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1. Evaluating Resilience of Grid Load Predictions under Stealthy Adversarial Attacks

   https://doi.org/10.1109/RWS47064.2019.8971816  

   Zhou, Xingyu; Li, Yi; Barreto, Carlos A.; Li, Jiani; Volgyesi, Peter; Neema, Himanshu; Koutsoukos, Xenofon (November 2019, 2019 Resilience Week (RWS))

   Recent advances in machine learning enable wider applications of prediction models in cyber-physical systems. Smart grids are increasingly using distributed sensor settings for distributed sensor fusion and information processing. Load forecasting systems use these sensors to predict future loads to incorporate into dynamic pricing of power and grid maintenance. However, these inference predictors are highly complex and thus vulnerable to adversarial attacks. Moreover, the adversarial attacks are synthetic norm-bounded modifications to a limited number of sensors that can greatly affect the accuracy of the overall predictor. It can be much cheaper and effective to incorporate elements of security and resilience at the earliest stages of design. In this paper, we demonstrate how to analyze the security and resilience of learning-based prediction models in power distribution networks by utilizing a domain-specific deep-learning and testing framework. This framework is developed using DeepForge and enables rapid design and analysis of attack scenarios against distributed smart meters in a power distribution network. It runs the attack simulations in the cloud backend. In addition to the predictor model, we have integrated an anomaly detector to detect adversarial attacks targeting the predictor. We formulate the stealthy adversarial attacks as an optimization problem to maximize prediction loss while minimizing the required perturbations. Under the worst-case setting, where the attacker has full knowledge of both the predictor and the detector, an iterative attack method has been developed to solve for the adversarial perturbation. We demonstrate the framework capabilities using a GridLAB-D based power distribution network model and show how stealthy adversarial attacks can affect smart grid prediction systems even with a partial control of network. 

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2. Detecting Adversarial Examples Using Data Manifolds

   Jha, Susmit; Jang, Uyeong; Jha, Somesh; Jalaian, Brian (January 2018, MILCOM IEEE Military Communications Conference)

   Models produced by machine learning, particularly deep neural networks, are state-of-the-art for many machine learning tasks and demonstrate very high prediction accuracy. Unfortunately, these models are also very brittle and vulnerable to specially crafted adversarial examples. Recent results have shown that accuracy of these models can be reduced from close to hundred percent to below 5\% using adversarial examples. This brittleness of deep neural networks makes it challenging to deploy these learning models in security-critical areas where adversarial activity is expected, and cannot be ignored. A number of methods have been recently proposed to craft more effective and generalizable attacks on neural networks along with competing efforts to improve robustness of these learning models. But the current approaches to make machine learning techniques more resilient fall short of their goal. Further, the succession of new adversarial attacks against proposed methods to increase neural network robustness raises doubts about a foolproof approach to robustify machine learning models against all possible adversarial attacks. In this paper, we consider the problem of detecting adversarial examples. This would help identify when the learning models cannot be trusted without attempting to repair the models or make them robust to adversarial attacks. This goal of finding limitations of the learning model presents a more tractable approach to protecting against adversarial attacks. Our approach is based on identifying a low dimensional manifold in which the training samples lie, and then using the distance of a new observation from this manifold to identify whether this data point is adversarial or not. Our empirical study demonstrates that adversarial examples not only lie farther away from the data manifold, but this distance from manifold of the adversarial examples increases with the attack confidence. Thus, adversarial examples that are likely to result into incorrect prediction by the machine learning model is also easier to detect by our approach. This is a first step towards formulating a novel approach based on computational geometry that can identify the limiting boundaries of a machine learning model, and detect adversarial attacks. 

