In 2023, human society is accelerating into the digital age, with the relationship between emerging technologies and cybersecurity becoming increasingly close, bringing more asymmetry and complexity to global cyber attacks and defenses. Artificial intelligence, blockchain, quantum information technology, and the sixth generation of mobile communication (6G), as frontiers and key core technologies in the field of information technology, have significant practical significance for the development and application of network security at the national and social levels, and the relevant trends are worth paying attention to.

I. The Creative Empowerment of Artificial Intelligence in Network Attack and Defense Has Initially Shown Its Effects

The development of technology continues to affect the pattern of network security, and artificial intelligence has always been at the forefront of this change. In 2023, with the large-scale acceleration of the development and deployment of artificial intelligence, the chatbot ChatGPT has triggered a global craze, and similar large language model products such as Claude and PaLM have also been launched and upgraded one after another, promoting the generative artificial intelligence technology behind them to appear in the spotlight. This technology has made breakthrough progress in performing natural language tasks, which can generate content similar to the training data but with a certain degree of novelty, and perform creative network security defense or malicious use tasks comparable to human thinking, which has had a transformative impact on the development and application of artificial intelligence in the field of network security.

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(1) Artificial Intelligence Upgrades from Network Defense Tools to Collaborators, with Innovative Products Launched Successively

In recent years, artificial intelligence has continuously provided strong technical support for network security work as an automated tool providing support in the background of network defense, in aspects such as network threat detection and prevention, vulnerability management and assessment, advanced malware detection, and automated response. In 2023, generative artificial intelligence, as the most cutting-edge branch of artificial intelligence development, can cooperate with humans at the conceptual stage and become a highly creative network defense collaborator. Many technology companies, such as Microsoft, Google, Recorded Future, SentinelOne in the United States, BlackBerry in Canada, and China's Deepin Trust, 360, Anheng Information, and Venustech, have all combined large models based on generative artificial intelligence technology with their own network threat perception, detection, and handling capabilities to develop a series of network defense products. These products can not only engage in real-time dialogue with network security analysts through human language to assist them in identifying malicious activities, associating and sorting attack information, but also prioritize the handling of important security events and recommend the best action plans, and even automatically block common security attacks, repair incorrect security configurations or code defects, etc. Their emergence has greatly improved the decision-making level, response speed, and handling effect of network defense work.

(2) Generative Artificial Intelligence "Reduces Costs and Increases Efficiency" for Network Attacks, and Malicious Use is Becoming More and More Severe

As a subset of machine learning, generative artificial intelligence has greatly reduced the threshold for obtaining professional knowledge and has become a new type of productivity that improves work efficiency, quality, and creativity. However, this technology has also attracted the covetousness of network malicious actors. According to observations in the network security industry, in 2023, the discussion volume on the dark web about using generative artificial intelligence to carry out network malicious activities has surged. Some network malicious actors have openly claimed that they have easily reproduced the complex malware studied in academic papers with the help of generative artificial intelligence technology.

According to the analysis of Trend Micro in the United States and Mandiant, a subsidiary of Google, in the network security industry, in 2023, generative artificial intelligence has not yet been widely used in cybercrime activities. Some generative artificial intelligence tools that claim to be able to develop malware and evade review are mostly packaged from ChatGPT and are "showy but not practical". Among them, the generative artificial intelligence hacking tool WormGPT, which was once considered original in the industry, was discontinued for sale only two months after its release in June 2023 due to "media over-exposure leading to negative publicity". Network malicious actors mainly use such technical tools to improve malicious code or integrate them into existing hacker software to assist in creating phishing emails and drafting spam emails. They attempt to bypass the security mechanisms of mature commercial products such as ChatGPT and Google Bard, to provide information support for illegal activities, and focus on finding breakthroughs for writing malicious code and creating phishing websites using generative artificial intelligence technology.II. The Deep Application of Blockchain Technology Enhances the Dual-Edge Effect of Cybersecurity

In 2023, the scalability, speed, and security of blockchain technology have been continuously improving, deeply integrating with economic and social development. According to statistics from Chainalysis, a U.S. blockchain analysis company, the value of assets on the blockchain has exceeded 1 trillion U.S. dollars in 2023. With the continuous maturation of blockchain technology, the new generation of the Internet, Web 3.0, based on blockchain as the underlying infrastructure, is approaching, and the chemical reaction between blockchain and cybersecurity is becoming more intense.

