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Original title in Czech: Informační bezpečnostFaculty: FEECAbbreviation: DPC-IBEAcad. year: 2021/2022
Type of study programme: Doctoral
Study programme code: P0688D060003
Degree awarded: Ph.D.
Language of instruction: Czech
Accreditation: 8.10.2019 - 7.10.2029
Mode of study
Full-time study
Standard study length
4 years
Programme supervisor
prof. Ing. Jaroslav Koton, Ph.D.
Doctoral Board
Chairman :prof. Ing. Jaroslav Koton, Ph.D.Councillor internal :doc. Ing. Ondřej Ryšavý, Ph.D.doc. Dr. Ing. Petr Hanáčekdoc. Ing. Karel Burda, CSc.doc. Ing. Václav Zeman, Ph.D.doc. Ing. Jan Hajný, Ph.D.prof. Ing. Jiří Mišurec, CSc.Councillor external :doc. Ing. Otto Dostál, CSc.
Fields of education
Study aims
The student is fostered to use the theoretical knowledge and experience gained through own research activities in an innovative manner. He is able to efficiently use the gathered knowledge for the design of own and prospective solutions within their further experimental development and applied research. The emphasis is put on gaining both theoretical and practical skill, ability of self-decisions, definition of research and development hypotheses to propose projects spanning from basic to applied research, ability to evaluation of the results and their dissemination as research papers and presentation in front of the research community.
Graduate profile
The study program aims at scientific preparation of doctoral students with deep theoretical knowledge of cryptography and system security. Most study courses are focused on applied mathematics, informatics and telecommunication technologies. The graduate has detailed knowledge about communication and information systems, data transfer and its security, including the use and design of software applications. She is able to analyze modern ciphers and cryptographic protocols, evaluate their security and propose their concrete usage in communication systems. She has a deep knowledge of operating systems, programming languages, database systems, distributed applications, etc. She is also experienced in task algoritmization. She is able to design novel technological solutions for telecommunications with high security standards. The graduate is able to understand and design modern cryptographic systems.
Profession characteristics
Graduates of the program "Information Security" will be positioned in research, development and design teams, in expert groups of production or business organizations, in the academic sphere and in other institutions involved in science, research, development and innovation, in all companies where communication systems and secure information transfer through data networks are being applied and used. Our graduates are particularly experienced in the analysis, design, creation or management of complex systems aimed for secure data transfer and processing, as well as in the programming, integration, support, maintenance or sale of these systems.
Fulfilment criteria
Doctoral studies are carried out according to the individual study plan, which will prepare the doctoral student in cooperation with the doctoral student at the beginning of the study. The individual study plan specifies all the duties stipulated in accordance with the BUT Study and Examination Rules, which the doctoral student must fulfill to successfully finish his studies. These responsibilities are time-bound throughout the study period, they are scored and fixed at fixed deadlines. The student enrolls and performs tests of compulsory courses, obligatory elective subjects with regard to the focus of his dissertation, and elective courses (English for PhD students, Solutions for Innovative Entries, Scientific Publishing from A to Z). The student may enroll for the state doctoral exam only after all the tests prescribed by his / her individual study plan have been completed. Before the state doctoral exam, the student prepares a dissertation thesis describing in detail the goals of the thesis, a thorough evaluation of the state of knowledge in the area of the dissertation solved, or the characteristics of the methods it intends to apply in the solution. The defense of the controversy that is opposed is part of the state doctoral exam. In the next part of the exam the student must demonstrate deep theoretical and practical knowledge in the field of cryptology, system security, network security and electrical engineering, electronics. The State Doctoral Examination is in oral form and, in addition to the discussion on the dissertation thesis, it also consists of thematic areas related to compulsory and compulsory elective subjects. To defend the dissertation, the student reports after the state doctoral examination and after fulfilling conditions for termination, such as participation in teaching, scientific and professional activity (creative activity) and at least a monthly study or work placement at a foreign institution or participation in an international creative project .
