Advances in Developing a Decision Support System for Cyber Risk Management

This paper highlights the main accomplishments of the doctorate thesis on developing an innovative decision support system for cyber risk management in critical infrastructures. The research topic had increased attention and importance due to the increased number of incidents in critical infrastructure. The final results consisted of solutions on methods to effectively identify and manage cyber risks in critical infrastructures. A refined model has been developed that helps evaluate cybersecurity maturity in critical infrastructures. The model includes a knowledge base and is complemented by a formal intelligent metric system, and a software prototype with a user-friendly interface and easy-to-understand metrics for efficient identification, classification, and management of cybersecurity risks. The model’s theoretical significance lies in its ability to provide both external and self-assessment of cybersecurity maturity in critical infrastructures. The applicative value of the model is twofold as it allows also to evaluate the efficiency of the decision support system. The obtained results were discussed at national and international conferences and the model has been awarded the Bronze Medal at Cadet INOVA 2021 and Traian Vuia 2022 International Exhibition of Inventions and Innovations in Romania. In this paper, the main accomplishments will be detailed as well as proposals on future research directions in this area, given the latest developments in artificial intelligence and the threat landscape.