Analysis and classification of malicious code. Malicious software such as viruses and worms directly attacks the security, privacy and integrity of Australian e-commerce, large databases and communication channels. The recent uptake of malicious software by organised crime has made finding effective countermeasures more urgent. Around 80% of the malicious code in circulation is disguised in some way. This significantly increases the difficulty of automated detection and delays analysis. Automate ....Analysis and classification of malicious code. Malicious software such as viruses and worms directly attacks the security, privacy and integrity of Australian e-commerce, large databases and communication channels. The recent uptake of malicious software by organised crime has made finding effective countermeasures more urgent. Around 80% of the malicious code in circulation is disguised in some way. This significantly increases the difficulty of automated detection and delays analysis. Automated classification and de-obfuscation technologies are a precondition to applying more sophisticated detection heuristics. The project will be instrumental in safeguarding Australia by protecting critical infrastructure and defending us from online organised crime and information warfare.Read moreRead less
New Efficient Cryptographic Tools for Data Privacy and Software Protection. Online services for collaborative communication and software distribution are commonplace today, but their use is hampered by data privacy breaches and intellectual property violations via software reverse engineering. Recent theoretical breakthroughs in cryptography promise to provide new powerful tools for solving these problems, but these tools are not yet suitable for practical use, due to their low efficiency and a ....New Efficient Cryptographic Tools for Data Privacy and Software Protection. Online services for collaborative communication and software distribution are commonplace today, but their use is hampered by data privacy breaches and intellectual property violations via software reverse engineering. Recent theoretical breakthroughs in cryptography promise to provide new powerful tools for solving these problems, but these tools are not yet suitable for practical use, due to their low efficiency and a lack of solid security foundations. This project aims to apply algebraic and probabilistic techniques to improve efficiency of existing tools, and the understanding of their security. Outcomes are expected to include new insights in cryptographic theory, and new practical tools for cyber security.Read moreRead less
Use of Interval Arithmetic and GRID Computing in Computational Molecular Science: Bounding Errors and Locating Global Minima. Catastrophic failure of the Ariane 5 rocket in 1996 and the inability of Patriot missile systems to reach their targets during the 1991 Gulf war were both attributed to numerical computing errors. Less dramatic, but in a similar vein, this project aims to study the numerical stability of contemporary computational molecular science applications. The focus will be on linea ....Use of Interval Arithmetic and GRID Computing in Computational Molecular Science: Bounding Errors and Locating Global Minima. Catastrophic failure of the Ariane 5 rocket in 1996 and the inability of Patriot missile systems to reach their targets during the 1991 Gulf war were both attributed to numerical computing errors. Less dramatic, but in a similar vein, this project aims to study the numerical stability of contemporary computational molecular science applications. The focus will be on linear scaling electronic structure codes, methods that are critical to the study of nano- and bio-materials, and are therefore of great importance to our economic future and medical well being. The project will build expertise within Australia in the area of interval arithmetic, an area that is currently poorly represented.Read moreRead less
Algebraic Methods in Design and Analysis of Stream Ciphers. The project investigates the problem of communication security in the mobile environment where both confidentiality and authenticity are of prime concern. Stream ciphers are a very natural choice in mobile environment as they provide an efficient cryptographic protection using a limited computing resources. We model stream cipher as a system of multivariate equations. In this approach, security of stream ciphers can be measured as the c ....Algebraic Methods in Design and Analysis of Stream Ciphers. The project investigates the problem of communication security in the mobile environment where both confidentiality and authenticity are of prime concern. Stream ciphers are a very natural choice in mobile environment as they provide an efficient cryptographic protection using a limited computing resources. We model stream cipher as a system of multivariate equations. In this approach, security of stream ciphers can be measured as the complexity of an algorithm that solves the appropriate system of equations. This project leads to new techniques for the design and analysis of stream ciphers.Read moreRead less
Algebraic Models of Stream Ciphers. The project investigates communication security in the mobile environment where both confidentiality and authenticity are of a prime concern. Stream ciphers are a natural choice in mobile environments as they provide an efficient cryptographic protection using a limited computing resources. We treat stream ciphers as algebraic objects whose properties fully determine their cryptographic strength. We first analyse existing stream ciphers showing their algebraic ....Algebraic Models of Stream Ciphers. The project investigates communication security in the mobile environment where both confidentiality and authenticity are of a prime concern. Stream ciphers are a natural choice in mobile environments as they provide an efficient cryptographic protection using a limited computing resources. We treat stream ciphers as algebraic objects whose properties fully determine their cryptographic strength. We first analyse existing stream ciphers showing their algebraic properties and later we derive a design methodology for provably secure stream ciphers. The project leads to new secure and efficient designs for stream ciphers that are the preferred cryptographic tools used in Australian industry.Read moreRead less
Algebraic Analysis of Cryptosystems. This project studies an (new) algebraic approach to cryptanalysis of modern block ciphers. The approach works for all cryptosystems that use either small S-boxes, or their algebraic structure can be described by a system of overdefined quadratic equations. The cryptosystems that are potentially breakable using this approach are Rijndael and Serpent - the two top finalists of the Advanced Encryption Standard contest. The project also explores how this approach ....Algebraic Analysis of Cryptosystems. This project studies an (new) algebraic approach to cryptanalysis of modern block ciphers. The approach works for all cryptosystems that use either small S-boxes, or their algebraic structure can be described by a system of overdefined quadratic equations. The cryptosystems that are potentially breakable using this approach are Rijndael and Serpent - the two top finalists of the Advanced Encryption Standard contest. The project also explores how this approach can be applied to design new and more powerful factoring algorithms. The project has an explosive potential to redefine the theory and practice of modern cryptography.Read moreRead less
Development of Cryptographic Library and Support System. The protection of the whole cyber space relies on a foundation of cryptography. Cryptographic components of apps authenticate remote parties and secure the communications. However, cryptographic misuse has become a most common issue in development of security component, affecting up to 90% of apps!
