IACR News
If you have a news item you wish to distribute, they should be sent to the communications secretary. See also the events database for conference announcements.
Here you can see all recent updates to the IACR webpage. These updates are also available:
21 February 2023
PhD studentship in Applied Cryptography: Post-Quantum Secure Confidentiality-Preserving Security Ass
Newcastle University, School of Computing, Newcastle Upon Tyne, United Kingdom
Job Posting
Interested in cryptographically assuring the security of computer systems in a post-quantum age?
Confidentiality-preserving security assurance establishes the capacity to certify and prove in security properties of complex system, while keeping details of the system confidential. While the field has advanced in recent years with new digital signature schemes and solution proposals that bind security assurance to underlying hardware attestation, all existing solutions have in common that they can be broken by adversaries with access to a scalable quantum computer. Experts, however, predict that such computing capacity will become available within the next decade. Hence, it will be crucial to establish post-quantum secure confidentiality preserving security assurance.
How can we establish new digital signature schemes that are post-quantum secure and that can realize confidentiality preserving security assurance? What zero-knowledge proof of knowledge techniques will serve us in this environment? How can we prove the security of these schemes with respect to hard mathematical problems secure in face of quantum adversaries?
Applicants should have a strong background in computer science and experience with cryptography. High motivation for independent theoretical/computational work is essential.
Newcastle University Centre of Research Excellence in Cyber Security and Resilience is a cross-faculty environment with 135 members, recognized as a national Academic Centre of Excellence in Cyber Security Research (ACE-CSR). The topic Post-Quantum Secure Confidentiality-Preserving Security Assurance is hosted in the Secure and Resilient Systems Group.
Eligibility Criteria You must have, or expect to gain, a minimum 2:1 Honours degree or international equivalent in a subject relevant to the proposed PhD project (cyber security & resilience, advanced computer science, cryptography). A strong mathematical background is desirable.
Closing date for applications:
Contact:
Prof Thomas Gross ([email protected])
Dr Essam Ghadafi ([email protected])More information: https://www.findaphd.com/phds/project/phd-studentship-in-applied-cryptography-post-quantum-secure-confidentiality-preserving-security-assurance/?p155500
Newcastle University, School of Computing, Newcastle Upon Tyne, United Kingdom
Job Posting
We are seeking a highly motivated PhD student to conduct research related to the design of novel provably secure lightweight (hardware-based) cryptographic solutions for authentication and authorization to secure zero-trust networks. The aim is to strengthen security in zero-trust networks by giving devices and users fine-grained control over their resources via designing efficient modular solutions.
You will be part of the Secure and Resilient Systems Research Group part of the accredited centre of excellence in cyber security research, one of only 19 accredited centres of excellence in the UK. You will be working with researchers from both the School of Computing and the School of Engineering.
The supervisory team has strong track records and expertise in cryptography, hardware security, cyber security, and electronic systems design.
You must have, or expect to gain, a minimum 2:1 Honours degree or international equivalent in Computer Science or related subject. Familiarity with and interest in cryptography and cyber security is required.
Closing date for applications:
Contact: Dr Essam Ghadafi ([email protected])
KETS Quantum Security
Job Posting
Closing date for applications:
Contact: [email protected]
More information: https://ketsquantum.livevacancies.co.uk/#/job/details/29?target=frame
13 February 2023
Centre for Secure Information Technologies (CSIT), Queen’s University Belfast, UK
Job Posting
Applicants must have at least a 2:1 Honours Degree in Electrical and Electronics Engineering, Computer Science, Mathematics or closely related discipline.
International studentships are also available.
Closing date for applications:
Contact: Dr. Ayesha Khalid
More information: https://www.qub.ac.uk/courses/postgraduate-research/phd-opportunities/lightweight-post-quantum-cryptography-on-modern-opensource-riscv-processors.html
Centre for Secure Information Technologies (CSIT), Queen’s University Belfast, UK
Job Posting
Applicants must have at least a 2:1 Honours Degree in Electrical and Electronics Engineering, Computer Science, Mathematics or closely related discipline.
