Swansea University has initiated a significant research project aimed at enhancing cyber resilience across various sectors. The £2 million project, named Engineering for Cyber Resilience: Through-Life Modelling and Analysis (ENCYRCLE), is supported by £1 million in funding from the EPSRC Prosperity Partnership, part of UK Research and Innovation.
The focus of this three-year initiative is to strengthen cybersecurity within transport, manufacturing, and energy infrastructure as technological advancements driven by AI and hyper-connectivity continue to evolve rapidly. ENCYRCLE's objective is to create innovative solutions that will enhance the security of connected and automated technologies throughout their lifecycle.
Led by Professor Siraj Shaikh from Swansea University's Systems Security Group, along with Professor Markus Roggenbach and Dr Trang Doan, the project aims to achieve several key goals. These include developing real-world methods for measuring cyber resilience, improving engineering approaches for secure system design, strengthening operational security, creating a solid framework for system analysis, and applying scalable security measures to protect future technologies.
The outcomes of this research are expected to bolster public trust in connected systems, prevent economic losses due to cyberattacks, and support industries dependent on secure operations. Additionally, enhanced cybersecurity is anticipated to contribute to sustainability by minimizing system disruptions.
A notable development from the ENCYRCLE project will be the establishment of a dedicated research lab equipped with specialized tools developed through the initiative. This facility will serve as a hub for researchers and industry experts working together to advance innovation in cyber resilience.
Professor Siraj Shaikh emphasized the importance of this endeavor: “This is an exciting initiative that is going to fundamentally change how cyber resilience is engineering across cyber-physical and critical systems in a number of sectors. The partnership between Swansea and Thales would serve to put this part of Wales at the global forefront of the science and engineering of cyber resilience.”