Development of security mechanisms for a multi-agent cyber-physical conveyor system using machine learning

Mestrado de dupla diplomação com a UTFPR - Universidade Tecnológica Federal do ParanáOne main foundation of the Industry 4.0 is the connectivity of devices and systems using Internet of Things technologies, where Cyber-physical systems (CPS) act as the backbone infrastructure based on distributed and decentralized structures. CPS requires the use of Artificial Intelligence (AI) techniques, such as Multi-Agent Systems (MAS), allowing the incorporation of intelligence into the CPS through autonomous, proactive and cooperative entities. The adoption of this new generation of systems in the industrial environment opens new doors for various attacks that can cause serious damage to industrial production systems. This work presents the development of security mechanisms for systems based on MAS, where these mechanisms are used in an experimental case study that consists of a multiagent cyber-physical conveyor system. For this purpose, simple security mechanisms were employed in the system, such as user authentication, signature and message encryption, as well as other more complex mechanisms, such as machine learning techniques that allows the agents to be more intelligent in relation to the exchange of messages protecting the system against attacks, through the classification of the messages as reliable or not, and also an intrusion detection system was carried out. Based on the obtained results, the efficient protection of the system was reached, mitigating the main attack vectors present in the system architecture.Uma das principais bases da Indústria 4.0 é a conectividade de dispositivos e sistemas utilizando as tecnologias da Internet das Coisas, onde os sistemas ciber-físicos atuam como a infraestrutura principal com base em estruturas distribuídas e descentralizadas. Os sistemas ciber-físicos requerem o uso de técnicas de Inteligência Artificial, como por exemplo, Sistemas Multi-Agentes, permitindo a incorporação de inteligência nos sistemas ciber-físicos através de entidades autônomas, proativas e cooperativas. A adoção dessa nova geração de sistemas no ambiente industrial abre novas portas para vários ataques que podem causar sérios danos aos sistemas de produção industrial. Este trabalho apresenta o desenvolvimento de mecanismos de segurança para sistemas baseados em sistemas multi-agentes, em que esses mecanismos são utilizados em um caso de estudo experimental que consiste em um sistema de transporte ciber-físico baseado em sistemas multi-agentes. Para isso, mecanismos simples de segurança foram empregados no sistema, como autenticação do usuário, assinatura e criptografia de mensagens, além de outros mecanismos mais complexos, como técnicas de aprendizagem de máquina, que permite que os agentes sejam mais inteligentes em relação à troca de mensagens, protegendo o sistema contra ataques, através da classificação das mensagens como confiáveis ou não, e também foi realizado um sistema de detecção de intrusões. Com base nos resultados obtidos, obteve-se uma proteção eficiente do sistema, mitigando os principais vetores de ataque presentes na arquitetura do sistema

Organic and conventional yerba mate (Ilex paraguariensis A. St. Hil) improves metabolic redox status of liver and serum in Wistar rats

Organic and conventional yerba mate (Ilex paraguariensis) is widely used in South America to prepare nonalcoholic drinks rich in polyphenols. These compounds are able to prevent the generation of reactive species, thus minimizing the incidence of several diseases. In this perspective, we hypothesized that yerba mate may have protective effects against pentylenetetrazol (PTZ)-induced oxidative damage in liver and serum of rats. Animals (n = 42) received distilled water (control) or yerba mate (organic or conventional) for fifteen days. Then, half of the rats of each group received 60 mg/kg PTZ intraperitoneally or saline solution. After 30 min the animals were euthanized and the liver and blood were collected. The results showed that organic and conventional yerba mate avoided PTZ-induced oxidative damage and nitric oxide production in the liver and serum of the rats. Moreover, both kinds of yerba mate prevented the decrease in enzymatic (superoxide dismutase and catalase) and non-enzymatic (sulfhydryl protein content) defenses in the liver and serum. In addition, histopathologic analysis of the liver showed that yerba mate reduced PTZ-induced cell damage. These findings indicate that yerba mate provides hepatoprotection and improves antioxidant status in the serum, which may contribute to the development of new therapeutic strategies using nutraceuticals drinks

Security experiences in IoT based applications for building and factory automation

