Cyber Security for Cyber–Physical Systems in Critical Infrastructures: Bibliometrics Analysis and Future Directions

Abstract

Cyber–physical systems (CPSs) are being increasingly connected to the physical world, making them attractive targets for cyber-attacks. The consequences of CPS cyber threats are even more drastic in critical infrastructures (CIs). This issue has triggered a surge in academic publications in this field within the past decade only. Recognizing the necessity of a comprehensive analysis of academic documents published on this topic, this article intends to conduct a bibliometric analysis of CPSs cyber security in CIs. Gathering a total of 1649 documents from the Scopus and Web of Science databases, a performance analysis is first carried out through a set of performance criteria. Then, a scientific mapping is performed based on keyword co-occurrence to visualize the knowledge area for further inference. As a result, seven thematic clusters were discovered and discussed in detail. Furthermore, an agenda for future research is identified based on the results of the bibliometric analysis, providing scope to advance the knowledge area. The outcomes of this article may be used by researchers and cyber security practitioners to have an illuminated and structured view of all the research conducted on CPSs cyber security in CIs and identify paths for further investigations on the topic.