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Tal MalkinView profile

Professor

• Cryptography
• Computer Security
• Complexity Theory
• +8 more

Tal Malkin is a Professor of Computer Science at Columbia University, directing the Cryptography Lab and serving as inaugural chair of the Cybersecurity Center at Columbia's Data Science Institute. She holds a Ph.D. from MIT (2000), joined Columbia after AT&T Labs research experience, and focuses on cryptography, security, complexity theory with applications in secure computation, zero-knowledge proofs, and privacy-preserving systems . Education: B.S. in Math and Computer Science, Bar-Ilan University M.S. in Computer Science, Weizmann Institute of Science Ph.D. in Computer Science, MIT (2000) Research Interests: Malkin's work spans foundational and applied cryptography, including homomorphic encryption, lattice-based protocols, attribute-based encryption, and tamper-resilient systems . She explores intersections with machine learning and information theory , addressing challenges in multi-party computation , public-key encryption , and side-channel resistance . Scientific Contributions: Her publications include breakthroughs in non-malleable codes , secure computation , and privacy-preserving databases . Notable works involve continual leakage resilience , optimally-fair coin tossing , and garbled circuits for efficient cryptographic protocols. Awards & Grants: Recipient of the NSF CAREER award, IBM and Google faculty research awards, and the IACR Fellow designation. Her research is funded by NSF, NSA, DHS, NYSIA, IARPA, and industry partnerships with Google, IBM, Mitsubishi, and NEC. Professional Leadership: Former conference chairs at CRYPTO 2021 , CCS 2017 , and CT-RSA conferences. Active in program committees for over 20 leading cryptography and security events, including FOCS , Eurocrypt , and Real World Crypto . Advising: Supervised numerous Ph.D. students and postdoctoral researchers, including Marshall Ball , Chengyu Lin , and Negev Shekhel Nosatzki . Her lab has mentored graduates like Ghada Almashaqbeh (2019) and Fernando Krell (2016), focusing on decentralized networks , secure learning , and cryptographic primitives .

Nils FleischhackerView profile

Assistant Professor

• Cryptography
• Theoretical Computer Science
• Zero-Knowledge Proofs
• +5 more

Nils Fleischhacker is an Assistant Professor for Cryptography at Ruhr University Bochum, where he leads the Theoretical Cryptography group within the Faculty of Computer Science. His research focuses on foundational aspects of cryptography with particular emphasis on zero-knowledge proofs, digital signatures, and secure computation. Prior to joining Ruhr University, he held postdoctoral positions at Johns Hopkins University and Carnegie Mellon University. Dr. Fleischhacker received his PhD in Computer Science from Saarland University in February 2017, advised by Dominique Schröder. During his doctoral studies, he was a research intern at Microsoft Research with Chris Brzuska and a research visitor at the University of Maryland, College Park with Jonathan Katz and Dana Dachman-Soled. His research spans theoretical cryptography with significant contributions to zero-knowledge proofs, multi-signature schemes, property-preserving hash functions, and security proofs for cryptographic primitives. Fleischhacker's work often addresses fundamental questions about the limits and possibilities of cryptographic constructions, with particular attention to black-box separations and lower bounds. His recent publications demonstrate a strong focus on lattice-based cryptography and post-quantum secure protocols. Fleischhacker's publications over the past five years reveal a consistent research trajectory focused on improving the efficiency and security of cryptographic primitives, with particular emphasis on signature schemes, zero-knowledge protocols, and secure computation frameworks. His work frequently appears in top-tier cryptography venues including CRYPTO, EUROCRYPT, and CCS. Dr. Fleischhacker actively mentors PhD students, with numerous successful graduations spanning from 2010 to 2024. His former PhD students include Önder Askin (2024), Floyd Zweydinger (2023), and Lars Schlieper (2022), among others. His research is supported through various academic channels and collaborations. He is affiliated with several prominent research organizations including the Horst Görtz Institute (HGI) for Information Security, the DFG Excellence Cluster CASA, the EU Marie Curie Network QSI, and the International Association for Cryptologic Research (IACR). These affiliations provide a strong institutional framework for his theoretical cryptography research.

