Research Labs

The research group “Critical Information Infrastructures” (cii) at the Institute of Applied Informatics and Formal Description Methods (AIFB) is headed by Ali Sunyaev. Research at the cii group has a strong focus on the design of trustworthy, internet-based information systems. In KASTEL SRL, the group focusses on resilient and human-centered information systems decentralization by harnessing the sociotechnical interplay.

The research group “Cryptographic Protocols” is headed by Andy Rupp. We focus on the gap between what existing cryptographic protocols offer and what is required in real-world applications. Particularly, the group is interested in the tension between the right to privacy and the need or desire to monitor and process user data to satisfy laws, regulations, business interests, etc., in user-centric applications. Our goal is the design of protocols and architectures enabling privacy, accountability, and transparency.

The research group “Cryptography and Security” of the KASTEL — Institute of Information Security and Dependability is headed by Jörn Müller-Quade. It conducts research in the areas of cryptography and IT security. The focus is on cryptographic protocols with provable security. Long term goals are truly practical privacy preserving computations and a quantification of security.

The research group „Decentralized Systems and Network Services” is headed by Hannes Hartenstein. It examines opportunities and limitations of decentralized systems, i.e., systems that are controlled by multiple independent parties. Current focus is on blockchains and distributed ledger technologies, broadcast and consensus, peer-to-peer networks, decentralized messaging, identity and access management, and privacy preserving computations.

The research group “Dependability of Software-intensive Systems” is headed by Ralf Reussner. It aims to integrate software engineering principles and methods integrated into systems engineering to systematically model and analyse software-intensive systems ranging from applications in the automotive over the mobility to the Industry 4.0 domain.