International studentships are also available.
Closing date for applications:
Contact: Dr. Ayesha Khalid
More information: https://www.qub.ac.uk/courses/postgraduate-research/phd-opportunities/fault-tolerant-post-quantum-cryptography-systems-for-satellite-communications.html
University of Waterloo, Waterloo, Ontario, Canada
Job Posting
The Department of Combinatorics and Optimization at the University of Waterloo invites applications from qualified candidates for a 1.5-year position as a Cryptographic Research Architect on the Open Quantum Safe project (https://openquantumsafe.org/).
This position is available immediately in Professor Stebila’s research group. You will be working with a world-wide team of researchers and developers from academia and industry on the Open Quantum Safe project. You will have the opportunity to push the boundaries of applied post-quantum cryptography and contribute to various open-source projects. You will help integrate new post-quantum cryptographic algorithms into the liboqs open-source library, and design and implement techniques for evaluating and benchmarking these cryptographic algorithms in a variety of contexts.
The field of post-quantum cryptography is rapidly evolving, and you will need to track ongoing changes to algorithms due to peer review and advances by researchers via the the NIST Post-Quantum Cryptography project forum. In addition to algorithm research, tasks cover all aspects of the software development lifecycle and include design, programming cryptographic algorithms, integrating other cryptographic implementations into the liboqs framework, integrating liboqs into 3rd party open-source projects, testing, benchmarking and documentation. You may be asked to take an ownership role in coordinating the development of various sub-component of the Open Quantum Safe project.
The appointment will be a full-time position for 18 months with the possibility of extension, pending on research funding. The salary range is $80,000–$115,000/year and commensurate with experience.
All qualified candidates are encouraged to apply; however, Canadian citizens and permanent residents will be given priority.
For more information on the position and how to apply, please see https://openquantumsafe.org/team/open-positions
Closing date for applications:
Contact: Douglas Stebila ([email protected])
More information: https://openquantumsafe.org/team/open-positions
Chalmers University of Technology
Job Posting
The position is fully funded for five years with possible extensions for parental or sick leave, and an attractive salary. The position is linked to a project funded by the Swedish research council focusing on the security and efficiency of progressive verification for cryptographic schemes. If you think this sounds cool, follow the link below and apply!
Applicants are expected to hold an MSc degree in Mathematics and/or Computer Science. Knowledge of cryptographic primitives and information security is preferable, but not mandatory. Only applications via the official portal will be considered.
Closing date for applications:
Contact: For more information check out:
- The official ad: https://www.chalmers.se/en/about-chalmers/work-with-us/vacancies/?rmpage=job&rmjob=11434&rmlang=UK
- Elena's webpage: https://epagnin.github.io
More information: https://www.chalmers.se/en/about-chalmers/work-with-us/vacancies/?rmpage=job&rmjob=11434&rmlang=UK
Leuphana University Lüneburg, Institute of Information Systems
Job Posting
Closing date for applications:
Contact: Leuphana Universität Lüneburg Personal und Recht / Bewerbungsmanagement Code: WiMi Network Science Universitätsallee 1 21335 Lüneburg [email protected]
University of St.Gallen, Switzerland
Job Posting
Key Responsibilities:
- The post-doctoral fellow is expected to perform exciting and challenging research in the area of information security and cryptography including the design of provably secure cryptographic protocols.
- The post-doctoral fellow shall be involved in the supervision of PhD and master students
- The post-doctoral researcher is expected to have a PhD degree in Computer Science, Engineering or Mathematics and a strong background in theoretical computer science and cryptography
- Have an excellent publication record in top venues Competitive research record in cryptography or information security
- Strong mathematical and algorithmic CS background
- Good skills in programming is beneficial
- Excellent written and verbal communication skills in English
Please apply asap.
