From January 4th to 5th, the 8th Westlake International Forum on Cyber Security Research was successfully held at the Yuquan campus of Zhejiang University. This event was organized by the Zhejiang University Science and Technology Research Institute and the National Key Laboratory of Blockchain and Data Security, and co-organized by the School of Cyberspace Security, the College of Computer Science and Technology of Zhejiang University, and the Department of Computer Science at City University of Hong Kong. The conference invited academicians and renowned experts and scholars from home and abroad to deliver 41 thematic reports, delving into key technologies, typical cases, and application scenarios in cyberspace security, sharing the latest research findings, thereby promoting global industry-academia-research-application cooperation and exchanges, and advancing the high-quality development of China's cyberspace security. The forum included 1 main forum, 5 special forums, and 1 poster exhibition of top conference academic exchanges, with over 400 representatives from universities, research institutes, enterprises, institutions, and social organizations participating.
At the main forum, Chen Chun, an academician and director of the Information Department of Zhejiang University, Professor Chen Gang, vice president of Zhejiang University, and Ma Chenhua, deputy director of the Talent Work Office of Zhejiang University, delivered speeches. Academicians Wu Jiangxing, Zheng Zhiming, and Guan Xiaohong gave keynote speeches, with Professor Ren Kui, dean of the College of Computer Science and Technology at Zhejiang University and executive deputy director of the National Key Laboratory of Blockchain and Data Security, presiding over the meeting.
Academician Chen Chun pointed out that mastering information rights and discourse power in cyberspace has become a new strategic high ground for major countries' competition, and the introduction of laws such as the Cybersecurity Law, Data Security Law, Cryptography Law, and Personal Information Protection Law provides protection for the innovative development of the cyberspace security discipline. Facing the nation's major strategic needs, Zhejiang University conducts cutting-edge basic research and applied technology innovation in cyberspace security, expecting to strengthen cooperation and exchanges with all sectors of society to jointly promote technological innovation and progress in cyberspace security.
Vice President Chen Gang thanked the academicians and experts for their attendance on behalf of the university. He introduced the development process of the cyberspace security discipline at Zhejiang University, especially its outstanding achievements in national-level scientific research platforms, faculty teams, talent cultivation, and research results. The Xihu Forum has opened a new chapter of cyberspace security exchange and cooperation in 2025, and the university is willing to work hand in hand with all sectors of society to jointly promote the high-quality development of cyberspace security research.
Deputy Director Ma Chenhua indicated that Zhejiang University has always placed importance on the introduction and cultivation of outstanding young talents through programs like the Master Gathering Plan, High-Level Talent Cultivation Support Plan, and Excellent Young Talent Hundred Talents Program. The school treats cyberspace security as one of its advantageous and distinctive disciplines, continuously promoting the construction of high-level faculty teams to support national strategic needs.
In the keynote speech session, Academician Wu Jiangxing, in his report titled On the Strategic Shift of the Main Battlefield of Cybersecurity, pointed out that the intertwining of multiple security threats constitutes new and complex cybersecurity issues in cyberspace. The main battlefield of cybersecurity should shift from add-on security on the user side to design-side security at the manufacturing stage. He proposed a new paradigm beyond cybersecurity to build cyber resilience and advocated integrating cybersecurity into the design and manufacturing of technologies and products to form inherent security. Additionally, he discussed the challenges faced by current cyber resilience engineering and strategies for addressing them.
Academician Zheng Zhiming, in his report on Privacy Computing, outlined the development background of privacy computing, identifying non-standard game theory as its core bottleneck. His team combined methods from complex systems and privacy computing to propose a post-Nash privacy computing theory aimed at non-standard game scenarios and developed internationally leading privacy computing hardware and software platforms. Furthermore, he introduced key issues involving the integration of standard and non-standard game theory across five major areas: foundational mathematical theories supporting new types of privacy computing, efficient privacy computing methods guided by rule-based game theory, among others.
Academician Guan Xiaohong, in his report on Cyber-Physical Converged Energy Systems and Green Computing Power Data Centers, highlighted that two transformations and one convergence represent the trend of information technology development. He emphasized the necessity of greening energy and power systems, suggesting that hydrogen-enabled optimization of zero-carbon smart energy systems could achieve local energy balance and construct distributed zero-carbon energy systems. Moreover, hydrogen-enabled cyber-physical converged energy systems will profoundly alter the composition of energy sources, providing zero-carbon energy for the digital economy. He also mentioned that cybersecurity control chips and systems can ensure the cybersecurity of distributed energy systems, ensuring overall security.
During the two-day conference, five special forums and a poster exhibition of top conference academic exchanges were held concurrently. These forums covered topics ranging from trusted data spaces, joint academic forums between mainland and Hong Kong, multi-modal security, ACM SIGSAC China academic exchanges, to Qizhen Youth Forums - AI forums, showcasing the latest research achievements and innovations in the field of cyberspace security. A total of 52 posters from leading universities were exhibited, and awards for Best Poster and Best Poster Nomination were selected, with a lively atmosphere of academic exchange.
The Cyberspace Security Xihu Forum, established by ZJU NetSec, has been successfully held for eight years, fully uniting consensus within the academic, scientific, and industrial communities. Through sharing experiences and exchanging viewpoints, it enhances academic exchanges and cooperation, accelerates the transformation of scientific and technological achievements, and promotes the cultivation of cybersecurity talents.