QShield-ZTN: A quantum-resilient, standards-compliant secure orchestration model for autonomous 6G zero-touch networks
- 1Department of Computer Science College of Computer, Qassim University, Buraydah, Saudi Arabia
Abstract
The evolution towards 6G networks demands unprecedented levels of automation, security, and quantum resilience to address the complex challenges of autonomous zero-touch networking. Current orchestration frameworks lack comprehensive quantum-resistant security mechanisms and fail to provide adaptive trust management suitable for dynamic 6G environments. This paper presents QShield-ZTN, a novel quantum-resilient, standards-compliant secure orchestration model designed specifically for autonomous 6G zero-touch networks. The proposed framework integrates hybrid post-quantum cryptographic algorithms, dynamic zero-trust policy enforcement, and an AI-driven multi-agent orchestration engine to ensure robust security in quantum-threat environments. Extensive experimental evaluations conducted using four heterogeneous datasets (NSL-KDD + , CICIDS2017 + , QShield-Synthetic, and Quantum-Dataset) demonstrate significant performance gains over ten state-of-the-art frameworks. QShield-ZTN achieves a 47.3% improvement in quantum resistance, 52.1% enhancement in autonomous decision-making accuracy, and 34.8% latency reduction, while maintaining high detection accuracy (97.3%) and energy efficiency (3.2 × 10^(−9) J/bit). These improvements are statistically validated using one-way ANOVA and paired t-tests (p < 0.01), ensuring the reliability and reproducibility of results. The proposed framework successfully mitigates diverse classical and quantum-enhanced attacks, maintains seamless interoperability with emerging 6G architectures, and provides standards-compliant guidelines for practical deployment.
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BibTeX
@article{alamro2026qshieldztn,
title = {{QShield-ZTN: A quantum-resilient, standards-compliant secure orchestration model for autonomous 6G zero-touch networks}},
author = {Sulaiman Alamro},
journal = {PLOS One},
year = {2026},
month = sep,
doi = {10.1371/journal.pone.0357590},
url = {https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0357590},
note = {CC BY 4.0},
}
RIS
TY - JOUR
TI - QShield-ZTN: A quantum-resilient, standards-compliant secure orchestration model for autonomous 6G zero-touch networks
AU - Sulaiman Alamro
PY - 2026
DA - 2026/09/15
JO - PLOS One
DO - 10.1371/journal.pone.0357590
UR - https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0357590
AB - The evolution towards 6G networks demands unprecedented levels of automation, security, and quantum resilience to address the complex challenges of autonomous zero-touch networking. Current orchestration frameworks lack comprehensive quantum-resistant security mechanisms and fail to provide adaptive trust management suitable for dynamic 6G environments. This paper presents QShield-ZTN, a novel quantum-resilient, standards-compliant secure orchestration model designed specifically for autonomous 6G zero-touch networks. The proposed framework integrates hybrid post-quantum cryptographic algorithms, dynamic zero-trust policy enforcement, and an AI-driven multi-agent orchestration engine to ensure robust security in quantum-threat environments. Extensive experimental evaluations conducted using four heterogeneous datasets (NSL-KDD + , CICIDS2017 + , QShield-Synthetic, and Quantum-Dataset) demonstrate significant performance gains over ten state-of-the-art frameworks. QShield-ZTN achieves a 47.3% improvement in quantum resistance, 52.1% enhancement in autonomous decision-making accuracy, and 34.8% latency reduction, while maintaining high detection accuracy (97.3%) and energy efficiency (3.2 × 10^(−9) J/bit). These improvements are statistically validated using one-way ANOVA and paired t-tests (p < 0.01), ensuring the reliability and reproducibility of results. The proposed framework successfully mitigates diverse classical and quantum-enhanced attacks, maintains seamless interoperability with emerging 6G architectures, and provides standards-compliant guidelines for practical deployment.
SN - 1932-6203
ER -