Study plan creation
The doctoral studies of a student follow the Individual Study Plan (ISP), which is defined by the supervisor and the student at the beginning of the study period. The ISP is obligatory for the student, and specifies all duties being consistent with the Study and Examination Rules of BUT, which the student must successfully fulfill by the end of the study period. The duties are distributed throughout the whole study period, scored by credits/points and checked in defined dates. The current point evaluation of all activities of the student is summarized in the “Total point rating of doctoral student” document and is part of the ISP. At the beginning of the next study year the supervisor highlights eventual changes in ISP. By October, 15 of each study year the student submits the printed and signed ISP to Science Department of the faculty to check and archive. Within the first four semesters the student passes the exams of compulsory, optional-specialized and/or optional-general courses to fulfill the score limit in Study area, and concurrently the student significantly deals with the study and analysis of the knowledge specific for the field defined by the dissertation thesis theme and also continuously deals with publishing these observations and own results. In the follow-up semesters the student focuses already more to the research and development that is linked to the dissertation thesis topic and to publishing the reached results and compilation of the dissertation thesis. By the end of the second year of studies the student passes the Doctor State Exam, where the student proves the wide overview and deep knowledge in the field linked to the dissertation thesis topic. The student must apply for this exam by April, 30 in the second year of studies. Before the Doctor State Exam the student must successfully pass the exam from English language course. In the third and fourth year of studies the student deals with the required research activities, publishes the reached results and compiles the dissertation thesis. As part of the study duties is also completing a study period at an abroad institution or participation on an international research project with results being published or presented in abroad or another form of direct participation of the student on an international cooperation activity, which must be proved by the date of submitting the dissertation thesis. By the end of the winter term in the fourth year of study students submit the elaborated dissertation thesis to the supervisor, who scores this elaborate. The final dissertation thesis is expected to be submitted by the student by the end of the fourth year of studies. In full-time study form, during the study period the student is obliged to pass a pedagogical practice, i.e. participate in the education process. The participation of the student in the pedagogical activities is part of his/her research preparations. By the pedagogical practice the student gains experience in passing the knowledge and improves the presentation skills. The pedagogical practice load (exercises, laboratories, project supervision etc.) of the student is specified by the head of the department based on the agreement with the student’s supervisor. The duty of pedagogical practice does not apply to students-payers and combined study program students. The involvement of the student in the education process within the pedagogical practice is confirmed by the supervisor in the Information System of the university.
What degree programme types may have preceded
The study program directly follows the Bachelor´s and Master´s study programs Information Security at FEKT, BUT.
Issued topics of Doctoral Study Program
The work is focused on the design of A/D and D/A converters working in the current mode. The aim is to design a suitable structure of number-current and current-number converters without internal current-voltage and voltage-current conversions with respect to enhancing the bandwidth in comparison with converters working in the voltage mode. Part of the work is also the design and analysis of current-mode antialiasing filters. The design will start from unconventional circuit element structures such as current conveyors (CCI, CCII, CCIII) with simple or floating output, current feedback amplifiers (CFA) or transconductance amplifiers (OTA, BOTA, DBTA). Requirements to be met by the candidate: the knowledge of circuit theory and simulation programs (MicroCap, PSpice).
Tutor: Lattenberg Ivo, doc. Ing., Ph.D.
The topic is focused on research of side channel attacks. These attacks target the implementation of secure cryptographic algorithms that are currently applied. The main goal is to research and design countermeasures methods that can be used to eliminate these types of attacks. We assume research on modern methods of hiding and masking. The participation on Department’s research projects is expected.
Tutor: Zeman Václav, doc. Ing., Ph.D.
The topic is focused on research and implementation of novel trends in cybersecurity education and training, in particular on the use of virtualization techniques and cyberranges. Student will focus on the research of novel methods and tools for the realization of cyberranges and their deployment into practical courses, including final evaluation. Student’s involvement in research projects at the UTKO department is expected.
Tutor: Hajný Jan, doc. Ing., Ph.D.
