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Beyond the Hype: A Comparative Case Study of the Impact of Artificial Intelligence and Machine Learning on Cybersecurity
De Blasi, Stefano ; Kilroy, Walt (advisor) ; Kaczmarski, Marcin (referee) ; Špelda, Petr (referee)
Artificial intelligence (AI) and machine learning (ML) are largely touted as the silver bullet for the shortcomings of cybersecurity. Driven by the latest achievements of machine learning in fields such as finance, healthcare, and commerce, security researchers and marketing strategists have ubiquitously employed AI and ML as buzzwords to rise the competitiveness of their products. This study aims at verifying the substance of such claims by assessing the extent of the impact of AI and ML products in the cybersecurity practice. To provide a reliable and valid assessment of this phenomenon, the researcher developed an original framework based on the comparison of three security disciplines: cyber threat intelligence, endpoint protection, and incident response. Each discipline is further analysed in terms of the improvements brought by artificial intelligence and machine learning products to the speed, accuracy, and innovation of their security operations. These results indicate that the impact of AI and ML products in cybersecurity is limited to environments characterised by vast amounts of healthy datasets and a partially limited range of options. On the other hand, the cyberspace is extremely variable and volatile and, thus, makes artificial intelligence and machine learning products severely...
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Big Data and governing climate change: opportunities and challenges
Boháčová, Zuzana ; Střítecký, Vít (advisor) ; Špelda, Petr (referee)
Climate change is one of the most significant global challenges that need to be managed; however, the current governance of climate change is not bearing the desired results. This thesis thus examines the opportunities Big Data-based tools offer for more efficient climate change governance. It provides an overview of the current state of play regarding climate governance and the way climate change is entering the realm of security. The study then introduces the concept of Big Data and, through two case studies, offers specific examples of Big Data applications in the context of climate change. It identifies several categories of Big Climate Data applications i) monitoring behaviour, perceptions and social attitudes, ii) monitoring markets and supply chains, iii) smart buildings, energy and smart cities, and iv) carbon monitoring and monitoring of natural conditions and changes. The thesis also highlights the main critiques and barriers these applications face, which include i) the lack of theoretical and methodological framework, ii) the issues of opacity, accountability, lack of transparency, iii) missing efficient governance system to employ the technology, iv) the complexity of climate and climate data, v) the environmental consequences of AI. It concludes that the trend of public- private...
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How can Factors Underlying Human Preferences Lead to Methods of Formal Characterizations towards Developing Safe Artificial General Intelligence?
Al-Nusair, Rana Ghalib ; Špelda, Petr (advisor) ; Butler, Eamonn (referee) ; Biagini, Erika (referee)
This research aims to investigate the Artificial Intelligence (AI) value alignment problem, which refers to the challenge in developing a safe and reliable AI that can achieve our goals and adhere to our values as we intend it to do. A misaligned AI, especially one which transcends all domains of cognitive abilities and has acquired vast computational powers, will be nearly impossible to manage and it will threaten our security. Research addressing this problem is now focused on understanding how to develop AI that can reliably infer our values from our preferences. Thus, preferences are the primary conceptual unit of analysis to the AI value alignment problem. This paper investigates our preferences and seeks to shed light on the issue of obtaining a formal truth that is fundamentally constitutive of our preferences, for the aim of using said formal truth to create a value aligned AI. To do this, this paper gathers data from economics, biological evolution, and neurocognitive studies to bridge the current gaps on the conceptual problem of preferences. The paper concludes with presenting a new kind of security dilemma which stems from the notion of combining a general theoretical framework that fully captures our preferences with the crucial elementof uncertainty inAI, effectively showcasing how...