(1) Blockchain becomes a trusted infrastructure, creating a cybersecurity framework for the future Internet

In 2023, the depth and breadth of blockchain integration with various social fields have accelerated, evolving from a single-point application platform to a trusted infrastructure, fully unleashing the potential of cybersecurity. For example, the construction of national-level blockchain infrastructure projects such as China's "Spark Chain Network" and the European Union's Blockchain Service Infrastructure (EBSI) is continuously advancing, providing momentum for large-scale applications in the fields of government services, social security, and social governance, ensuring the secure and trustworthy circulation of data elements; the global payment giant Visa has successfully piloted the expansion of its stablecoin settlement services to the Solana blockchain, effectively enhancing network resilience and reducing the risk of network attacks, making large-scale online transactions faster and more stable; the Swiss tourism technology company Chain4Travel has launched the world's first tourism blockchain platform, Camino, with encryption and tamper-proof functions to ensure the security of sensitive data, and the consensus mechanism endorses trust interactions such as user identity verification and secure transactions, attracting more than 150 large tourism organizations worldwide to register and use.

The widespread adoption and in-depth application of blockchain technology have amplified its cybersecurity attributes. According to a report released by Grand View Research, a U.S. market research company, it is expected that the value of blockchain in the cybersecurity market will reach 5.5 billion U.S. dollars by 2025, with a compound annual growth rate of over 35% during the forecast period. In the future, as countries around the world accelerate the construction of the Web 3.0 ecosystem, blockchain, as a new generation of network infrastructure, will become a new underlying framework to ensure the cybersecurity of important industries.

(2) The misuse of blockchain technology enhances the complexity of network attacks, and cryptocurrencies continue to be high-value targets for attacks

In 2023, the ease of use of blockchain has been continuously enhanced, becoming a new tool to assist in malicious network activities. The characteristics of decentralization, anonymity, public transparency, and data immutability have greatly enhanced the concealment and tenacity of network attacks, bringing new challenges to network defense work. For example, in October 2023, researchers at Guardio, an Israeli browser security company, discovered that malicious actors on the network developed a new technology for spreading malicious code based on blockchain, called EtherHiding, which is to freely host malicious code in the smart chain of the world's largest cryptocurrency exchange, Binance, to spread and run these malicious codes in an anonymous and automated smart contract manner, and update the code at any time through the update chain to carry out different types of network attacks, making related activities difficult to detect and intercept; in December 2023, the Russian cybersecurity company Kaspersky released a report stating that it had discovered a rare multifunctional malicious software, NKAbuse, that uses blockchain technology, adopting a decentralized and anonymous data transmission method, leading to the expansion of its infected zombie network because the central controller is difficult to identify.

At the same time, the market value and trading heat of cryptocurrencies based on blockchain have risen, and they continue to be regarded as high-value targets by network attackers, becoming one of the most serious cybersecurity issues in the blockchain field. According to data from the cryptocurrency exchange Binance and its cryptocurrency asset price tracking website, Coin Market Cap, at the end of 2023, there were more than 23,000 active cryptocurrencies worldwide, with a market value of 1.65 trillion U.S. dollars, twice that of the same period last year. China's blockchain security company, Slow Mist Technology, found that in 2023, there were 464 publicly disclosed blockchain attacks worldwide, an increase of 48.7% compared to last year. These incidents are almost all related to cryptocurrencies, resulting in losses of more than 2.4 billion U.S. dollars. H-X Technologies, a cybersecurity company based in Romania, also observed that in 2023, phishing attacks continued to pose a serious threat to the blockchain community, with cryptocurrency losses caused by false identity fraud nearly 50% higher than in 2022.

III. Quantum Information Technology Accelerates the Arrival of a New Era of CybersecurityQuantum information technology is the fusion of quantum physics and information technology. Its application in the field of cyber attacks mainly refers to the use of quantum computing to crack classical cryptographic algorithms. In the field of network defense, its applications mainly include post-quantum cryptography, quantum key distribution, and other quantum communication technologies to ensure information security. In 2023, the research and development of quantum information technology has continuously achieved new breakthroughs, and the progress of practical applications is uneven but stable and orderly, promoting network security into a new era.