Telematics systems are particularly common in transport. Research into telematics systems based on the Internet Protocol will be focused on the design of sophisticated, i.e. well-defined, formally well-developed and complicated methods that use IP systems in various areas. Surveillance and protection systems, systems of paying the fare, information systems, interactive applications, etc. are supposed in particular. Localization by GPS, vehicle diagnostics, and vehicle monitoring on orthomaps in real situations are in the focus. Sophisticated telematics systems will be software simulated, optimized and subsequently hardware implemented in the form of functional prototypes. Communication between two cars without a driver intervention, collision avoidance, information transmission about traffic from the places that cars left are expected. A highly accurate navigation system based on the Galileo system (GNSS) for controlling functional blocks of cars is considered.
Tutor: Škorpil Vladislav, doc. Ing., CSc.
The aim is to create a design of an optimized smart communication network (Smart Grid) connected with Internet of Things (IoT), focusing on smart houses. The current electricity consumption of a household will respond flexibly to fluctuations in the energy network during the day in an effort to save costs and achieve optimal use of the electricity produced. To do this, home electrical appliances will use suitable modern sensors, transmission, and reliability optimization M2M (Machine-To-Machine), and advanced communication infrastructure design. It will also be necessary to consider streamlining wireless communication protocols, taking into account wired protocols. To achieve cost savings, advanced technologies will be designed, such as mobile networks over 5G and LTE, PLC, Ethernet, NB-IoT, SigFox, and LoRaWAN. It will be necessary to select a suitable simulation tool, such as Network Simulator 3 (NS3) and other usable environments.
Today's active network elements use a range of powerful algorithms for management of queues and control of switching. The task is to implement selected algorithms of queues management into a development system equipped with the FPGA card, to measure their performance and to develop a custom algorithm of queues management while respecting the standard marking used for QoS solutions. The solution assumes knowledge of languages C, VHDL, MATLAB, and possibly Verilog. An architecture of a network element with priority routing will be designed. An original procedure will be proposed for modelling this problem mathematically together with the implementation of the mathematical model. Software simulation of a system that can be used to control the switching field designed for switching data units shall be extended by its hardware implementation, e.g. via programmable logical arrays of the development system FPGA. The knowledge obtained will be generalized and related to the theory of high-speed network elements.
The Internet is used for distribution of large amounts of data. Those are available via repositories, which are replicated and situated at different geographical places. The goal of the study is to analyse the data distribution from the networking and geographical points of view. The outcome is a system proposal for data distribution for the intended application.
Tutor: Komosný Dan, prof. Ing., Ph.D.
It is known that the optical fiber can capture acoustic waves travelling across it. The goal of the PhD student would be to explore this type of eavesdropping on speech signals, map its possibilities and weaknesses, and last but not the least, process the captured signals, denoise them and analyze.
Tutor: Rajmic Pavel, prof. Mgr., Ph.D.
The aim is to create an effective strategy for the use of the public and private IP networks for crisis management. Also to propose such a network, which could have the capacity, but also in terms of resistance, to guarantee the crisis communication. This would be in particular traffic data, voice, and e.g. to manage the flow of information, etc. Research should also include the influence of network topology on its stability and security, the speed of the spread of viruses, ability to resist attacks, etc. One of the objectives is to design a software robot that will be able to monitor the network, and TV broadcasting. Other parts would propose new methods of Internet communication management, where appropriate, the Internet topology. The aim is to design a system for exchanging files over the Internet, but without any central control. The system should be intuitively usable. The solution should be safe and allow anonymity of the sender and the recipient of the data. The final objective is a theoretically supported design of a highly durable network suitable for crisis situations.
As wireless network security issues suppose use of standards IEEE 802.11, its vulnerability, attacks methods on the security, and the methods for enhancing effectiveness will be studied. Detailed introduction to these standards, description of various types of wireless security, including their properties and the subsequent theoretical analysis is supposed. Implementation of attacks on various methods of modern security algorithms will be used to identify the weaknesses of 802.11 protocols. On the basis of the findings a more effective security will be designed and tested. Attention will be paid to guarantee quality of service (QoS) in 802.11 networks. The network will be subject to examination by appropriate programs and simulators (OMNET++, NS2). Effect of delay on modern services (IP phones, transmission of video, voice, multimedia) will also be examined. An overall analysis, including QoS optimization will be performed.