Amr YoussefView profile

Professor

• Applied Cryptography
• Network Security
• Cyber-Physical Systems Security
• +4 more

Amr Youssef is a Professor at the Concordia Institute for Information Systems Engineering, Concordia University. His research focuses on applied cryptography, network security, cyber-physical systems security, blockchain, and privacy. He has contributed extensively to securing smart grids, IoT devices, and web applications through cryptographic protocols and machine learning-driven solutions. His work addresses critical challenges in cybersecurity, including e-voting systems, fault-tolerant differential protection, and privacy-preserving communication protocols. He explores vulnerabilities in modern systems such as SSO permissions, JavaScript exploits, and stalkerware tools, while developing frameworks like MEGR-APT for APT detection and TEE-Receipt for non-repudiation. Youssef’s research integrates interdisciplinary approaches, combining cryptography with AI (e.g., vision transformers for power quality analysis) and leveraging trusted execution environments (TEE) for secure computing. His projects often involve collaboration with industrial standards (e.g., IEC 61850), emphasizing practical implementations in real-world systems.

• Blockchain Technology
• Cryptocurrency
• Smart Contracts
• +3 more

Ari Juels is the Weill Family Foundation and Joan and Sanford I. Weill Professor at Cornell Tech (Cornell University) and a faculty member in the Department of Computer Science. He co-founded and co-directs the Initiative for CryptoCurrencies and Contracts (IC³) and serves as Chief Scientist at Chainlink Labs. His research focuses on blockchain technology, cryptocurrency, smart contracts, applied cryptography, authentication, and privacy. Juels holds a Ph.D. in Computer Science from UC Berkeley and previously held roles as Chief Scientist and Director of the RSA Laboratories at EMC/Dell EMC until 2013. His work spans foundational contributions to decentralized systems, including Chainlink’s oracle networks and Ekiden’s privacy-preserving smart contracts. Juels has authored influential books like *The Oracle* (2024) and *Tetraktys* (2009), blending cryptography with thriller narratives. He advises numerous students and alumni, many of whom have joined prominent blockchain firms like Chainlink Labs, Mysten Labs, and Espresso Systems. Recent publications explore topics such as liquidity in blockchain assets, oracle network security, and economic analysis of smart contracts. His research emphasizes practical applications of cryptographic principles to real-world challenges in digital systems and decentralized finance. Juels’ lab collaborates on projects like HyDRA (automated bug bounty systems) and Lanturn (economic security metrics). He actively participates in academic and industry partnerships, bridging theoretical computer science with applied blockchain innovation.

• Secure Decentralized Systems
• Blockchain Technology
• Systems Security
• +3 more

Prof. Bryan Ford leads the Decentralized/Distributed Systems (DEDIS) lab at EPFL. He focuses on secure decentralized systems, including blockchain technology, privacy, and systems security. He earned his Ph.D. from MIT and held faculty positions at Yale University and EPFL. His work spans distributed consensus protocols, peer-to-peer networking, and privacy-preserving systems. Key projects include QuePaxa (timeout-free consensus), UIA (global connectivity for mobile devices), and MedCo (secure healthcare data sharing). He advises numerous PhD students and contributes to open-source projects like Bitcoin collective signing and privacy networks like Riffle. Education: Ph.D., MIT; Postdoctoral work at Yale Research interests include blockchain scalability, consensus algorithms, and cryptographic privacy. His lab develops systems like TRIP for coercion-resistant voting and F3B to mitigate blockchain front-running. His work on NAT traversal and peer-to-peer protocols (e.g., STUN/ICE) remains foundational in network architecture. He emphasizes practical, auditable security solutions such as CertiKOS and atomic cross-chain transactions (Atom). Notable contributions: CoSi (collective signing), OmniLedger (sharded blockchain), and privacy-preserving protocols like PURBs (Protected Unsealable Recursive Boxes). His lab collaborates with Swiss Post to audit e-voting systems and designs democratic cryptocurrencies like PoPCoin.

Jens GrothView profile

Academic

• Cryptography
• Cryptographic Protocols
• Zero-Knowledge Proofs
• +5 more

Jens Groth is an Honorary Professor at the Department of Computer Science, University College London (UCL), and serves as Chief Scientist at Nexus. His primary research focuses on cryptography, with an emphasis on cryptographic protocols, zero-knowledge proofs, and privacy-preserving technologies. Groth has contributed significantly to advancements in digital signatures, homomorphic encryption, and secure multi-party computation. He holds a leadership role as Program Chair for the 15th IMA International Conference on Cryptography and Coding (2015) and has been a key figure in shaping modern cryptographic standards. His work often bridges theoretical foundations with practical implementations, emphasizing efficiency and security. Groth's research interests include but are not limited to: cryptographic protocol design, lattice-based cryptography, and the application of zero-knowledge proofs in real-world systems such as blockchain and voting systems. His publications span venues like CRYPTO, EUROCRYPT, and ASIACRYPT, reflecting his impact on the field. Notably, he advocates for open access to research and has contributed to strategies ensuring conferences adopt de facto open-access policies. His current focus at Nexus centers on verifiable computation and distributed cryptographic systems.

