Innovative AI Solutions for Cybersecurity in Critical Infrastructures

Dear Colleagues,

Critical infrastructures, such as energy grids, transportation systems, healthcare facilities, and water networks, form the backbone of modern society. The increasing interconnectivity and reliance on digital systems expose these infrastructures to sophisticated cyber threats, ranging from data breaches to operational disruptions. Traditional cybersecurity approaches often struggle to cope with the scale, speed, and complexity of these attacks. In this context, Artificial Intelligence (AI) has emerged as a transformative tool, offering advanced capabilities for threat detection, predictive analytics, and automated response.

Leveraging machine learning, deep learning, and AI-driven decision-making can enhance the resilience and security of critical infrastructures, enabling proactive protection against evolving cyber threats.

This Special Issue explores innovative AI solutions to address these pressing cybersecurity challenges.

Critical infrastructures face increasingly sophisticated cyber threats that challenge traditional security mechanisms, which often rely on static rules and reactive responses.

The goal of this Special Issue is to advance research on the application of Artificial Intelligence (AI) to proactively enhance cybersecurity in these environments. Specifically, it seeks to address the need for adaptive, data-driven solutions capable of detecting anomalies, predicting emerging attack patterns, and automating defensive actions in real time. By integrating machine learning, deep learning, and AI-based predictive analytics, researchers can develop robust frameworks for threat intelligence, risk assessment, and incident mitigation tailored to complex cyber–physical systems.

This research Topic encourages contributions that present novel AI algorithms, validation on real-world infrastructure datasets, and practical implementations that demonstrate measurable improvements in system resilience and security. Ultimately, the aim is to provide actionable insights and methodologies that enable critical infrastructure operators to anticipate, prevent, and respond effectively to evolving cyber threats.

This Special Issue focuses on the application of Artificial Intelligence (AI) to address cybersecurity challenges in critical infrastructures, including power grids, transportation systems, healthcare facilities, and industrial networks, among many others. Authors are invited to submit research exploring innovative AI-based solutions to enhance threat detection, operational resilience, and automated response in these environments. Topics of interest include, but are not limited to, the following:

• Machine learning models for intrusion detection and prevention.
• Deep learning techniques for anomaly detection in industrial networks.
• Explainable AI (XAI) for real-time cybersecurity decision-making.
• AI-driven threat intelligence and predictive analytics.
• Integration of AI in SCADA systems, ICSs, and industrial control networks.
• AI applications for IoT and edge computing security in critical environments.
• Automated incident response and recovery strategies using AI.
• Risk assessment and resilience frameworks enhanced by AI.
• AI-assisted detection of ransomware, phishing, and advanced persistent threats (APTs).
• AI-based network traffic analysis and behavior modeling.
• Secure data sharing and privacy-preserving AI methods.
• Blockchain and trust-based mechanisms integrated with AI for secure operations.
• AI-enabled monitoring of physical processes and cyber–physical systems.
• Hybrid approaches combining AI with traditional cybersecurity measures.

Contributions may include original research articles and comprehensive reviews that present novel approaches and practical implementations of AI for improving cybersecurity in critical infrastructure systems.

Prof. Dr. Jairo A. Gutierrez
Prof. Dr. Yezid Donoso
Guest Editors

Manuscript Submission Information

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