The work is focused on the feature analysis of current-mode electronic frequency filters. The aim is to design algoritmizable methods that lead to finding features of filters generally defined by the schematic. It will be necessary to evaluate the available feature ranges, e.g. quality, pass-band current transfer, dynamic range within a defined supply voltage, sensitivity, etc. In the case of finding the quality range, the point is to find the extremes of a multi-variable non-linear function. Mathematical tools (e.g. Maple or MathCAD) will first be used for this purpose; afterwards the algorithm itself will be designed. Requirements to be met by the candidate: algorithm thinking, the knowledge of computer programming and circuit theory.
The study deals with forensic methods to obtain evidence from mass storage media and volatile memory. Current methods will be tested on use-case studies. The goal is to propose methods for data collection, implement them, and verify their effectiveness. The topic covers various types of devices and operating systems.
The topic is focused on the area of the security of modern network infrastructures and services. The goal is the design of effective methods for the protection and vulnerability testing of high-speed networks against flood attacks and ISO/OSI model application layer attacks. The topic is also focused on the effective implementation of security algorithms.
The topic deals with the issue of reliable information exchange between mobile nodes in FANET communication network. To ensure such feature, it is necessary to ensure sufficient knowledge of the communication node about its neighbours, i.e. other mobile nodes. The topic also deals with the orientation of the node, i.e. awareness of its position in user defined perimeter, where the node fulfils the given task. The results of the studies are new mechanisms ensuring efficient data exchange and also ability of reliable operation of the node, or a swarm of nodes, also under harsh conditions.
Tutor: Koton Jaroslav, prof. Ing., Ph.D.
The aim of this work is to study mathematical models of data communication with respect of anomaly detection. The anomaly may be caused by either change in the data traffic structure or security incidents. The work should explore capabilities and suitability of various mathematical models for utilization in distinguished types of network utilization: internet connectivity for household, small or large enterprise, server farms, ISP, ...
Goal of this thesis is to research in area of measurement of basic parameters of data networks based mostly on Internet Protocol (IP), such as throughput, one-way delay and round-trip time, so as in area of derived parameters, such as quality of voice and video services. This comes with problematics of modelling of behaviour of network and user under various conditions, long-term and short-term events, a description of mass-serving systems and also features and behaviour key internet and measuring protocols in computer networks, so as topic of their possible setting and security. Based on analysis of available tools and their features, or development of own tools, design of solution and approaches for various types of measurements is expected. Designed methodology should be verified both in environment of lab and real-world networks.
Tutor: Jeřábek Jan, doc. Ing., Ph.D.
The study topic is focused on research methods for measurement and evaluation data parameters of heterogeneous communication networks in terms of end-user access to the Internet and other services.
Wireless data transmission using ultra high frequencies in the order of GHz or even THz is one of the cornerstones of modern mobile networks to meet the ever-increasing demands for overall capacity and scalability of cellular systems. However, the propagation of a radio signal in those frequency bands entails a number of new technological requirements and challenges that need to be addressed for successful deployment in real-world scenarios. The aim of this doctoral thesis is a detailed analysis of key requirements of evolving applications such as augmented or virtual reality or wearables and the subsequent design of a propagation model taking into account transmissions in 3D space and other specifics of the radio channel in the ultra-high frequency band. The proposed model will be verified by simulations and / or experimental measurements.
Tutor: Hošek Jiří, doc. Ing., Ph.D.
The topic is focused on the research and development of novel cryptographic mechanisms for user authentication. Student will focus on the methods of strong authentication for online services based on multiple factors (smart cards, tokens, telephones) and their formal security proofs. Student’s involvement in research projects at the UTKO department is expected.
