine resource‑constrained devices with complex cloud and network infrastructures.

This Special Issue invites high quality research contributions addressing both IoT‑specific security challenges and advanced cybersecurity topics more broadly. We seek innovative models, architectures, algorithms, frameworks, evaluations and surveys that advance the state of the art in protecting IoT ecosystems, next‑generation networks, digital infrastructures and intelligent cyber-defence systems. Submissions should focus on security, privacy, trust, resilience and emerging threats across diverse connected environments.

Topics of Interest

  • AI‑Driven Cybersecurity and Autonomous Threat Detection;
  • IoT and Cyber–Physical System Security;
  • Cloud, Edge and Fog Security Architectures;
  • Advanced Malware Analysis and Ransomware Defence;
  • Blockchain and Decentralized Security Mechanisms;
  • IoT‑Focused Lightweight and Post‑Quantum Cryptographic Solutions;
  • IoT‑Integrated Security for 5G/6G and Next‑Generation Networks;
  • Digital Forensics, Incident Response and Threat Intelligence;
  • Privacy‑Preserving Security Models and Data Protection;
  • Security Challenges in Autonomous and Virtualized Systems.

Dr. Waqar Asif
Dr. Muhammad Waqar
Dr. Husnain Rafiq
Guest Editors

Manuscript Submission Information

Manuscripts should be submitted online at www.mdpi.com by registering and logging in to this website. Once you are registered, click here to go to the submission form. Manuscripts can be submitted until the deadline. All submissions that pass pre-check are peer-reviewed. Accepted papers will be published continuously in the journal (as soon as accepted) and will be listed together on the special issue website. Research articles, review articles as well as short communications are invited. For planned papers, a title and short abstract (about 250 words) can be sent to the Editorial Office for assessment.

Submitted manuscripts should not have been published previously, nor be under consideration for publication elsewhere (except conference proceedings papers). All manuscripts are thoroughly refereed through a single-blind peer-review process. A guide for authors and other relevant information for submission of manuscripts is available on the Instructions for Authors page. Future Internet is an international peer-reviewed open access monthly journal published by MDPI.

Please visit the Instructions for Authors page before submitting a manuscript. The Article Processing Charge (APC) for publication in this open access journal is 1800 CHF (Swiss Francs). Submitted papers should be well formatted and use good English. Authors may use MDPI's English editing service prior to publication or during author revisions.

Keywords

  • cybersecurity
  • IoT security
  • cyber–physical systems
  • AI‑driven threat detection
  • malware analysis
  • blockchain security
  • lightweight and post‑quantum cryptography
  • network security
  • digital forensics
  • privacy‑preserving technologies

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Published Papers

This special issue is now open for submission.
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