This project aims to research, design and develop a crypto library. The innovation of this project lays in three aspects: (1) we will develop ....Development of Cryptographic Library and Support System. The protection of the whole cyber space relies on a foundation of cryptography. Cryptographic components of apps authenticate remote parties and secure the communications. However, cryptographic misuse has become a most common issue in development of security component, affecting up to 90% of apps!
This project aims to research, design and develop a crypto library. The innovation of this project lays in three aspects: (1) we will develop a self-contained, reliable, compatible and verifiable crypto library; (2) we will develop security test software automatically to test and verify security of codes; and (3) we will provide intelligent decision support through argumentation to help developers to apply the library efficiently and correctly.Read moreRead less
Algebraic Properties of Cryptographic Components and their Cryptanalysis. The outcomes will enhance information and communication security, which is absolutely crucial for the rapidly growing e-commerce and e-government services in Australia. International collaboration will be strengthened by reciprocal exchange of researchers and postgraduate students leading to more attractive and productive research environment. Our project will help to maintain a high profile of Australian researchers, to i ....Algebraic Properties of Cryptographic Components and their Cryptanalysis. The outcomes will enhance information and communication security, which is absolutely crucial for the rapidly growing e-commerce and e-government services in Australia. International collaboration will be strengthened by reciprocal exchange of researchers and postgraduate students leading to more attractive and productive research environment. Our project will help to maintain a high profile of Australian researchers, to increase the capacity for consultancy and contract work, and provide a cutting-edge information technology for the Australian telecommunications industry, business and government.Read moreRead less
New Directions in Mining Complex Spatial Relationships in Large Scientific Databases. International and Australian organizations are investing in large projects involving the collection of terabytes of scientific data. The Anglo-Australian Galaxy Redshift Survey in eastern Australia has obtained data for a quarter of a million galaxies. Similarly the Tropical Ocean Global Atmophere(TOGA) program is being expanded to collect data from the equatorial pacific region which will help better understa ....New Directions in Mining Complex Spatial Relationships in Large Scientific Databases. International and Australian organizations are investing in large projects involving the collection of terabytes of scientific data. The Anglo-Australian Galaxy Redshift Survey in eastern Australia has obtained data for a quarter of a million galaxies. Similarly the Tropical Ocean Global Atmophere(TOGA) program is being expanded to collect data from the equatorial pacific region which will help better understand the El Nino/Southern Oscillation Cycle. We are developing powerful spatial data mining tools which will go a long way in finding potential nuggets of useful information in these large databases and help Australian and international scientists hypothesise new theories to explain the underlying phenomenon.Read moreRead less
Security for Peer-to-Peer Systems. The importance of adequate security for Internet and online services has been underscored by recent events. The protection of information infrastructures in this ever-increasing digital world has become essential for businesses, governments and individuals. Secure interactions over the Internet have become a strategic necessity and it is critically important for Australia to possess the technology to anticipate and respond to security threats to its industry an ....Security for Peer-to-Peer Systems. The importance of adequate security for Internet and online services has been underscored by recent events. The protection of information infrastructures in this ever-increasing digital world has become essential for businesses, governments and individuals. Secure interactions over the Internet have become a strategic necessity and it is critically important for Australia to possess the technology to anticipate and respond to security threats to its industry and society. The outcomes of this research project will result in secure and trustworthy computing technologies that will enable secure e-commerce applications and on-line services and trusted interactions between users over the Internet. Read moreRead less