Objectives - XTRUST-6G

XTRUST-6G Objectives

The XTRUST-6G project aims to deliver next-generation cybersecurity tools and services for 6G communications, founded on zero-trust (ZT) security principles. The project’s key objectives, their means of achievement, expected outcomes, and key performance indicators (KPIs) are outlined below.

Objective 1

Develop an advanced zero-trust security architecture to enhance resilience and mitigate cyber threats

A holistic ZT framework will be designed based on the "never trust, always verify" principle, ensuring resilience, privacy, and dependability across all physical and virtual assets in the 6G ecosystem. The ZT access control mechanism will dynamically adjust access rights using context-aware, risk-based policies informed by cyber-threat intelligence and continuous security posture insights. A key focus will be O-RAN, implementing adaptive micro-segmentation to isolate vulnerable virtualized functions and prevent lateral movement by attackers.

Objective 2

Develop proactive security tools for 5G+/6G using threat intelligence and foresight

The project will build dynamic threat and vulnerability repositories by gathering intelligence from internal and external sources. Automated asset discovery, risk-based threat modeling, and assessment will drive attack surface reduction (ASR) for critical 6G components, networks, and interfaces. AI-driven cyber-threat intelligence (CTI) methods will optimize security enforcement through ZT policy updates.

Objective 3

Enable AI-driven, zero-touch end-to-end (E2E) protection for massively connected 6G ecosystems

A collaborative intrusion detection network (CIDN) will be developed, leveraging federated learning (FL) to improve AI-based attack detection models. The project will also integrate graph-based threat modeling and game-theoretic response mechanisms to deliver real-time, adaptive defense against multi-stage cyberattacks.

Objective 4

Enhance visibility, real-time monitoring, and automated security orchestration in 5G+/6G

Automated asset discovery and threat modeling will enable real-time risk evaluation and dynamic security updates in O-RAN and core networks. A federated security information and event management (SIEM) platform will filter, classify, and prioritize security events from 6G infrastructure to improve attack detection and response efficiency.

Objective 5

Ensure trustworthy 5G+/6G operations through blockchain-based identity verification and compliance

Blockchain will be utilized as an independent root of trust (RoT) for secure lifecycle management, identity verification, and compliance auditing. It will support zero-trust security policies, ensuring data integrity, provenance tracking, and secure onboarding of applications in O-RAN and 6G environments.

Objective 6

IImplement quantum-safe security solutions and AI-driven physical layer protection

The project will integrate quantum key distribution (QKD) and post-quantum cryptography (PQC) to enable quantum-resistant security in 6G backhaul and access networks. AI-powered physical layer security mechanisms will detect and mitigate intelligent jamming attacks in real-time, ensuring uninterrupted and secure communications.

Objective 7

Strengthen 6G privacy and secure AI/ML-driven operations in a trusted, fair, and sustainable manner

AI techniques will provide privacy-preserving monitoring of virtualized network functions, applications, and cloud resources. Multi-access edge computing (MEC) will support trusted AI model training, ensuring robustness against adversarial attacks, fairness, explainability, and energy efficiency while maintaining strong data protection.