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Interstate Cooperation in Cyber Strategies of the United States and China Post-2010: A Comparative Study
Kolodii, Roman ; Kaczmarski, Marcin (advisor) ; Špelda, Petr (referee) ; Fitzgerald, James (referee)
INTERSTATE COOPERATION IN CYBER STRATEGIES OF THE UNITED STATES AND CHINA POST-2010: A COMPARATIVE STUDY July 2020 Glasgow Student Number: 2402268 Dublin City Student Number: 18114229 Charles Student Number: 67474092 ROMAN KOLODII Presented in partial fulfilment of the requirements for the Degree of International Master in Security, Intelligence and Strategic Studies Word Count: 21 990 words Supervisor: Dr Marcin Kaczmarski Date of Submission: July 30, 2020 2 ABSTRACT Academic, political and media discourses tend to focus on cyber warfare and cyberespionage as two key themes in cybersecurity. While recognizing their importance, this study explores the alternative, yet understudied topic of cyber-cooperation, drawing on the case of the two mightiest cyber powers-- the United States and China. More specifically, I ask: what is the role of interstate cooperation in cyber strategies of the US and China and how does it relate to their broader grand strategies in conventional domains of land, air and sea? Drawing on strategic theory, I compare American and Chinese approaches and argue that both countries use cyber-cooperation as a tool to enhance their cyber-capacity, conduct deterrence/reassurance in relations with foreign governments, and shape the rules of the game in cyberspace. However, the application of...
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Artificial Intelligence as the upcoming Revolution in Military Affairs. The Cases of the United States and China through the lens of Strategic Culture
Macagno, Vittorio ; Kučera, Tomáš (advisor) ; Špelda, Petr (referee)
Artificial intelligence is nowadays a key element in many people's everyday life. Since its beginning, this technology has grown leaps and bounds, drastically revolutionizing everything it has touched throughout its developing process. Arguably, every aspect of society has more or less been impacted by artificial intelligence. Military affairs do not appear to be immune to this, with many examples of this technology's implementation in this field appearing more and more. However, it appears likely that the effects experienced so far by countries' military affairs are still quite limited, with the technological potential of artificial intelligence bound to drastically change military affairs altogether. So much so that it can be even argued that artificial intelligence has the potential to completely revolutionize them. For this reason, one may argue that this technology could be the upcoming Revolution in Military Affairs. This thesis will look into this specific idea, aiming to prove that the world is witnessing the coming of a new Revolution in Military Affairs, based on artificial intelligence. To verify this idea, the methodology this work will make use of consists of taking all of the three levels of war one by one, to then analyze the revolutionary potential that AI has in transforming each...
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Permissibility of Machine Learning in the EU: Driving Concepts Surrounding Robust Artificial Intelligence
La Fontaine, Marina ; Špelda, Petr (advisor) ; Střítecký, Vít (referee)
LA FONTAINE, MARINA. Permissibility of Machine Learning in the EU: Driving Concepts Surrounding Robust Artificial Intelligence. 61 p. Master Thesis. Charles University, Faculty of Social Sciences, Institute of Political Science: International Security Studies. Supervisor: Petr Špelda, Ph.D. Abstract The European Commission's recent proposal, "Laying Down Harmonised Rules on Artificial Intelligence (Artificial Intelligence Act) And Amending Certain Union Legislative Acts" follows a focal shift towards the integration of Artificial Intelligence and Machine Learning within European society and economy. While Europe has been a leader in producing legislation encompassing artificial intelligence (AI) and machine learning (ML) technologies, many critics have called for more vigorous legislation to support the efforts and goals of permissibility within the European Union. The new AI Act will be the first legislation written by the European Commission specifically directed at AI, with a goal of addressing both the risks and benefits through a human-centric approach to the technology. This thesis project assumes that there is an imminent necessity for the international security studies community to further recognize the role of such unprecedented technology within the social realities being formed. The outputs of...
