Toward Risk-driven Cybersecurity Management for Virtual Networks

In recent years, virtualization paradigms have significantly increased the complexity of network infrastructures, making systematic risk assessment a central pillar for modern cybersecurity management. However, existing methodologies are largely static, do not adequately incorporate risk assessment, and fail to account for the strategic nature of modern adversaries. In this context, my doctoral research aims to advance network security by integrating risk assessment into two complementary fields: threat modeling and network security configuration. The primary advancement in threat modeling lies in integrating complex dynamic interactions between attackers and defenders through game-theoretic strategies to quantify risk in adversarial scenarios. Meanwhile, in network security configuration, the goal is to natively integrate these risk metrics into automated logic to optimize the deployment and reconfiguration of security functions. In this paper, I present the research questions and methodological directions that will guide my PhD activity in developing these integrated, risk-driven solution