• Computer Security
• Privacy
• Applied Cryptography
• +6 more

Aggelos Kiayias FRSE is Chair in Cyber Security and Privacy and Director of the Blockchain Technology Laboratory at the University of Edinburgh. He is also Chief Scientist at blockchain technology company Input Output. His academic work spans over two decades with more than 200 publications in cryptography, blockchain, and security. Dr. Kiayias received his Ph.D. from the City University of New York and was an undergraduate at the University of Athens Mathematics department. His research focuses on computer security, privacy, applied cryptography, and foundations of cryptography with particular emphasis on blockchain technologies, distributed systems, e-voting, secure multiparty protocols, and identity management. His recent work demonstrates continued innovation across multiple dimensions of blockchain technology, with publications spanning theoretical foundations, practical implementations, economic modeling, and privacy-preserving techniques. The research output shows strong emphasis on security analysis, consensus protocols, transaction processing, and economic incentives within decentralized systems. His work bridges theoretical cryptography with real-world blockchain applications. Among his notable recognitions are an ERC Starting Grant, Marie Curie fellowship, NSF Career Award, Fulbright Fellowship, election as Fellow of the Royal Society of Edinburgh in 2021, and the BCS Lovelace Medal in 2024. He has served as program chair for major conferences including the Cryptographers' Track of RSA (2011), Financial Cryptography (2017), Real World Crypto Symposium (2020), and Public-Key Cryptography Conference (2020), and as general chair of Eurocrypt 2013. Professor Kiayias has supervised over 20 PhD students, many of whom have gone on to academic positions at institutions including Imperial College, Stanford University, Royal Holloway University London, University of Glasgow, University of Sydney, and Virginia Commonwealth University. His current advisees include Yu Shen, Amirreza Sarencheh, and Christina Ovezik with expected graduations between 2025-2026. He leads the Blockchain Technology Laboratory at the University of Edinburgh and is involved in several major blockchain research projects including Panoramix and Fentec. His research has received significant funding from the European Union (Horizon 2020, ERC), UK research councils (EPSRC), US agencies (NSF, DHS, NIST), and Greek research bodies.

Alexander RussellView profile

Professor

• Cryptography
• Blockchain Protocols
• Quantum Computing
• +4 more

Alexander Russell is a Professor of Computer Science and Mathematics at the University of Connecticut, serving as Director of Graduate Affairs in the School of Computing and Director of the UConn Voting Technology Research Lab. He holds a Ph.D. in Mathematics and an S.M. in Computer Science from MIT, alongside dual B.A. degrees in Mathematics and Computer Science from Cornell University. His research focuses on cryptographic protocols, blockchain security, quantum computing, algorithms, and election auditing. Key areas include consensus algorithms, complexity-theoretic cryptography, and applied cryptography in voting systems. Recent work emphasizes low-variance risk-limiting audits and adaptive security mechanisms for blockchains. Notable contributions span provably secure blockchain protocols (e.g., Ouroboros), election integrity methods, and smartphone-based depression prediction models. His articles address topics like settlement bounds in longest-chain consensus, Byzantine-resilient gossip protocols, and energy-efficient neighbor discovery in mobile networks. Russell advises on interdisciplinary projects at the Voting Technology Research Center and collaborates on grants involving quantum-resistant cryptography and healthcare analytics. His work bridges theoretical computer science with practical applications in secure systems and public infrastructure.

• Cryptography
• Blockchain Technology
• Cybersecurity
• +4 more

Sri AravindaKrishnan Thyagarajan is a Lecturer at The University of Sydney's School of Computer Science, specializing in cryptography. He focuses on enhancing security and fairness in distributed systems, blockchains, and multi-party computations with applications in post-quantum cryptography. His work spans top-tier conferences like ACM CCS and IEEE SP. Education: B.Tech, Computer Science & Engineering, National Institute of Technology Trichy, India (2011–2015) M.Sc., Computer Science, Saarland University, Germany (2015–2016) Ph.D., Applied Cryptography, Friedrich Alexander Universität Erlangen-Nürnberg, Germany (2016–2021) Research Interests: Cryptography (classical and post-quantum), blockchain security, cryptocurrencies, fairness in multi-party computations, privacy-preserving protocols, and decentralized systems. Recent Articles: Focus on cryptographic protocols for blockchains, threshold cryptography, verifiable randomness, and secure atomic swaps. Recent work includes advancements in post-quantum signatures, distributed randomness generation, and privacy-preserving payment systems. Awards: Nominated for GI Dissertationspreis 2021 Advising & Grants: Advising Ankit Kapoor. Active in program committees for CCS, IEEE SP, and FC. Currently Program Chair for Crypto Valley Conference 2025. Labs/Teams: Part of the Sydney Blockchain Centre and cybersecurity cluster at the University of Sydney. Collaborates globally with institutions like NTT Research, Carnegie Mellon University, and Bocconi University.