Industry 4.0 and Industrial Internet of Things (IIoT) are promoting the connection of millions of devices, that once were seen as unconnectable, into a huge network, to be used in a large number of applications, from autonomous vehicles to industrial control systems, passing through building automation systems. These paradigm rely on the adoption of Cyber Physical Systems complemented with Internet of Things (IoT) technologies and artificial intelligence techniques. These type of systems are responsible for collecting, processing and exchanging a vast amount of data, and for that reason, it is imperative to assure data integrity and protection against malicious modifications and attacks to ensure a safe and reliable operation. Data thefts and cyber attacks in general represent a significant danger, however, cyber attacks on IoT systems can be specially critical due to their proximity with humans, enhancing the risk of physical damage. This paper highlights the importance of securing these systems, pursuing a safer operation, having in mind the amount of security vulnerabilities found in embedded devices. For this purpose, this article studies possible security threats and weakness in two case studies coming from different IoT domains, i.e. building automation and factory automation, while seeking for solutions to improve these systems’ security.info:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersio

An intrusion detection system dataset for a multi-agent cyber-physical conveyor system

Industry 4.0 is built upon the foundation of connecting devices and systems via Internet of Things (IoT) technologies, with Cyber-Physical Systems (CPS) serving as the backbone infrastructure. Although this approach brings numerous benefits like improved performance, responsiveness and reconfigurability, it also introduces security concerns, making devices and systems vulnerable to cyber attacks. There is a need for effective techniques to protect these systems, and the availability of datasets becomes essential to support the development of such techniques. This paper presents a dataset based on the collection of traffic information exchanged in a self-organizing conveyor system using the multi-agent systems (MAS) architecture and containing various intelligent conveyor modules. The dataset comprises data collected at the network and agent levels under normal system operation, denial of service (DoS) attacks, and malicious agent attacks. An intrusion detection system that integrates Fast Fourier Transform (FFT) and Machine Learning (ML) analysis is developed to demonstrate the utility of this dataset.The authors are grateful to the Foundation for Science and Technology (FCT, Portugal) for financial support through national funds FCT/MCTES (PIDDAC) to CeDRI (UIDB/05757/2020 and UIDP/05757/2020) and SusTEC (LA/P/0007/2021). The authors Gustavo Funchal and Vict´oria Melo thank the FCT for the PhD Grants 2022.13712.BD and 2022.13868.BD.info:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersio

Flavan-3-ol compounds prevent pentylenetetrazol-induced oxidative damage in rats without producing mutations and genotoxicity

Seizure disorder is a chronic condition in the brain that affects approximately 50 million people worldwide. Oxidative stress plays a crucial role in the pathophysiology of this disorder and can cause neuronal injury. Approximately one in three treated patients suffers from seizures regardless of pharmacological intervention, which results in oxidative damage. The present study aims to investigate the possible protective effect of antioxidant-rich Vitis labrusca extract on pentylenetetrazol-induced oxidative damage in Wistar rats. Possible behavioral alterations, genotoxic and mutagenic effects of the extract were also evaluated. The results showed that V. labrusca extract provides a significant protective effect against oxidative damage to lipids and proteins induced by pentylenetetrazol in the cerebral cortex, cerebellum, hippocampus and liver of rats. Also, the extract did not alter locomotor behavior. Moreover, it was non-genotoxic and non-mutagenic. Our results suggest the possibility of using V. labrusca extract as a therapeutic agent to minimize neuronal damage associated with seizures

The effect of consumption of purple grape juice in the gestational period on oxidative stress parameters in Wistar rat foetuses

This study aimed to evaluate the effects of purple grape juice consumption in pregnancy on oxidative stress parameters in Wistar rat fetuses. Twenty-four pregnant rats were divided into five groups: control group, indomethacin group (received a single dose of indomethacin in DG20), group grape juice DG14 (received an amount for 14 days/first and second gestational trim), group grape juice DG20 (received a dose throughout the gestational period), group grape juice two doses (received two doses, at morning and afternoon). On the 20th day of pregnancy (DG20), rats were anesthetized, and a cesarean section was performed to obtain the fetuses. A sample of liver, heart, and total brain of fetuses was collected for oxidative stress analyses. Values P<0.05 were considered significant. In fetuses’ heart, we observed that the grape juice two dose group decreased sulfhydryl and increased SOD. In the liver, the grape juice decreased TBARS and SOD. There was a decrease in carbonyl and sulfhydryl in the indomethacin and grape juice one dose groups in the brain. We conclude that indomethacin altered oxidative stress parameters only in the fetal brain, and grape juice was presented as an important modulator of antioxidant capacity when consumed in a dose