Syafiq Al Atiiq hardened software against attacks

Published: 2025-05-05

Title of thesis: Principles and Solutions for Improved Availability and Code Vulnerability Detection Link to thesis in Lund University Research Portal Defence: Friday, May 16th, in E:1406 at 13:15. Zoom link. Zoom ID:...

Title of thesis: Principles and Solutions for Improved Availability and Code Vulnerability Detection

Link to thesis in Lund University Research Portal

Defence:  Friday, May 16th, in E:1406 at 13:15.

Zoom link.
Zoom ID: 68034306533.

Describe your research in a popular science way

My research explored the following question: how do we ensure our system remains available when facing attacks or failures?
I focus on three areas. First, I've developed protocols for Internet of Things (IoT) devices, shielding these resource-limited devices from being overwhelmed by malicious traffic and help them recover after compromise.
Second, I've investigated security vulnerabilities in 5G networks, particularly in their AI-driven mobility prediction systems. I've shown that even a small number of fake devices can significantly reduce prediction accuracy and identified strategies to make these systems more resilient.
Finally, I've explored how artificial intelligence can automatically detect vulnerabilities in software before they become security problems. My research reveals that different programming languages and vulnerability types perform variably.

What made you want to pursue a PhD?

My path to doctoral studies emerged at a professional crossroads after experiencing both the startup and corporate worlds as an employee. This transition period gave me the opportunity to reflect on what truly mattered to me professionally.

What is the most fascinating or interesting with your thesis subject?

Most of the work here is based on real-world problems, and sometimes the most intuitive solution is not always the best one. One example would be that, intuitively, the larger the AI model is, the better the performance should be. But we show that smaller models can perform better (with less inference cost), at least in the vulnerability detection problem that we explored.

Do you believe some results from your research will be applied in practice eventually? And if so, how / how?

Yes! We have a product based on the last two papers of this dissertation. There is a company called VyPr AI, tackling software vulnerability detection using (some of) our results.

Link to the article Syafiq Al Atiiq hardened software against attacks

Joakim Brorsson studied the security of Trusted Third Parties

Published: 2025-02-25

Title of thesis: On the Trustworthiness of Trusted Third Parties Link to thesis in Lund University Research Portal: https://portal.research.lu.se/sv/publications/on-the-trustworthiness-of-trusted-third-parties Defence: Friday, March 7th, in...

Title of thesis: On the Trustworthiness of Trusted Third Parties
Link to thesis in Lund University Research Portal:

https://portal.research.lu.se/sv/publications/on-the-trustworthiness-of-trusted-third-parties

Defence:  Friday, March 7th, in E:1406 at 09:15.

Zoom link: https://lu-se.zoom.us/j/67331586615
Zoom ID: 67331586615.

Describe your research in a popular science way
Much of the security of today?s IT-systems depend on trusting central points. For example, the secure connection your browser makes when visiting a webpage is guaranteed in part by a central party which certifies the legitimacy of web pages. If such a central party fails in its security, and there are many practical examples of such events, the consequences are large. My research is aimed at getting rid of as much trust as possible in these trusted parties.

What made you want to pursue a PhD?
After graduating with a master?s degree and beginning to work in the cybersecurity industry, I often found that existing ways of building secure systems felt inadequate. However, my knowledge was not deep enough to propose the needed improvements. A PhD was the prefect way of acquiring the needed knowledge.

Do you believe some results from your research will be applied in practice eventually? And if so, how / how?
I really hope that my final paper called Consistency-or-Die, or some follow up work to it, gets deployed in practice. The paper points out security problems in deployed large-scale systems called Key Transparency logs, which are part of the security in WhatsApp and iMessage, and proposes practical solutions. I also think that some of my research on Intel SGX is valuable in practice.

What are your plans?
I am now working at the cybersecurity company Hyker, which I co-founded before pursuing a PhD, and which has inspired part of my research. At Hyker, I can use knowledge acquired at LTH to build better cybersecurity products which eliminate trust in trusted third parties.

Photo: Erika Weiland, Apelöga AB.

Link to the article Joakim Brorsson studied the security of Trusted Third Parties

Ben Nel studied improvement potential of microstrip patch antennas.

Published: 2025-02-13

Title of thesis: Performance Limits for Microstrip Patch Antennas. Link to thesis in Lund University Research Portal: https://portal.research.lu.se/en/publications/performance-limits-for-microstrip-patch-antennas Defence: Friday, February...

Title of thesis: Performance Limits for Microstrip Patch Antennas.

Link to thesis in Lund University Research Portal:

https://portal.research.lu.se/en/publications/performance-limits-for-microstrip-patch-antennas

Defence:  Friday, February 14th, in E:1406 at 09:15.

Zoom link: https://lu-se.zoom.us/j/63106127825
Zoom ID: 63106127825.

Describe your research in a popular science way

This thesis explores the fundamental limits of a particular class of antennas called microstrip patch antennas, revealing how well they can perform under certain design constraints. Microstrip patch antennas are widely used for their versatility and compact design. Much like musical instruments that produce sound by exciting resonances/oscillations, in the case of microstrip patch antennas, resonances lead to electromagnetic radiation as opposed to sound. These antennas are used in numerous electronic systems, from mobile phones to satellites, owing in part to their compatibility with existing technologies such as printed circuits. Despite their widespread use, achieving high performance in microstrip patch antenna design remains challenging. To help overcome this, traditional optimization methods can benefit from leveraging fundamental physical limits on antenna performance. Without these performance limits or a starting design that satisfies the requirements, designers face the daunting task of searching through an infinite design space without knowing whether their goals are even achievable. This thesis addresses these challenges by introducing a systematic approach to determine fundamental performance limits of microstrip patch antennas, enabling more focused and efficient design strategies.

Please complement with a relevant, or your favorite, graph/illustration (that is ok to publish from an IPR perspective) together with a caption of 10-30 words.

This figure shows that the theoretical performance limits presented in this thesis accurately predict the measured performance of three existing, well-designed, fabricated microstrip patch antennas.

What made you want to pursue a PhD?
To learn new things.

What is the most fascinating or interesting with your thesis subject?
The mathematical formulation of physical phenomena

Do you believe some results from your research will be applied in practice eventually? And if so, how / how?
Yes, I think the performance limits on microstrip patch antennas will be used as a benchmark for new designs.

What are your plans?
To travel before starting work.

Link to the article Ben Nel studied improvement potential of microstrip patch antennas.