Vipul GoyalView profile

Associate Professor

• Cryptography
• Quantum Cryptography
• Security & Privacy
• +1 more

Vipul Goyal is an Associate Professor at the Computer Science Department of Carnegie Mellon University and a Senior Scientist at NTT Research in California. He is on leave from CMU since joining NTT Research in June 2020 after a 7-year tenure at Microsoft Research. His research focuses on Cryptography , Quantum Cryptography , Security & Privacy , and Theoretical Computer Science , supported by grants from NSF, DARPA, Department of Energy NETL, JP Morgan, Cisco, PNC, Ripple, and CyLab initiatives.

Wouter LueksView profile

Professor

• Applied Cryptography
• Anonymous Communication
• Privacy-Preserving Systems
• +3 more

Wouter Lueks is a faculty member at the CISPA Helmholtz Center for Information Security in Saarbrücken, Germany. His research focuses on designing secure, practical, and privacy-friendly systems using applied cryptography, anonymous communication, and systems engineering. He leads a lab and actively mentors PhD and PostDoc researchers. Education: PhD in Computer Science (Radboud University, Netherlands), advised by Jaap-Henk Hoepman and Bart Jacobs. Postdoctoral Researcher at EPFL, Switzerland (SPRING Lab). Research Interests: Privacy-preserving systems for humanitarian aid and public health. Cryptography in decentralized networks and anonymous communication. Secure protocols for identity management and voting systems. Key Publications: Recent work includes privacy-preserving digital wallets for aid distribution (IEEE S&P 2025), biometric deduplication systems (IEEE S&P 2024), and decentralized proximity tracing protocols (Commun. ACM 2022). His research emphasizes practical applications of zero-knowledge proofs and attribute-based credentials. Awards: Distinguished Paper Award at IEEE S&P 2023. Runner-up Casper Bowden PET Award 2021 and CNIL-Inria Privacy Award 2021. Advising & Grants: Supervises PhD/PostDoc researchers and collaborates on projects funded by EU and industry grants. Active in open-source contributions, including the zksk library and Lightnion anonymous communication tool. Labs/Teams: Principal investigator at CISPA, collaborates with the SPRING Lab (EPFL) and leads interdisciplinary teams in privacy-enhancing technologies.

Rachid GuerraouiView profile

Professor

• Distributed Computing
• Concurrent Computing
• Byzantine Fault Tolerance
• +7 more

Rachid Guerraoui is a Full Professor at the École polytechnique fédérale de Lausanne (EPFL) where he leads the Distributed Computing Laboratory (DCL) within the School of Computer and Communication Sciences. He holds appointments in multiple departments including IC-SSC and IC-SIN for teaching, and serves on the IC Academic Evaluation Committee. A Moroccan/Swiss/French researcher, Guerraoui has previously been affiliated with Commissariat à l'Energie Atomique in Saclay, Hewlett-Packard Labs in Palo Alto, the Massachusetts Institute of Technology in Boston, and Collège de France in Paris. Guerraoui's research focuses on distributed and concurrent computing across various scales, from multiprocessors to wide-area networks. His work spans Byzantine fault tolerance, distributed machine learning, blockchain technologies, transactional memory, and consensus algorithms. His recent publications reveal a strong emphasis on Byzantine-resistant machine learning, decentralized learning systems, and the theoretical foundations of distributed consensus. The research demonstrates significant contributions to making distributed systems more robust, efficient, and secure against adversarial conditions. Guerraoui has received numerous prestigious awards including ACM Fellow (2012), Professor at College de France (2018), Nygaard-Dahl Award (2024), and Barroso Award (2025). His work has earned multiple best paper awards at top conferences including DISC, ICDCS, IPDPS, and ACM Middleware. He serves as Associate Editor of the Journal of the ACM (2010-2025) and has chaired program committees for major conferences such as PODC, DISC, and Middleware. As an educator, Guerraoui supervises numerous doctoral students and has mentored many successful researchers who now work at leading institutions and companies including Meta, Oracle Labs, Chainlink Labs, and Protocol Labs. He teaches courses on Distributed Algorithms and Concurrent Algorithms at EPFL, emphasizing both theoretical foundations and practical implementations. His educational initiatives include Wandida, a library of scientific e-synopses, and Zettabytes, projects aimed at making computer science accessible to broader audiences.