The topic is focused on research and design of new methods that can be used during the security testing (penetration test). The research is focused on suitable methods for web applications penetration testing, network infrastructure penetration testing, but also for penetration testing of dedicated devices such as smart meters. The participation on Department’s research projects is expected.
The theme is focused on a visualisation of partial results and features inside of classification processes used by deep learning networks. The goal is understanding of feature analysis and visual interpretation of partial processes namely for image data object classifiers. Produced methods should provide image outputs for both art and analytic utilisation. The goal in artistic field is image synthesis and analytic instruments are aimed to inner processes and partial stages mapping and analysis of their influence on results.
Tutor: Říha Kamil, doc. Ing., Ph.D.
The study deals with systems that are required to response independently of the current state of operation and environment changes. The goal is to distribute the operating system resources to particular tasks as they do not interfere with each other. Example applications are medical and defence systems.
The aim is research in the field of evolutionary algorithms parallelization. Parallelization is an integral part of an endeavour to increase effectiveness of evolutionary algorithms and their possible use. Research should build on current knowledge and carry out further research on the impact of selected parameters and design details on the performance. Research should be concentrated on the island models of evolutionary algorithms. According to the chosen method the knowledge of some programming language is required, as well as scripting languages Python or Matlab. Selected development and testing environment is left to free choice. The results should be presented and verified.
The study topic is focused on research of physical unclonable functions and their use in cryptographic protocols. Physical unclonable function (PUF) is a physical entity that is embodied in a physical structure and is easy to evaluate but hard to predict. PUF represent an alternative to safely store secret key cryptosystems.
The topic aims at the analysis, design and optimization of modern post-quantum cryptographic protocols that offer a secure alternative to existing protocols based on discrete logarithm and factorization problems. The research can be focused more on the one of current open problems such as hardware acceleration of PQC using FPGA, postquantum blockchain technology, post-quantum privacy-enhancing technologies, PQC on limited devices etc. The participation on Department’s national and international research projects is expected.
Tutor: Malina Lukáš, doc. Ing., Ph.D.
The topic is focused on the research into modern cryptographic protocols resistant to attacks using quantum computers. Students will focus on the algorithms and protocols of the NIST competition and their optimization for hardware platforms and the integration with classical algorithms and quantum-based algorithms. Student’s involvement in research projects at the UTKO department is expected.
Quantum attack-resistant cryptography is a very current topic. With the advent of quantum computers, all current asymmetric cryptographic schemes, such as RSA, DSA or ECC, will be broken. These threats are already being addressed at the level of international organizations and standardization bodies, such as NIST. Student will focus on implementation and optimization of quantum-resistant algorithms. Student involvement in research projects at UTKO, FEKT is expected.
Tutor: Ricci Sara, M.Sc., Ph.D.
Today's digital world is dependent on data security during communication but also in storage, for example in e-banking, e-commerce, e-health or e-government. With the advent of quantum computers, there is a risk of potential security breaches today. Quantum Key Distribution (QKD) provides a way to distribute and share secret keys that are necessary for cryptographic protocols. The information is coded into individual photons. Integrating QKD systems into existing network infrastructure used for telecommunications is a topical challenge. Some other major challenges include increasing of the key rate, increasing the range of the QKD system, or reducing the complexity and robustness of existing solutions.
Tutor: Münster Petr, doc. Ing., Ph.D.
Real-time systems continuously evaluate the input parameters and respond within a specified time to an input event. Research in this area is focused on assuring the timed responses when the hardware used is considered. The goal is to analyse the requirements on these systems and propose/implement means to guarantee the time constraints in the intended application area.
The topic is focused on research of applied modern cryptography (light cryptography, schemes with privacy protection, authentication and key management) and optimization within intelligent networks such as Internet of Everything, Internet of vehicles, 5G and smart cities. The research deals in more detail with the design of methods for securing communication in decentralized networks and for protecting the privacy of users. The participation on Department’s national and international research projects is expected.
Development of operating systems reflects changes in the area of cybersecurity. The topic deals with the analysis of operating systems with different architectures from the security point of view, for example, based on a study of previous attacks. The goal is to propose a modification of the system services in relation to the intended application.
