Akintaro, M., Pare, T., & Dissanayaka, A. M.(2019) Darknet and blackmarket activities against the cybersecurity: a survey. North Dakota State University, In the Midwest and Computing Symposium. (MICS) https://www.researchgate.net/publication/334126403

In this article, authors discuss the types of cyber crime that are present with regards to dark web. The author further focuses on the impact of the criminal activities done on dark web, and finally, concludes by giving advice on how to monitor dark web. In an attempt to elaborate on dark web, the authors also look at the options of cyber crime on the surface web. The authors use a wide range of previously published peer-reviewed journal papers and credible online sources in order to highlight some of the key criminal activities on the dark web and their implications in various aspects. In this paper, the authors describe how the wrongdoers shroud their identity using Tor encryption tool in order that they can engage in malicious activities. Some of the virtual crime involving dark web are drug trafficking, selling exotic animals, money laundering or even terrorist activities. The main limitation of this article is that it proposes a number of monitoring activities but does not provide technical solutions which will fully solves the problem, so further research is required in this regard. All in all, this paper does highlight some of the key theoretical concepts of dark web with regards to cyber security which will be useful for my research project.

El-hajj, M., Fadlallah, A., Chamoun, M., & Serhrouchni, A. (2019). A survey of internet of things (iot) authentication schemes. Sensors, 19(5), 1-43. doi: https://doi.org/10.3390/s19051141

In this article, the authors put more emphasize on authentication schemes with keeping in mind the extent to which damage can be done from unauthenticated device access in IOT system. So, in order to give a near complete and up to date view of the authentication field, this paper summarises and proposes a wide range of authentication protocols in the literature review. This paper consists of survey from previously published research papers where it compares and contrast a number of traditional authentication schemes to illustrate their advantages and disadvantages. The authors outline that since IOT is deployed in critical application, any breach of security could have life threatening impact. So, having a proper authentication scheme in order that these unauthenticated access are prevented, is necessary.  This paper identifies a number of security issues concerning IOT and analyses them with a view to developing a feasible authentication scheme for modern IOT networks. Finally, the author suggest that since most of the IOT devices are resource constrained , the traditional authentication scheme would not work for IOT nodes, so this calls for a light weight authentication scheme for IOT networks. Because the information provided in this paper is up-to-date and from a reliable source, it will be useful supplementary information for my research project.

Ford, V., & Siraj, A. (2014, October). Applications of machine learning in cyber security. In Proceedings of the 27th International Conference on Computer Applications in Industry and Engineering.

In this article, the authors, academics at Tennesse Tech University, elaborates on the application of machine learning algorithm in different aspects of cyber security. The author’s focuses that some of the key issues regarding cyber security can be best solved using machine learning. This paper focuses on wide-ranging techniques which uses machine learning algorithm, namely Phishing detection, network intrusion detection, authentication with keystroke dynamics, and many others which are discussed in the paper. The paper also outlines some of the key issues with the machine learning algorithm itself. And finally, it concludes by analysing future works regarding machine learning in cyber security. The journal paper use data from several surveys consisted of different sample population for the various application of machine learning in cyber security. The authors concludes that although machine learning is an effective tool in mitigating the malicious attacks directed towards cyber system, it has some vulnerabilities which can make it subject to exploitation, So these vulnerabilities in machine learning algorithm requires some further research in order to provide a viable solution to the cyber security problems. Overall, I find this article very well written, and it covers a wide range of application of machine learning algorithm which will prove to be essential reference source for my research project.

J. M. Alghazo, Z. Kazmi and G. Latif,(2017). “Cyber security analysis of internet banking in emerging countries: User and bank perspectives,” 2017 4th IEEE International Conference on Engineering Technologies and Applied Sciences (ICETAS), Salmabad, 2017, pp. 1-6, doi: 10.1109/ICETAS.2017.8277910.

The authors, academics at Prince Mohammad Bin Fahd University and University of Malaysia, examine the security measures the banks uses when it comes to online banking in emerging countries. The researchers focus on the fact that there is a gap between banks expectation and customer’s awareness regarding cyber security in online banking. In order to eliminate the gaps between banks and customers, the authors analyses cyber security in detail with regards to online banking. Based on the findings of the analysis, the authors propose a model to reduce the cyber security risk in online banking and bridge the gap between the customers and banks. The research methodology consists of a set of questionnaire divided into two parts:  Users literacy on online banking and user’s awareness of the cyber security threats with regards to online banking. The only limitation with this article is that it is aimed at customers only from 3 emerging countries, namely Saudi Arabia, India and Pakistan, which does not represent most of the customers of the world. However, this paper does highlight security issues in online banking which is relevant to my thesis because my research involves investigating the issues relating to cyber security.

