The digital world has become an integral part of daily life for many people. Whether it’s private messages, medical records, corporate information, or state secrets, all of this sensitive data is digitized and made accessible worldwide. This makes them an attractive target for cybercriminals who often possess significant financial resources and technical expertise to cause long-term harm. Current security solutions are often inadequate for this challenge.

The outstanding researchers of our Cluster of Excellence “CASA – Cyber Security in the Age of Large-Scale Adversaries” research and develop robust and sustainable countermeasures against powerful cyber attackers, with a focus on nation-state adversaries. The research of CASA is characterized by a strong interdisciplinary approach that not only addresses technical issues but also examines the interplay between human behavior and IT security. Accordingly, our research focuses on the themes “Future Cryptography,” “Embedded Security,” “Secure Systems,” and “Usability.” This unique, holistic approach forms the basis for excellent research in the field of IT security.

The great success of our cluster in the global NIST standardization process for post-quantum cryptography shows that our research affects everyone. Researchers of our cluster have played a crucial role in developing encryption methods that cannot be broken even by quantum computers and are expected to become the new global standard in the future.

With our public outreach projects, we offer creative and innovative ways to present complex research topics to the interested public. These projects bridge the gap between science and society and create a platform for public discussions on current developments. Our projects include a science comic series, various art projects, and science talks under the motto “CyBARsecurity.”

We are particularly committed to promoting equality and diversity: In addition to the biennial highlight in Bochum, the Women in Security and Cryptography (WISC) Workshop, we offer regular networking meetings for women in IT security (ITS better toGATHER), special workshops for women in IT security, and diversity and inclusion topics. We also support events related to EOD (Equal Opportunities & Diversity) and are preparing to introduce diversity mentoring.

Involved Institutions:

• Max Planck Institute for Security and Privacy
• Technische Universität Berlin
• Technische Universität Braunschweig
• University of Duisburg-Essen
• Eindhoven University of Technology
• Leibniz University Hannover
• Technical University of Munich
• Fraunhofer Institute for Material Flow and Logistics