(1) The practical application of quantum computing is imminent, becoming a real threat, and the first performance in the field of network defense is worth paying attention to.

In 2023, the development of quantum computing has entered the stage of "realizing practical quantum simulators" and is accelerating, continuously shortening the time needed to enter the ultimate stage of "realizing universal quantum computers." Among the many players, the performance of IBM in the United States is particularly eye-catching. In June 2023, it published research results on the top global academic journal "Nature" about solving the application problem of "unreliable quantum computing results," announcing that quantum computers are expected to be put into practical application within two years; in December 2023, it launched two new types of quantum chips, "Condor" with 1121 quantum bits and "Heron" with a historically low error rate, as well as the world's first modular quantum computer "Quantum System Two," and plans to widely promote and use it among researchers in the United States, Canada, Japan, Germany, and other countries in 2024. The release of quantum computing energy will quickly turn the potential security risks to classical passwords into huge real threats. It is worth noting that the application of quantum computing in the field of network defense has just begun to show its head. In June 2023, the world's largest integrated quantum computing company Quantinuum released the Quantum Origin platform, which generates encryption keys with randomness through quantum computing, becoming the world's first commercial software to use quantum computing to strengthen key security. At the same time, the use of quantum computing's powerful data processing capabilities to effectively detect complex network threats has also attracted great attention in the network security industry.

(2) The exploration of post-quantum cryptography applications is steadily advancing, and the maturity of quantum key distribution is continuously improving.

In 2023, post-quantum cryptography has entered the stage of application exploration, providing a safe foundation for future resistance to quantum computing attacks. At the government level, the United States is at the forefront of the world in promoting the standardization, research and development, and migration of post-quantum cryptographic algorithms. While announcing three draft standards for post-quantum cryptography algorithms, it has issued the "National Cybersecurity Strategy," the "Quantum Readiness: Migration to Post-Quantum Cryptography" guide, and the "Migration to Post-Quantum Cryptography" project, requiring and specifically guiding public and private institutions to gradually transition relevant networks and systems to the post-quantum cryptographic environment. At the industrial level, countries such as the United States and France are actively exploring the application of post-quantum cryptography. For example, the French technology company Thales has integrated post-quantum cryptography into 5G SIM cards and communication software Cryptosmart to protect call data and user identity information security, becoming the world's first actual use case of post-quantum cryptography; the French information technology company Eviden has released the first digital identity solution driven by post-quantum cryptography; Google in the United States has deployed a hybrid post-quantum key protocol in the Chrome browser and launched the first post-quantum hardware key; the American post-quantum network security company QuSecure has taken the lead in using post-quantum cryptography to protect satellite communication data security in the Starlink.

At present, the use of quantum key distribution technology to securely transmit highly sensitive data is the most mature commercial landing form in the field of quantum communication. Our country has continued to make new progress in the field of quantum key distribution and maintains a leading position in the world, contributing Chinese strength to the application of quantum secure communication. In terms of scientific research, Chinese scientists have for the first time achieved real-time quantum key distribution at a rate of 100 megabits per second in the international community, increasing the previous key code rate record by an order of magnitude, and achieving point-to-point long-distance quantum key distribution of 1002 kilometers in optical fibers, setting a world record for the distance of fiber-optic relay-free quantum key distribution. In terms of application, based on the networking operation of low-orbit quantum key satellites such as "Mozi" and "Jinan No.1," our country is focusing on developing medium and high-orbit quantum satellites to build a wide-area quantum communication network combining high-orbit and low-orbit satellites; the construction of the quantum secure communication backbone network in the Yangtze River Delta region has achieved remarkable results, with a total line length of about 2860 kilometers, taking the lead in the world to achieve a star-ground integrated quantum backbone network protection at the level of thousands of kilometers; China Telecom invested 3 billion yuan to establish China Telecom Quantum Information Technology Group Co., Ltd., and launched a series of new products such as quantum secure cloud and quantum secret letter based on the integration technology of quantum key distribution and instant communication, injecting new vitality into the industrialization process of our country's quantum communication.

