Eight Georgia Tech researchers received ACM Outstanding Paper Awards for their groundbreaking contributions to cybersecurity at the recent ACM Conference on Computer and Communications Security (CCS).
Three papers were recognized that address important challenges in the field, spanning areas such as automotive cybersecurity, password security, and cryptographic testing.
“These three projects support Georgia Tech in advancing cybersecurity solutions that have real-world impact, from protecting critical infrastructure to securing future computing systems to improving everyday digital practices. It emphasizes leadership,” said Michael Bailey, a professor at the School of Cybersecurity and Privacy (SCP). .
One of the papers, ERACAN: Defending Against an Emerging CAN Threat Model, was co-authored by Drs. student Zhaozhou Tang, associate professor Saman Zonouz, and engineering dean and professor Raheem Beyah. This research focuses on the security of the Controller Area Network (CAN), a critical system used in modern vehicles that is increasingly targeted by cyber threats.
“This project is led by PhD student Zhaozhou Tang in the Cyber-Physical Systems Security (CPSec) Laboratory,” said Zonouz. “Impressively, this is Zhaozhou’s first dissertation in his doctoral program, and this groundbreaking research on automotive cybersecurity deserves special recognition.”
The study introduces a comprehensive defense system to counter advanced threats to a vehicle’s CAN network, and the team is conducting the study in collaboration with the Hyundai America Technical Center. The CPSec Lab is a collaboration between SCP and the College of Electrical and Computer Engineering (ECE).
In another paper, “Testing the side-channel security of cryptographic implementations for future microarchitectures,” Assistant Professor Daniel Genkin collaborated with international researchers to define security threats in new computing technologies.
“We are grateful to ACM for recognizing our efforts,” Genkin said. “Tools for early-stage testing of CPUs against emerging side-channel threats are essential to ensuring the security of next-generation computing devices.”
The third paper, “Uncovering the Security and Usability of Password Masking,” was authored by graduate students Yuqi Hu, Suood Al Roomi, and Sena Sahin, and SCP and ECE assistant professor Frank Li. This study investigated its effectiveness and provided recommendations on how to implement password masking and hide characters when typed and provided.
“Password masking is a widely deployed security mechanism, but it has not been investigated in detail in previous research,” Lee said.
The assistant professor credited the collaborative efforts of the students, especially Yuqi Hu, for leading the project.
The ACM Conference on Computer and Communications Security (CCS) is the flagship annual conference of the Association for Computing Machinery (ACM) Special Interest Group on Security, Audit, and Control (SIGSAC). The conference was held in Salt Lake City from October 14th to 18th.
