## 3 Proposed Approach: Quantum Key Distribution (QKD)
### Analysis and Verification of the Proposed Method
#### 3.3.2 Security Analysis: Resistance to Cyber Attacks
Mitigation of Man-in-the-Middle (MITM) Attacks: MITM attacks are neutralized through the quantum authentication mechanism within the QKD protocol. During simulations, adversarial nodes attempting to impersonate legitimate parties resulted in observable discrepancies in the key reconciliation phase. The algorithm employs classical authentication protocols (e.g., hash-based message authentication codes--HMACs) alongside quantum checks, achieving the 100% detection of simulated MITM attacks under various network topologies. To evaluate the algorithm's ability to mitigate Man-in-the-Middle (MITM) attacks, we designed an experimental setup simulating secure communication between a UAV and a ground station using the Quantum Key Distribution (QKD) protocol, alongside classical authentication mechanisms. The experiment was conducted in two scenarios: (1) secure communication without adversarial interference, and (2) an active MITM attack scenario where an adversary attempts to intercept, modify, and forward communication between the UAV and the ground station. In the normal scenario, data transmissions occurred over a secure channel with standard authentication protocols (e.g., hash-based message authentication codes, HMACs). The detection rate of malicious activities was recorded, focusing on the system's ability to identify any anomalies that could resemble MITM behavior, even in the absence of actual attacks. The detection rate remained consistently high, averaging around 99%, reflecting the system's baseline security monitoring sensitivity. For the MITM attack scenario, an adversarial node (simulated in the environment) attempted to impersonate either the UAV or the ground station by injecting falsified keys and data packets during the key exchange phase. The QKD protocol's inherent quantum authentication mechanisms, combined with classical cryptographic validation, were utilized to detect these attacks. Key discrepancies introduced by the adversary resulted in authentication failures during the reconciliation phase (Figure 3). Figure 3: Attack detection rate under normal and MITM attack conditions. The red dashed line represents the critical detection threshold (95%). The system successfully detects and mitigates MITM attacks, with detection rates close to 100%. The graph above depicts the detection rates across 100 transmission attempts under both scenarios. The red dotted line at 95% represents the critical detection threshold, below which the system's ability to detect attacks would be considered inadequate. In the normal scenario, the detection rate consistently hovered around 99%, indicating strong baseline security even without active attacks. During the simulated MITM attacks, the detection rate improved slightly, approaching near-perfect accuracy (close to 100%) due to the clear discrepancies introduced by the adversary. The system identified all MITM attempts with no false negatives, highlighting its robustness against such attacks (Table 4). The accompanying data table provides sample detection rates, showing that even under normal conditions, the system maintained high security, while the detection rates during active attacks exceeded expectations, often reaching 100%. 3. Prevention of Data Forgery: To safeguard against data forgery, the algorithm integrates cryptographic hash functions and digital signatures in combination with AES-128 encryption. Any modification of encrypted data results in failed integrity checks during decryption. In simulated forgery attacks, where attackers attempted to alter ciphertext, the system successfully detected all tampered data packets without false negatives. To assess the algorithm's ability to prevent data forgery, we designed an experiment simulating data transmissions between a UAV and a ground station. The system employed AES-128 encryption for data security, combined with cryptographic hash functions (SHA-256) to ensure data integrity.