Closing date for applications:
Contact:
Eriane Breu, [email protected] (Administrative matters)
Prof. Katerina Mitrokotsa, [email protected] (Research related questions)
More information: https://jobs.unisg.ch/offene-stellen/postdoc-fellow-in-cryptography-information-security-m-w-d/c35410fb-40bb-41f2-b298-8be150d8f9b6
University of St.Gallen, Switzerland
Job Posting
The student is expected to work on topics that include security and privacy issues in authentication. More precisely, the students will be working on investigating efficient and privacy-preserving authentication that provides: i) provable security guarantees, and ii) rigorous privacy guarantees.
Key Responsibilities:
- Perform exciting and challenging research in the domain of information security and cryptography.
- Support and assist in teaching computer security and cryptography courses.
- The PhD students are expected to have a MSc degree or equivalent, and strong background in cryptography, network security and mathematics.
- Experience in one or more domains such as cryptography, design of protocols, secure multi-party computation and differential privacy is beneficial.
- Excellent programming skills.
- Excellent written and verbal communication skills in English
Please apply asap.
Closing date for applications:
Contact:
Eriane Breu, [email protected] (Administrative matters)
Prof. Katerina Mitrokotsa, [email protected] (Research related questions)
Nanyang Technological University, Singapore
Job Posting
The Symmetric Key and Lightweight Cryptography Lab (SyLLab) at NTU Singapore is looking for candidates for Research Fellow/Post-Doc (from fresh Post-Docs to Senior Research Fellows, flexible contract duration) as well as PhD student positions on various topics:
- Symmetric-key cryptography (cryptanalysis, design),
- Machine learning,
- Side-channels attacks,
- Fully homomorphic encryption.
Candidates are expected to have a proven record of publications in top cryptography/security venues.
The positions will be funded by the 5-year National Research Foundation (NRF) Investigatorship grant from Singapore. Salaries are competitive and are determined according to the successful applicant's accomplishments, experience and qualifications. We offer an excellent research environment with a highly international team, with flexible working conditions, budget for conferences/equipment, etc.
Interested applicants should send their detailed CVs and references to Prof. Thomas Peyrin ([email protected]). The review of applications starts immediately and will continue until positions are filled.
Closing date for applications:
Contact: Thomas Peyrin
More information: https://thomaspeyrin.github.io/web/
09 February 2023
Centre for Secure Information Technologies (CSIT), Queen’s University Belfast, UK
Job Posting
The DTP provides an opportunity to advance research in these exciting cyber security areas, focus on entreprise and leadership skills, have access to modules on our certified MSc in Advanced Cyber Security and MSc AI and a dedicated training programme, and interact with CSIT industry partners.
Applicants must have at least a 2:1 Honours Degree in Electrical and Electronics Engineering, Computer Science, Mathematics or closely related discipline.
International studentships are also available.
Closing date for applications:
Contact: Dr Jesus Martinez DelRincon
More information: https://www.qub.ac.uk/ecit/CSIT/Cyber-AIHub/CSIT-DTP/
06 February 2023
University of North Texas, Denton, USA
Job Posting
Closing date for applications:
Contact: Please contact Drs. Stephanie Ludi ([email protected]) or Kirill Morozov ([email protected]) for any inquiries.
More information: https://jobs.untsystem.edu/postings/68591
Inria and ENS, Paris, France
Job Posting
Closing date for applications:
Contact: Phong Nguyen ( Phong.Nguyen at inria.fr )
More information: https://jobs.inria.fr/public/classic/en/offres/2022-05411
01 February 2023
KASTEL — Institute of Information Security and Dependability, KIT, Karlsruhe, Germany
Job Posting
A solid background in provable security is required (for PhD students: successfully attended courses or a master’s thesis on the subject). Experiences with secure multi-party computation or UC-based security are a plus. For PostDocs, a track record in research on privacy-preserving protocols is expected, including publications at reputable conferences such as Crypto, Eurocrypt, ACM CCS, PETS, etc.