Brett Hemenway FalkView profile

Researcher

• Cryptography
• Blockchain
• Computer Security
• +5 more

Brett Hemenway Falk is a Researcher in the Department of Computer and Information Science at the University of Pennsylvania. He serves as director of the Crypto and Society Lab, focusing on privacy and security in digital environments and facilitating transparency and trust. His work combines rigorous mathematical approaches with practical implementations in cryptography and blockchain technology. Education: Sc.B. in Mathematics from Brown University Ph.D. in Mathematics from UCLA Research Interests include: Cryptography and secure multi-party computation protocols Blockchain technology (cross-chain interoperability, financial network stability, on-chain governance) Privacy-preserving algorithms and data security Coding theory applications in secure systems Scientific Contributions include: Developing practical secure computation protocols Advancing ORAM (Oblivious RAM) architectures Analyzing decentralized governance mechanisms Exploring DeFi network stability and token economics His teaching activities feature the popular MCIT 582 Blockchain course at Penn. Research funding comes from NSF, DARPA, IARPA, ONR, ARL, NIH , and the Laura and John Arnold Foundation.

Sherif KhattabView profile

Academic

• Cybersecurity
• Cloud Computing
• Internet of Things
• +3 more

Sherif Khattab is a Teaching Assistant Professor in the Department of Computer Science at the University of Pittsburgh's School of Computing and Information. With a Ph.D. in Computer Science from the University of Pittsburgh (2008), he brings extensive expertise in cybersecurity systems with applications across cloud computing, Internet of Things, electronic voting, and Big Data security. His research focuses on the systems aspects of cybersecurity, maintaining an h-index of 16 (Google Scholar) and 10 (Scopus) with over 60 publications. Khattab has successfully supervised more than 15 graduate students throughout his academic career. Prior to his position at Pitt, he served as an Associate Professor at Cairo University's Department of Computer Science, Faculty of Computers and Information. Professor Khattab teaches numerous undergraduate and graduate courses, with particular emphasis on hands-on ethical hacking and security education. His current teaching portfolio includes Algorithms and Data Structures (CS 0445) and Network Security (CS 1653), with extensive experience teaching operating systems, formal methods, and computer networks across multiple semesters. His research publications reveal consistent focus on practical security solutions for emerging technologies, with recent work addressing IoT security frameworks, blockchain-based voting systems, and cloud security challenges. The publication trend shows increasing emphasis on practical implementation aspects alongside theoretical security models. With industry experience from internships at Google Inc., Ericsson Data Networks, and Bosch Research, Khattab bridges academic research with real-world security challenges. His educational background includes a Bachelor's in Computer Engineering from Cairo University (1998) and both M.Sc. and Ph.D. in Computer Science from the University of Pittsburgh (2004 and 2008).

Blerim RexhaView profile

Professor

• Cybersecurity
• Blockchain Technology
• Machine Learning
• +5 more

Prof. Blerim Rexha is a full professor at the University of Prishtina's Faculty of Electrical and Computer Engineering, Kosovo. With a Ph.D. in Computer Engineering from Vienna University of Technology (2004), he has led research in cybersecurity, blockchain, machine learning, and electronic voting systems. His teaching portfolio includes data, computer, and internet security courses. Education : Ph.D. in Computer Engineering (Vienna), Electrical Engineer MSc (Prishtina), specialized certifications in software engineering, biometrics, and .NET programming. His research spans cybersecurity (DDoS mitigation, face authentication attacks), blockchain applications (electronic voting bridges, transaction privacy), and machine learning integration (boosted trees for intrusion detection, LSTM for vulnerability scanning). He has contributed to cloud security through novel encryption methods and AI-driven attack detection. Recent publications focus on energy efficiency in cloud vs on-premises systems, XGBoost/CatBoost/LightGBM comparisons for network security, and blockchain bridges for e-voting. His work has addressed privacy preservation in video data, SMS encryption, and eID card pseudo-profiles. Awards include the 2024 Marin Barleti Prize for academic contributions and Best Paper Awards in election security (2015) and Kosovo website vulnerabilities (2013). Honors : Marin Barleti Prize (2024) Cyber Security Ambassador (2018) ICT Academician of the Year (2016) Best Paper Awards (2015, 2013) As academic advisor to the KosovaCyberTeam , he mentors students like Korab Keqekolla and Abian Morina. His leadership extends to Kosovo's Cyber Security State Training Center curriculum development and jury roles in Albanian ICT Awards .