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Predicting and Preventing Terrorism with Artificial Intelligence and Machine Learning: Implications for Security in Israel
Tunysová, Andrea ; Špelda, Petr (advisor) ; Střítecký, Vít (referee)
The thesis examines the use of Artificial Intelligence and Machine Learning for predicting and preventing terrorism and the resulting security risks. At the conceptual level, the thesis examines the approach of predicting threats with a focus on predictive policing and presents risks associated with the use of predictive machine learning systems, which are then discussed within the context of counterterrorism. The paper aims to answer the question to which extent we can rely on machine learning systems used to predict and prevent terrorism and what are the implications of their use for security in Israel. The thesis points out that although the predictive tools seem to be faster and more precise than human analysts, they cannot be trusted to a full extent. If the results of these systems are used to employ strict measures such as the restriction of a suspect's liberty, it may lead to the violation of human rights. Therefore, in the case of counterterrorism in Israel, which is sometimes presented as the only democracy in the Middle East, it is necessary to bear in mind the risks associated with the limits of predictive machine learning systems together with the up-to-date practice of Israeli security agencies and Israeli historical-social context, indicating that it would be very difficult, if not...
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Security Risks for Critical Infrastructure in the Water Management Sector
Fošumpaurová, Anna ; Špelda, Petr (advisor) ; Střítecký, Vít (referee)
The thesis examines the security concerns connected with the critical infrastructures in the water management sector, specifically hydraulic structures comprising the drinking water supply system. The thesis focuses on systemic risk and reliability assessment as a component of contemporary principles and security practices comprising the critical infrastructure protection (CIP) framework. The foremost objective is to explore to which extent Czech domestic procedures peruse the international expertise when assessing systemic risks stemming from the dependencies and interaction of water supply chain components. Investigating the present-state risk assessment relates strongly to the policy development at the European Union level. For that reason, the thesis commits particular attention to the Council Directive 2008/114/EC and Directive (EU) 2020/2184 and their impacts on the management and operation of critical infrastructures in the water supply sector. The thesis also studies the state- of-the-art reliability assessment methods for water distribution networks. The acquired knowledge is utilised to estimate the reliability of a study distribution network using stochastic simulation and survey selected network robustness-improving solutions. The thesis identifies the critical elements of a water...
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Denying Scientific Facts as a New Form of Revisionism
Matesová, Julie ; Špelda, Petr (advisor) ; Karásek, Tomáš (referee)
Modern society has been plagued by revisionism since the 19th century. It has permeated historical milestones of the 20th century and has recently found a new footing thanks to social media. One of its facets is science denial, once a harbinger of things to come, it now presents new security challenges. This thesis makes an argument that further research is needed into the effect of science denial and its roles within the socio-political landscape. Not only to better understand and prepare for its imminent entry into mainstream discourse but to develop an effective tool to counter it. The Flat Earth movement represents one of the revisionist groups that have recently garnered a wide audience, mainly thanks to creating a well-oiled machine spurring a convincing mix of science denial and anti-establishment conspiracy theories. While social media has bowed to legislative pressure to police content, the denialists' hydra-like efforts remain predominantly unchecked. Unobstructed, Flat Earthers maintain a vice-like grip on establishing their alternative reality with their own future goals. The modern Flat Earth movement is thus examined by Hansson's unifying framework for the qualification and characterization of science denial movements both epistemologically and from a sociological perspective,...
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Next Generation Mobility Ecosystem: New Security Challenges Within Cyberspace
Balaš, Jan ; Střítecký, Vít (advisor) ; Špelda, Petr (referee)
This paper aims to introduce the topic of cybersecurity in automotive as another domain within the connected world. However, it does not go into technical details. It is rather a guide for the wider audience, and for those who would like to build on this topic in the future and need something to start with. For this reason, it looks for both the similarities and specifics with other domains. By finding common characteristics within the connected world, the reader is then able to classify the topic of cybersecurity in automotive. The main goal, however, is to find the specifics. After the introduction and explanation of the general terms, parameters and phenomena specific for automotive are then highlighted. The main parameters, on which the similarities and specifics are shown, are data problematics and cooperation between public and private actors. As a measure of success of this paper will be the ability of the reader, after reading the whole paper, to describe what are the current challenges in automotive cybersecurity and understand its importance of securing it in the future.
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