Land, Security, and Digital Transformation

Dear Colleagues,

The rapid advancement of digital technologies is transforming how we understand, manage, and secure land. These shifts are not just altering land administration systems but also impacting land tenure security, land markets, urban planning, and broader national and global security concerns. Digitalisation presents both opportunities and risks—creating new ways to enhance transparency and efficiency, while also exposing land data and systems to cybersecurity threats.

This Special Issue of Land aims to explore the intersections of land, security, and digital transformation, focusing on how digital technologies can secure land, improve land governance, and address emerging security challenges. We invite contributions that examine how digitalisation is reshaping land tenure systems, land value, land use planning, and the role of entrepreneurship in driving innovation in the land sector. We also seek to understand how digital tools create new vulnerabilities, from cyberattacks to data breaches, and propose solutions for securing land-related data.

Themes of Interest:

We welcome submissions on the following topics:

1. Innovations in securing land administration systems

• The role of digital technologies in strengthening land tenure, use, value systems, improving land registration, and enhancing security, including the role of digital cadastre systems.
• Innovations in digital land data management (e.g., blockchain, cloud services, GenAI) and tools for fraud and cyber-attack response in land valuation, land use planning, land development, property markets, real estate systems.

2. Cybercrime in land management and implications for national security

• Vulnerabilities in land management systems and risks to cadastral data.
• Developing cybersecurity frameworks to protect land-related services and information.
• The role of land information in national security and implications of digital tools in land administration
• Cybersecurity risks to national land-related data and strategies for protection.

3. Entrepreneurship opportunities in land, security, and digital transformation

• The role of the private sector in providing innovative solutions for land tenure security, digital land registration, and land governance.
• The growing influence of entrepreneurship in addressing security challenges in the land sector and opportunities for new business models in land administration.

4. Cooperation in the land sector digital transformation

• Comparative studies on digital transformation in land administration across countries.
• The role of local, regional and international cooperation in securing land rights and managing land data.

We look forward to receiving your contributions.

Prof. Dr. Rohan Bennett
Dr. Kirsikka Riekkinen
Prof. Dr. Trias Aditya
Dr. Daniel Paez
Prof. Dr. Jerome Donovan
Prof. Dr. Jaap Zevenbergen
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 100 words) can be sent to the Editorial Office for announcement on this website.

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. Land 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 2600 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.

• land administration
• land management
• cadastre
• land registration
• entrepreneurship
• cybersecurity