Computer Science

Achim is a full Professor in Computer Science (Chair in Cyber Security) and Head of the Cybersecurity Group at the University of Exeter, UK, and a leading expert in secure software engineering, cybersecurity, and formal methods. He is the head of the Cybersecurity Group (Research Area) at Exeter and leads the Software Assurance & Security Research Team.. Currently, he is a member of the advisory committee of Anzen Technology Systems Ltd, helping them to realize their vision in providing post-quantum safe technology to their customers. From December 2015 to May 2019, he was a Senior Lecturer at the The University of Sheffield, UK.

Until December 2015, Achim was a Research Expert (Architect), Security Testing Strategist, and Project Lead in the Global Security Team of SAP SE, where, among others, he defined the risk-based security testing strategy of SAP. This strategy combines static, dynamic, and interactive security testing methods and integrates them deeply into SAP's Secure Software Development Life Cycle. He was involved in rolling out static and dynamic application security testing tools to the world-wide development organization of SAP. Moreover, he represented SAP in OCL standardization process of the OMG.

His research interests cover broad areas of Formal Methods (Verification, Computational Logic), Cyber Security (including Privacy, Information Security, Software Security, Hardware Security), and Software Engineering (e.g., Program Verification, Programming or Specification Language Semantics). He is interested in both, theoretical/foundational and applied research and innovation. His work experience in both industry and academia reflects his unique combination of applied and theoretical work.

Want to Work with Me: Industry and Academic Collaborations

I am always excited to connect with new collaborators in areas of my research (e.g., cybersecurity, information security, high-integrity systems, formal methods, software development/engineering, etc.). Collaboration can range from informally to publicly (co-)funded project to direct industry engagements. Within the umbrella of the university, usually short term consultancy work (a few days) or long-term project (at least six months) or co-funded PhD studentships seem to work best. But other collaboration modes can also work. Please email me to discuss details or book a short meeting to discuss potential collaborations!

Want to Work with Me: Prospective PhD Students

I always welcome applications from self-funded PhD students in all areas of security, safety, trustworthiness, or reliability. This includes, but is not limited to, topics in one or more of the following ares: formal methods, information security, software security, security engineering (both, software and hardware), verification, testing, and combinations thereof.

For more information about pursuing a PhD in Computer Science at the University of Exeter, please visit the postgraduate research page of the department. Each year there are also a number of studentships available, e.g., offered by the UK Research Council, the China Scholarship Council (CSC), or by the Commonwealth Scholarships Programme.

If you want to be supervised by me, please contact me at least four weeks before you apply (and before the deadline). This allows us to discuss (and maybe adapt) your research proposal. In your email (cover letter), please provide a short explanation why you want to be supervised by me, e.g.,

  • For topics proposed by me: provide a brief explanation why you are interested in my proposal and what prior-knowledge of the area you have. Areas I am currently particularly interested in include (but are not limited to):
    • Cyber-physical Systems for safety- or security-critical applications.
    • Formal approaches to web browser security.
    • Security testing or reverse engineering.
    • Program analysis or fuzzing for improving the security, safety, correctness of software applications.
    • Open source security and secure software supply chains.
    • Theorem prover-based testing.
    • Verification or testing of security or correctness properties for non-standard computing architectures (e.g., quantum computing, FPGA, GPGPU).
    • Integrating Formal and Semi-Formal Aspects of System Development for Certification Processes
    • Formal approaches to security and privacy.
    • Trustworthy ML/AI for high-assurance Systems.
  • For topics proposed by you: provide a brief explanation why I am the right person to supervise you, i.e., how does your proposal fit in my research (and where is my expertise beneficial). I also strongly recommend having a look on my publications and research. This should give you a good idea of the type of research I am interested in.

PhD Supervision

  • Ongoing
    • Supervisor
      • Teddy Cameron-Burke, Formal Verification of Cyber-Physical Systems. University of Exeter, UK.
      • Amy Stell, Formal Verification of Neural Networks. University of Exeter, UK.
      • Mustafa Albalushi, Timeseries Analysis. University of Exeter, UK.
      • Alexander Richardson-Hall, Novel socio-technical approaches to cyber security education and pedagogy. University of Exeter, UK.
    • Co-Supervisor / 2nd Supervisor
      • Siqi Sun, Adversarial Attacks. University of Liverpool, UK.
      • Billy Thornton, Formal verification of smart contracts. University of Exeter, UK.
      • Yangjun Ma, Reconceptualization of “Attacks” in Cyberspace Under International Humanitarian Law. University of Exeter, UK
      • Destiny Ho, Game Theory for Cyber Security Economics. University of Exeter, UK
      • Pratik Shrestha, Design & Development of Mitigation Mechanisms against Architectural & Microarchitectural Security Vulnerabilities. University of Exeter, UK
  • Completed

Industry Advisory Roles

Qualifications

Academic Management and Administrative Roles

View full profile