IV. 6G security construction has become a global consensus and exploration direction

As an important development direction of the next generation of mobile communication networks, 6G will usher in a new era of information technology that connects all things intelligently and digitally, achieving full-scene coverage of air, land, sea, and space, and the powerful functional applications pose higher requirements for network security. At present, in the early stage of technical pre-research, planning to establish a security system and architecture has become one of the common concerns of all parties in the 6G research work.

(1) The global competition for 6G development is intensifying, and security construction has become a focus of attention for all partiesIn 2023, governments of various countries around the world have accelerated the research and development and industrialization process of 6G. Among them, the Chinese government clearly pointed out at the national industrial and information technology work conference that the pilot of 6G technology in China will be accelerated in 2023, and 6G pre-research will be strengthened in 2024; Japan has increased the budget by 66.2 billion yen to strengthen 6G wireless network research; South Korea proposed the development vision of building a "next-generation network model country" in the "Network 2030 Strategy", and plans to launch 6G network services two years before the main countries in the world enter the commercialization of 6G from 2028 to 2030; India released the "6G Vision" document, which has formulated a roadmap for the development of India in the field of 6G communication services before 2030.

In 2023, as the main force in promoting the research and development of 6G technology and the improvement of standards, relevant technology alliances and the industry have continuously promoted 6G security from the vision of demand to the technical architecture. For example, in June 2023, the International Telecommunication Union included "security/privacy/resilience" in the 6G capability index system in the 6G program document - "Framework and Overall Objective Recommendations for IMT towards 2030 and Future Development"; In April 2023, the US government gathered opinions from all walks of life, and issued a report on the design principles of 6G in the name of the National Security Council, which regarded security and privacy protection as one of the important considerations; China's IMT-2030 (6G) Promotion Group included trusted security in the technical solutions such as "6G Network Architecture Outlook" and "6G Wireless System Design Principles and Typical Features"; China's industry has released a series of research results such as "6G Immune-like Active Safety Protection Mechanism", "6G Network Inherent Safety Architecture and Technology White Paper", "Blockchain-empowered 6G Network Trust System White Paper", "6G Security Vision White Paper", "China Unicom 6G Network System Architecture White Paper", and "6G: Minimalist and Versatile, Building a Mobile World", contributing Chinese wisdom to the construction of 6G security.

(2) The prospects for cross-domain integration of 6G with other new technologies are broad, and they will empower the safe development of the future.

In 2023, the European Union, led by top-level design, and China, from the perspective of industry, academia, and research, have continuously explored the improvement of 6G inherent security issues around the cross-domain integration of 6G and emerging technologies. In January 2023, Germany released the "Cybersecurity Research Agenda - Measures in the Process of Changing Times", emphasizing the strengthening of research cooperation in quantum communication and 6G at the national level. Under the funding of the "Next Generation EU" plan, EU countries have carried out the "Open Intelligent Framework for 6G Networks and Intelligent Services" (6G-OASIS) project research from 2022 to 2024, exploring the use of blockchain, deep learning, and artificial intelligence technologies to improve the security of 6G network systems. In February 2023, Chinese scientists proposed for the first time a distributed multi-level spectrum blockchain (Spectrum Chain) based on blockchain technology, providing a new solution for achieving refined spectrum management and security supervision of 6G. At the same time, China Mobile, a Chinese communication operator, started from the overall network architecture of 6G, promoted security perception and active defense driven by "secure data + artificial intelligence", built a zero-trust security system, and achieved research work on the inherent security of 6G. It can be foreseen that as the integration of 6G with other emerging technologies continues to deepen, it will provide more new paradigms for achieving 6G security.

V. Conclusion

At present, emerging technologies represented by artificial intelligence, blockchain, quantum information technology, and 6G are continuously expanding their dual impact on network security and presenting new changes, becoming the "game-changers" in the future network space. The emerging technologies themselves are neither good nor evil, and whether they are used for good or evil depends on how humans utilize them. Continuously paying attention to and researching the opportunities and challenges that emerging technologies bring to network security will provide references for network security workers to use emerging technologies to enhance network defense capabilities and effectively respond to security threats brought about by the misuse of technology.

(This article was published in the first issue of the "China Information Security" magazine in 2024)