Amir Masoumzadeh

Dr. Amir Masoumzadeh is an Associate Professor in the Department of Computer Science at the University at Albany, State University of New York, where he co-directs the Albany Lab for Privacy and Security (ALPS). His academic journey includes a PhD in Information Science from the University of Pittsburgh (2014).

Dr. Masoumzadeh's research focuses on information security, privacy, and trust in modern computing systems. His work centers on developing theoretical frameworks and practical mechanisms for protecting information in complex environments such as online social networks and enabling secure data sharing while preserving user privacy. His expertise spans formal methods, knowledge representation and reasoning, data mining, and information system design, with specific applications in access control policy specification, verification, analysis, and testing. His research has significant implications for browser security, privacy-preserving data mining of complex graph structures, and privacy-enhancing technologies in web and location-based services.

Analysis of Dr. Masoumzadeh's publication record reveals a consistent focus on access control policy modeling, verification, and learning from black-box systems. His work demonstrates a progression from foundational research on privacy in social networks and location-based services toward more sophisticated approaches involving machine learning for policy discovery and verification. The emergence of social engineering attack countermeasures in his recent work represents an important expansion of his research into human-centered security challenges.

• NSF CAREER Award for "Black-Box Learning of Authorization Policies"
• DARPA Funding for "PANACEA: Personalized AutoNomous Agents Countering Social Engineering Attacks"
• NSF Student Travel Grants for IEEE TPS conferences

Dr. Masoumzadeh actively mentors a diverse group of students, including PhD candidates, undergraduate researchers, and high school interns. His research is supported by substantial external funding from NSF and DARPA, enabling cutting-edge work at the intersection of security, privacy, and machine learning. The Albany Lab for Privacy and Security (ALPS), which he co-directs, serves as a hub for collaborative research on privacy and security challenges in modern computing environments. His projects often involve interdisciplinary teams addressing real-world security problems with both theoretical rigor and practical applicability.