You will be a member of the KASTEL Security Research Labs (https://zentrum.kastel.kit.edu). Your research will be dealing with privacy-preserving cryptographic building blocks and protocols for important application scenarios and result in both theoretical security concepts (protocol designs, security models and proofs, etc.) and their efficient implementation. You will have the opportunity to regularly visit other reputable research institutions for IT security and cryptography such as the University of Luxembourg.
As the positions should be filled as soon as possible, your application will be evaluated promptly. If you are interested, please send an email including your CV and a list of publications (for PostDocs) to [email protected].
Closing date for applications:
Contact: Andy Rupp ([email protected], PI at KASTEL)
University of Bergen, Department of Informatics
Job Posting
There is a vacancy for up to 2 positions as PhD Research Fellow in Informatics – Cryptology at the Department of Informatics, University of Bergen, Norway. Both positions are funded by the university and are for a fixed-term period of 4 years.
Potential work tasks include:
- Statistical and algebraic cryptanalysis of modern block and stream ciphers
- Cryptanalysis of lattice-based postquantum cryptography protocols
- Construction of cryptographically optimal functions and related objects
The working environment for this position will be at the Selmer Center in Secure Communication. The Selmer Center is one of the top ICT research groups with main research in areas of sequence design, coding theory, cryptology, Boolean functions, information security, and quantum information theory.
The candidate should have the following qualifications:
- A master's degree or equivalent education in mathematics, computer science, or a related area
- Experience with general-purpose programming languages
- Knowledge of discrete mathematics, linear algebra and probability theory
- Knowledge of cryptographic schemes and protocols
- Proficiency in both written and oral English
We can offer:
- a good and professionally stimulating working environment
- salary as PhD research fellow (code 1017) in the state salary scale
- enrolment in the Norwegian Public Service Pension Fund
- good welfare benefits
Application deadline: March 1, 2023
To apply and for more information: https://www.jobbnorge.no/en/available-jobs/job/236961/phd-research-fellow-in-informatics-cryptology-up-to-2-positions
Closing date for applications:
Contact: Nikolay Kaleyski, Department of Informatics, University of Bergen, Norway ([email protected])
More information: https://www.jobbnorge.no/en/available-jobs/job/236961/phd-research-fellow-in-informatics-cryptology-up-to-2-positions
31 January 2023
University of Birmingham, UK
Job Posting
This is an exciting opportunity to join the University of Birmingham’s Centre for Cyber Security and Privacy on the exciting projects "User-controlled hardware security anchors: evaluation and designs" and "SIPP - Secure IoT Processor Platform with Remote Attestation".
The position has scope for a variety of research activities, spanning trusted execution, hardware and embedded security, binary analysis, protocol design/analysis, and formal modelling. We are hence looking for a candidate with a PhD (or equivalent industry experience) in at least one of these areas.
The post-doc will be based at the Birmingham Centre for Cyber Security and Privacy, which was originally founded in 2005 as the Security and Privacy group and is now recognised as a Centre by the university since 2018. The Centre is a core part of the School of Computer Science, which was ranked 3rd in the UK-wide REF2021 for computer science research. Three out of the four REF2021 impact case studies came from the security group; all four were awarded the maximum grade of 4*. The centre currently has 12 permanent academics as well as approximately 20 postdocs/PhD students. We are recognised by the UK NCSC in partnership with EPSRC as an Academic Centre of Excellence in Cyber Security Research. We are part of the Research Institute in Secure Hardware and Embedded Systems funded by NCSC and EPSRC.
Full time starting salary is normally in the range £32,348 to £42,155, with potential progression once in post to £44,737 (Grade 7). The position comes with budget for travel and equipment.
Fixed term contract up to July 2024. We will encourage and support the successful candidate to apply for follow-up funding after the end of the fixed term.
