Emerging Trends in Cybersecurity: Machine Learning as a Game-Changer in Next-Generation Cybersecurity Applications

Background The relentless surge and growing frequency of cyber threats have indicated that traditional cybersecurity systems are ineffective. The need for more vigorous measures to safeguard information systems has never been more critical. This dilemma underscores the urgent need for advanced, adaptive cybersecurity solutions to detect and proactively counter these sophisticated threats. The study aims to investigate the game-changing role of machine learning in advancing cybersecurity through an in-depth scientometrics and bibliometric analysis. The study aims to map the current research landscape, identify significant contributions, discover emerging trends, and underscore key advancements in machine learning-based cybersecurity practices. Methods The Scopus database was used to conduct bibliometric and scientometric analyses of the machine learning and cybersecurity literature published from 2010 to 2024. Advanced tools were employed for scientometric analysis to evaluate scholarly output, authors’ impact, and the co-occurrence of keywords across geographical, organisational, and thematic indicators. Results The study found that India remains at the top in publication count, wi