This paper presents an analysis of digital skills and network infrastructure in the European Union (EU) countries based on data from the Digital Economy and Society Index (DESI) 2024. We analyze the current state of digital skills and network infrastructure in EU countries, which in the DESI framework is called digital infrastructure, identifying key trends and differences between EU member states. The analysis shows significant differences in the relative share of citizens with a certain level of digital skills across countries, both among ordinary users of digital services and among information and communication technology professionals. The analysis of digital infrastructure includes fixed broadband coverage, mobile broadband, and edge networks, the latter of which are expected to become an important component of future digital infrastructure. The results highlight the importance of harmonizing the development of digital skills and digital infrastructure to support the EU’s digital transformation. Significant attention is paid to 5G technology. The feasibility of including a new additional indicator in DESI for next-generation 5G technology in the frequency range of 24.25–52.6 GHz is shown. The value of this indicator can be used to assess the readiness of the EU economy for technological leaps that place extremely high demands on reliability and data transmission delays. The results of the current state and the analysis of digital skills and infrastructure contribute to understanding the potential for the future development of the EU digital economy.

Packet routing in computer networks provides complex challenges in environments with distrustful routers due to security vulnerabilities or potential malicious behaviors. The literature offers solutions to the problem designed for different types of networks. This paper introduces a novel method to mitigate risks associated with distrustful routers by constructing secure and efficient routing paths in Open Shortest Path First (OSPF) networks. Networks in which routing is carried out based on OSPF protocols are currently the most widespread, hence ensuring the security of data transmission in such networks is urgently needed. In turn, distrustful routers can degrade the overall security and performance of the network, creating vulnerabilities that can be used for malicious purposes. The proposed method is based on the Dijkstra algorithm which is enhanced to identify and mitigate the risk connected with potential distrustful network nodes. Analysis of the proposed method shows its ability to build efficient routes exclusively through trusted routers if such paths exist. As a criterion for effectiveness, a metric such as the channel weight is used. The proposed method is validated using applications across networks of varying topologies and sizes, including large-scale networks. For networks containing post-distrustful routers to which there is no path without distrustful nodes, the proposed method is able to build the shortest paths that are marked as not secure but have a minimum number of distrustful nodes on their path. In scenarios with multiple compromised routers with different locations in the network, the proposed method significantly increases network resilience.

The paper proposes a mathematical approach to adaptive superframe reconfiguration in hybrid MAC protocols for wireless mobile robotic networks. The considered network uses a hybrid access mechanism that combines contention-based and contention-free transmission periods within a superframe. The proposed approach is based on a probabilistic model of transitions between three traffic-priority states: low, medium, and high. A system of differential equations is developed to describe the state transitions, and analytical expressions for the stationary probabilities of the traffic-priority states are obtained. The probability of the high-priority traffic state is proposed as a decision criterion for adaptive adjustment of the relative durations of superframe periods. The influence of transition intensities on the state probabilities is analyzed, including their individual and combined effects. Within the examined range, the proposed probabilistic criterion is more sensitive to changes in the selected transition intensities at their lower values and tends toward saturation as these intensities increase. The proposed mathematical model provides a theoretical basis for adaptive resource allocation and superframe configuration in wireless robotic networks with dynamically changing traffic conditions.