Apply until 19th February 2023 using the following link: https://tinyurl.com/uobpostdoc
Closing date for applications:
Contact: Informal enquiries can be sent to Mark Ryan ([email protected]) and David Oswald ([email protected]). Full applications must be submitted via the above link, we cannot accept applications via email.
More information: https://edzz.fa.em3.oraclecloud.com/hcmUI/CandidateExperience/en/sites/CX_6001/requisitions/preview/1170/?lastSelectedFacet=TITLES&selectedTitlesFacet=RES
University of St.Gallen, Switzerland
Job Posting
- Development and implementation of concepts and research results, both individually and in collaboration with researchers and PhD students,
- Run of experiments and simulation of realistic conditions to test the performance of developed algorithms and protocols,
- Development, maintenance and organization of software,
- Support to BSc, MSc and PhD students, postdocs and researchers who use the lab,
- Responsibility for day routines in the lab, for example purchases, installations, bookings, inventory,
- Demonstrations and lab tours for external visitors,
- Producing media content for our group web page and social media platforms.
- We are looking for a strongly motivated and self-driven person who is able to work and learn new things independently.
- Good command of English is required.
- You should have a good academic track record and well developed analytical and problem solving skills.
- Excellent programming skills and familiarity with cryptographic libraries.
- Previous experience in implementation projects with C++, Matlab/Simulink, Python is desired.
Closing date for applications:
Contact:
Eriane Breu, [email protected] (Administrative matters)
Prof. Katerina Mitrokotsa, [email protected] (Research related questions)
More information: https://jobs.unisg.ch/offene-stellen/cryptography-engineer-m-w-d/61aac880-209c-41c9-b2dd-fb4fb4074ebe
Visa Research, Palo Alto, CA
Job Posting
The Digital Currency Research team at Visa Research is looking for outstanding research interns as part of our growing team in Palo Alto, California.
Our team is building the next generation of financial systems that rely on digital currencies, including decentralized cryptocurrencies like Bitcoin and Ethereum and semi-decentralized digital currencies like stablecoins, central bank digital currencies (CBDCs), and tokenized commercial bank deposits. Compared to traditional financial systems, these networks have significantly stronger resilience against cyberattacks, achieved by minimizing trust in various system components.
Past intern projects have included:
- Blockchain scalability, e.g., sharding (RapidChain) and light clients (FlyClient)
- Layer 2 scalability solutions, e.g., hub-based payment channels (UPC) and offline payments (OPS)
- Blockchain privacy, e.g., private smart contract transactions (Zether)
- Privacy-preserving auditability of large payment graphs (SPA)
- Privacy-preserving fraud detection using federated learning and multi-party computation
Basic Qualification
- Pursuing a Ph.D. in Computer Science or Computer Engineering, graduating December 2023 or later
Preferred Qualifications
- Research experience in one or more research areas related to blockchain, cryptography, and/or systems security
- Strong track record in research publications and impact in the research community
- Strong ability to collaborate
- Good team player and excellent interpersonal skills
- Good analytical and problem-solving skills
Closing date for applications:
Contact:
- Mahdi Zamani [email protected]
- Panos Chatzigiannis [email protected]
More information: https://jobs.smartrecruiters.com/ni/Visa/3f9f072f-3f93-43c4-af03-ed492d9daf4b-phd-intern
Meta, Menlo Park, CA, USA
Job Posting
Challenges and intern projects include incorporating approaches such as multi-party computation, homomorphic encryption, trusted execution environments, differential privacy, and federated learning to develop privacy-focused solutions while maintaining performance at massive scale, including cryptographic protocols, algorithms & tooling for machine learning or analytics. Research projects may include developing new or improving existing privacy-preserving solutions for areas such as: private record linkage, privacy-preserving ML and analytics.
For more details and to apply: https://www.metacareers.com/jobs/881989909611952/
Closing date for applications:
Contact: Gaven Watson
More information: https://www.metacareers.com/jobs/881989909611952/