Cyber Security research theme

within Computer Science Research Centre (CSRC).

Overview

The Cyber Security research theme covers a wide range of topics within the scope of cyber security, ranging from software, sensors and infrastructure systems security; data security, AI-based security and the security of AI; as well as cyber crime, digital forensics, human aspects of security, and geo-politics of cyber security.

Much of our research is applied in nature, through our extensive partnerships with government and industry, including the National Cyber Security Centre and GCHQ, the Ministry of Defence, and the National Crime Agency, as well as industry collaborators within the telecommunications sector, national security, and defence.

Theme Lead

Professor Phil Legg

Members

PhD/DPhil students

Sadegh Bamohabbat Chafjiri

PhD: Fuzzing by adapting cryptanalytic techniques and game theory

James Barrett

PhD: Interactive machine learning for identifying threats to security and service in large-scale mobile networks

Aimen Djemaa

PhD: Hybrid outlier clustering method using a novel dataset in intrusion detection systems

Yunus Karrem

PhD: Securing IoT systems using emerging blockchain variants, decentralised identity and proof of location

Dalila Khettaf

PhD: Graph-based group anomaly detection in IoT with deep learning

Carol Lo

PhD: Design of a secure digital twin to detect and mitigate advanced persistent threats on cyber-physical systems in smart manufacturing

Alan Mills

DPhil: Low resource virtualisation security

Khoa Phung

PhD: Integrating communicating X-machines, probabilistic and machine learning models to create a rigorous runtime error detection system for Java programs

Michael Yamsi Tchuindjang

PhD: A defence model for large language models (LLMs) against multi-turn jailbreak attacks

Yen Wang

PhD: Advancing rust-based malware analysis: Comparative insights, automated workflows for enhancing reverse engineering techniques and developing advanced detection frameworks

Jonathan White

DPhil: Federated learning: An analysis into the balance of machine learning and security

Activities

Privacy-preserving machine learning through secure management of data’s lifecycle in distributed systems (REMINDER)

An EPSRC-funded project under the EU CHISTER-ERA framework in collaboration with Universidad de Murcia, SIEMENS Mobility Limited, Austrian Institute of Technology. The project will develop solutions for privacy-preserving machine learning through secure management of data’s lifecycle in general distributed systems, with a focus on IoT and resource constrained networks that address two use cases: smart buildings and smart healthcare. (March 2024 – February 2027)

Knowledge Transfer Partnership with Service Robotics

An Innovate UK-funded project under the KTP framework working with Service Robotics Limited, in collaboration with the School of Computing and Creative Technologies and the School of Social Sciences. The project will develop secure advanced AI enhancements to the GenieConnect robotic healthcare assistant developed by Service Robotics Limited to support proactive and preventative care models. (2025 – 2026)

CyberWEST

A NCSC-funded project led by UWE Bristol in collaboration with Universities of Bristol, Exeter and Plymouth, to design and develop a range of novel and engaging teaching materials for cyber security education, including information risk card games, game-based learning techniques, raspberry pi and micro-bit activities, digital forensics cases, and wireless penetration testing. The project facilitated a series of regional workshops led by each partner University to engage with over 100 school teachers across the South West region, as well as showcasing the teaching activities at the NCSC UK Education Ecosystem conference. (2023 – 2024)

Cyber sandpit: Linking cyber effects to mission objectives

A DSTL-funded project in collaboration with Trimetis and Frazer Nash Consultancy that explores training capabilities for military cyber protect teams and how human and machine-based decision support systems can assist for analysing and acting to protect hostile cyber environments. (January 2023 -October 2023)

Human-as-a-sensor: Crowdsourced cyber security

A DSTL-funded project in collaboration with Trimetis and Frazer Nash Consultancy that explores human reporting mechanisms for suspicious behaviour, and how human reporting can be processed and coupled with machine observable attributes, to provide proactive security for organisations. (January 2023 - October 2023)

Transforming Suspicious Activity Reports (SARs): UK's first technology line of defence

A UKRI Innovate UK-funded project, in collaboration with Synalogik Innovations Ltd, as well as Cardiff University and the University of Reading, to explore improving both the production and analysis of the SARs process, resulting in more efficient capability to investigate and respond to cyber crime and financial crime activity. (September 2022 - March 2024)

Measuring the suitability of AI technologies for autonomous resilience in cyber defence

A DSTL-funded project in collaboration with Trimetis, PA Consulting and QunetiQ. Within this project, we conducted a deep dive investigation into current and future considerations of how AI should be utilised in military, security, and defensive operations, including incident response and training activities. This project served as part of the ongoing "Autonomous Resilience in Cyber Defence" programme that DSTL operate. (2022)

CAVForth

CAVForth, funded by both UKRI Innovate UK and the Government Centre for Connected Autonomous Vehicles (CCAV), in collaboration with the Bristol Robotics Laboratory, Fusion Processing, and Stagecoach, developed a fully autonomous bus service in Scotland. The CSRC Cyber Security team contributed towards the cyber security assessment of this project, to ensure that safe and secure mechanisms are in place for vehicle operations. (2020-2022)