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3. Adversarial Evasion through Semantics-Preserving Reinforcement Learning in Graph-Based Malware Detection

   Zhang, Lan; Liu, Peng (December 2025, IntechOpen)

   The deployment of deep learning-based malware detection systems has transformed cybersecurity, offering sophisticated pattern recognition capabilities that surpass traditional signature-based approaches. However, these systems introduce new vulnerabilities requiring systematic investigation. This chapter examines adversarial attacks against graph neural network-based malware detection systems, focusing on semantics-preserving methodologies that evade detection while maintaining program functionality. We introduce a reinforcement learning (RL) framework that formulates the attack as a sequential decision making problem, optimizing the insertion of no-operation (NOP) instructions to manipulate graph structure without altering program behavior. Comparative analysis includes three baseline methods: random insertion, hill-climbing, and gradient-approximation attacks. Our experimental evaluation on real world malware datasets reveals significant differences in effectiveness, with the reinforcement learning approach achieving perfect evasion rates against both Graph Convolutional Network and Deep Graph Convolutional Neural Network architectures while requiring minimal program modifications. Our findings reveal three critical research gaps: transitioning from abstract Control Flow Graph representations to executable binary manipulation, developing universal vulnerability discovery across different architectures, and systematically translating adversarial insights into defensive enhancements. This work contributes to understanding adversarial vulnerabilities in graph-based security systems while establishing frameworks for evaluating machine learning-based malware detection robustness. 

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4. Physics-Informed Learning-based Attack Analytics for Electric Vehicle Charging Management Systems

   Perry, David; Mohammad, Haider; Kazmi, Kumail; Rahman, Mohammad Ashiqur; Shahriar, Hossain (July 2025, IEEE)

   This work introduces a novel physics-informed neural network (PINN)-based framework for modeling and optimizing false data injection (FDI) attacks on electric vehicle charging station (EVCS) networks, with a focus on centralized charging management system (CMS). By embedding the governing physical laws as constraints within the neural network’s loss function, the proposed framework enables scalable, real-time analysis of cyber-physical vulnerabilities. The PINN models EVCS dynamics under both normal and adversarial conditions while optimizing stealthy attack vectors that exploit voltage and current regulation. Evaluations on the IEEE 33-bus system demonstrate the framework’s capability to uncover critical vulnerabilities. These findings underscore the urgent need for enhanced resilience strategies in EVCS networks to mitigate emerging cyber threats targeting the power grid. Furthermore, the framework lays the groundwork for exploring a broader range of cyber-physical attack scenarios on EVCS networks, offering potential insights into their impact on power grid operations. It provides a flexible platform for studying the interplay between physical constraints and adversarial manipulations, enhancing our understanding of EVCS vulnerabilities. This approach opens avenues for future research into robust mitigation strategies and resilient design principles tailored to the evolving cybersecurity challenges in smart grid systems. 

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5. Adversarial-Aware Deep Learning System Based on a Secondary Classical Machine Learning Verification Approach

   https://doi.org/10.3390/s23146287  

   Alkhowaiter, Mohammed; Kholidy, Hisham; Alyami, Mnassar A.; Alghamdi, Abdulmajeed; Zou, Cliff (July 2023, Sensors)

   Deep learning models have been used in creating various effective image classification applications. However, they are vulnerable to adversarial attacks that seek to misguide the models into predicting incorrect classes. Our study of major adversarial attack models shows that they all specifically target and exploit the neural networking structures in their designs. This understanding led us to develop a hypothesis that most classical machine learning models, such as random forest (RF), are immune to adversarial attack models because they do not rely on neural network design at all. Our experimental study of classical machine learning models against popular adversarial attacks supports this hypothesis. Based on this hypothesis, we propose a new adversarial-aware deep learning system by using a classical machine learning model as the secondary verification system to complement the primary deep learning model in image classification. Although the secondary classical machine learning model has less accurate output, it is only used for verification purposes, which does not impact the output accuracy of the primary deep learning model, and, at the same time, can effectively detect an adversarial attack when a clear mismatch occurs. Our experiments based on the CIFAR-100 dataset show that our proposed approach outperforms current state-of-the-art adversarial defense systems. 

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