Kalakuntla, R., Vanamala, A. B., & Kolipyaka, R. R. (2019). Cyber security. Proceedings of the HOLISTICA–Journal of Business and Public Administration, 10(2), 115-128. doi: https://doi.org/10.2478/hjbpa-2019-0020

In this paper, Kalakuntala, Vanamala and Kolipyaka (2019), define what are cyber security and cyber terrorism, and attempt to ascertain that there is association between them. Furthermore, the authors elaborate on the different trends in cyber security and why they are in use. Some of the trends changing the face of cyber security include web servers, mobile networks, encryption, and many more. The authors present two case studies to explain the detrimental effect cyber terrorism can have on associations. Some of the consequences of cyber terrorism pointed out by the authors are annihilation of information through data intrusion, loss of life, financial loss to businesses, and loss of consumer trust etc. The authors examine the number of components of cyber terrorism and the underlying motivational factors behind them with a view to proposing some viable solutions to the problem. This article is relevant to the thesis because it is well written, descriptive and well researched. In my personal opinion, this paper is set to help generate scientific interest in improving cyber security in an advanced manner.

Kok, S., Abdullah, A., Jhanjhi, N., & Supramaniam, M. (2019). Ransomware, threat and detection techniques: A review. International Journal of Computer Science and Network Security, 19(2),136.

The article defines ransomware and the threats ransomware poses on cyber security. Then they describe the techniques used to detect ransomware with the aim of providing a better understanding of the topic. The authors put forward that there are two types of key ransomware attacks, namely locky and crypto. The authors further states that ransomware attacks can have serious financial implications on the organizations. The authors identifies that there was no proposed model to protect against ransomwares, hence, this paper will mainly focus on providing a solution model using both static and dynamic analysis. With a view to proposing a model, the authors reviewed the existing detection techniques as well as the pros and cons of each technique. The authors gained data from scientific journals and conference papers which are published from the year 2015 onwards in order that the data used in the paper are still relevant. The article concludes by suggesting that the use of hybrid algorithm instead of single algorithm to detect ransomwares. The main limitation of the paper is that it only analysed the detection techniques but does not give any technical solution to the problem. However, this paper gives a useful analysis of ransomware which I can adapt into my paper.

Mathew, A. R.(2019)  Cyber security through blockchain technology. Proceedings of the IJEAT, 9(1),3821-3824. DOI: 10.35940/ijeat.A9836.109119

In this Journal paper author, Alex. R. Mathew(2019), outlines the applications of Blockchain technology as a means of cyber security in different industries relating to Information Technology. This paper tries to break down how Blockchain technology can offer security to three problematic areas of IT, namely, Internet of things, network and data storage. The researcher uses qualitative methodology with a view to measuring the applicability of Blockchain technology in providing cyber security solutions to the said problems. The method used by author includes survey done by Taylor et al. in 2019 on 30 recent research studies on the use of Blockchain technology in cyber security. The research finding shows that Blockchain technology proves to be more viable for IOT, followed by network and data storage security, respectively. The limitation of Blockchain technology is that it uses different blocks instead of a single block to provide security solution.  The article is useful for the research topic because it is a helpful source for getting an overview of the Blockchain technology which is relevant to my thesis.

Maurya, S. K., & Bharati, N. P. (2016). Cyber security; issue and challenges in e-commerce. Proceedings of the Indian Journal of Research, 5(1), 191-193.

In this article, the authors, academics at Nehru Gram Bharti University, review the security issues with respect to e-commerce and the purpose of security in e-commerce. This paper exhibits a thorough examination of the major impediments in ecommerce security, which are identity theft and cyber fraud. The authors also outlines that it is important to recognize the security issues when dealing with e-commerce in order that security objectives can be achieved. In addition, they also put forward that it is equally essential to find out the loopholes that the cyber criminal can exploit, and have the right security measure in place with the intention of eliminating the threats with regards to e-commerce security. With a view to reducing cyber threats in e-commerce, the authors review the ways used by cyber criminals to initiate attack on the security system in online banking. In the end provides security direction for e-commerce businesses in order that they gain customer confidence and recommends on adopting an enterprise wide target customer security model. The only limitation I find in this paper is that more research is required regarding the extent to which the cyber criminal can cause harm using each method. However, I find this article useful because it provides a better understanding of the security issues concerning e-commerce, and help addressing the application of cyber security in e-commerce.