Research activities and development in the area of heterogeneous communication networks aim to meet the demanding requirements of the communication networks, i.e., increased communication speeds, optimized communication latency, enhanced quality of service, and exponentially growing number of connected devices to the network. The ubiquitous connectivity is supposed to achieve while utilizing new communication principles, progressive technologies, innovative mechanisms for the management of the network resources, and essential modifications of the frequency spectrum as well as an advanced selection of the serving cells. The communication technologies operating in both licensed and license-exempt frequency bands will be then integrated into the one heterogeneous communication system. The aim of the dissertation thesis is to study up-to-date communication technologies for the communication scenarios known as massive Machine-Type Communication (mMTC). During the initial phase, the attention will be given to: (i) the communication technologies operating in the licensed frequency bands, i.e., those defined by 3GPP in the Release 13 and newer (Narrowband IoT, LTE Cat-M a 5G (NSA, SA)) and (ii) to the communication technologies utilizing the license-exempt frequency bands, i.e., (Sigfox, LoRaWAN). The initial findings will be used to fully understand the key principles of the Low-Power Wide-Area (LPWA) technologies. Also, to extend the knowledge, real measurement campaigns will take place using the communication prototypes built at Brno University of Technology. Finally, the obtained data will be used as the input data sets for complex simulation scenarios / analytical modeling. Next, the results will be analyzed and proposals of the new communication mechanisms targeting the optimization of the utilization of the network resources will be discussed. The attention will be focused on: (i) predictive switching between serving cells / communication technologies, (ii) optimization of the control plane traffic with the option to transmit the user data within the signaling traffic, (iii) switching between device operation states (connected, idle, power saving), (iv) forming of the MESH communication infrastructure while using the heterogeneous communication systems. Introduced principles will be then implemented within the infrastructure of the communication operator as well as on the side of the end devices. To be able to reach the above-mentioned goals, the unique laboratory at the Department of Telecommunication at BUT (UniLab) will be used. Also, while working on the dissertation thesis, cooperation with both industry and academia partners will be held.
Tutor: Mašek Pavel, Ing., Ph.D.
The aim of the work is to design an optimal strategy for cyber security solutions for smart meters and related infrastructure in synergy with the impact on performance and the operation or installation itself. The main goal will be to create several strategies for the implementation of cyber security for Smart Metering and to find the optimal variant for given scenarios. The research will focus on finding trade offs between cyber security and data volumes, communication scenarios, efficiency via simulation and experimental measurements.
Tutor: Mlýnek Petr, doc. Ing., Ph.D.
The work focuses on the design, simulation and development of distributed and quasi-distributed fiber optic sensing systems. These systems use conventional single-mode telecommunication optical fibers, multimode fibers, polymer optical fibers (POF), microstructural fibers, multicore fibers, or other special fibers as a sensor. Using scattering phenomena (Raman, Brillouin, or Rayleigh scattering), or possibly changing the parameters of the transmitted optical signal (change in intensity, phase, polarization, etc.), it is possible to obtain information about temperature, vibration and other physical quantities along the optical fiber.
Small base stations installed on autonomous devices, such as drones, are considered an important part of new generations of wireless cellular networks in order to provide additional coverage and capacity of the mobile network based on current demand. Due to the dynamic nature, traffic density and diverse requirements of modern wireless networks, flexible solutions are important for practical deployments that can respond in real time to the current requirements of modern network applications and adapt their parameters such as scalability, topology or coverage. The aim of this work is to research the mechanisms of flying base stations as an important component of emerging 5G + wireless networks. The student's task will be to make a detailed overview of existing commercial and non-commercial solutions and technologies of autonomous mobile networks and then with the help of artificial intelligence and machine learning tools to design mechanisms for dynamic topology, "on-demand" configuration and optimization of communication parameters of networks consisting of autonomous base stations with respect to basic network KPIs such as the number of users served, continuity of service or energy efficiency.