Mahjabin, T., Xiao, Y., Sun, G., & Jiang, W. (2017). A survey of distributed denial-of-service attack,prevention, and mitigation techniques. Proceedings of the International Journal of Distributed Sensor Networks, 13(12),doi: https://doi.org/10.1177/1550147717741463

In this article, the authors present a thorough investigation of denial-of-service attacks. In addition, this paper systematically reviews a wide range of DDoS attacks in order to provide prevention, and mitigation techniques to counter this issue.  With a view to going in depth of the issues regarding DDoS attacks this paper looks through the different phases involved in a DDoS attack, and the three different phases involved in a DDoS attack are, Phase I-recruiting attack armies, Phase II-propagation, and phase III-attack. This paper also includes some current state of art research on DDoS attacks as well as the challenges associated with those researches. In this paper, the authors pointed out five different reasons as the motivating factor behind DDoS attacks; these are economic, revenge, ideological belief, intellectual challenge and cyber warfare. The authors also perform literature survey on DDoS attcks on different systems such as smart grids, smart homes, IOT and cloud etc. The authors conclude by outlining some of the key issues in researching DDoS attack, which indicates further research is required in this regard.  So, all in all, this paper present an easy to understand guide for DDos attacks through its systematic analysis and explanation. The article is useful for my research topic as it uses up-to-date and reliable sources, and provides some detailed background of most of the key aspects of DDoS attacks.

Sonawane, M. S.(2018)  A Survey of botnet and botnet detection methods. Proceedings of the International Journal of Engineering Research & Technology, 7(12), 57-61.

This article examines the meaning of Botnet and discusses the techniques with which Botnet can be detected. The term bot refers to a software program that runs on a host computer in order that the botmaster can control the host from a remote place, and a large network of bots that can be controlled by the botmaster, is called botnet. The author identifies that botnet poses a serious threat to cyber security as it provides the breeding ground for a wide range of cyber-crimes such as spamming, phishing, DDoS attacks etc. and many others. There are two ways to detect botnet, namely Honeypots and Traffic Monitoring, and in the survey of this paper, the author uses the second one. In addition, the authors provide a brief comparison of the four different classes of botnet detection techniques which are signature based, anomaly-based, DNS-based, and mining-based. In its limitation, the author states that only few studies have been done on botnet, and it is still in its infancy. However, this paper does provide some very reasonable theoretical concept regarding botnet and detection techniques which will be very useful information for my research.

Truong, T. C., Diep, Q. B., & Zelinka, I. (2020). Artificial intelligence in the cyber domain: offense and defense. Symmetry, 12(3), 410.doi: https://doi.org/10.3390/sym12030410

In this article the authors identifies that the application of Artificial Intelligence can have both positive and negative effect in the cyberspace. The authors argue that while Artificial Intelligence can be used to protect the cyberspace, the malicious actors can use it to attack as well. The authors further outlines that the previous research papers regarding the use of Artificial Intelligence has either focused on machine learning or deep learning, but little has been done on both together, and the aspect of the nefarious use of artificial intelligence has often been ignored. Using databases like Web of Science, Scopus, IEEE Xplore, and ACM digital library as well as search engine such as Google Scholar, the authors try to explore the trends relating to Artificial Intelligence, and provide brief overview of the link between Artificial Intelligence and Cyber Security. In this paper the authors discuss some adversarial attacks using Artificial Intelligence, and how to counter this using two different subset of Artificial Intelligence, namely Machine Learning and Deep Learning. So, basically, the main ideas expressed in this paper are, the application of Artificial Intelligence, and the impact of Artificial Intelligence on cyber domain: positive and negative. The only limitation of this paper is that it discusses the adversarial attacks using Artificial Intelligence but does not offer solutions on how to counter these issues. Nevertheless, this article is useful to understand the different aspects of Artificial Intelligence and its application in various fields of cyber security which I would need to adapt into my research.

Westerlund, M. (2019). The Emergence of deepfake technology: a review. Technology Innovation Management Review, 9(11).39-52,doi: http://doi.org/10.22215/timreview/1282

In this article, Mike Westerlund(2019) defines the term deepfake technology and how it is produced. He also focuses on the advantages of deepfake technology and what threat they pose on cyber security. The author uses real life examples in his scholarly research of the topic. The author concluded with four feasible mechanisms to combat the problem. The author empirically analysed data from 84 news articles collected from 11 news websites with a view to gaining an in depth insight of deepfake technology. The research findings suggest that there are four major users in his paper, namely deepfake hobbyist, political players, fraudsters, and television companies. The author proposes stringent policies to combat deep fake technology. The main limitation of the article is that the resource material was limited to only online articles, thus it is believed that further research is required in order to develop a deeper understanding of the content, so this will not form the basis of my research. However, it will be useful supplementary source for my research paper.