Courses offered by members of the cryptology and data security research group. Current courses are listed below. See also the past courses and the thesis projects.

Overview

Undergraduate-level courses – Bachelor Informatik, University of Bern

Two yearly courses that introduce students to relevant areas in computer science and prepare for the advanced courses. Undergraduate courses are taught in German.

  • Diskrete Mathematik (Fall)

  • Algorithmen, Wahrscheinlichkeit und Information (Spring)

Graduate-level courses – University of Bern and Joint Master in Computer Science

Topics span cryptology, security, distributed computing, privacy, and more. Preview of the schedule.

Thesis projects

Fall 2024

  • Diskrete Mathematik (in German)

    Bachelor Informatik, University of Bern; KSL 11479; please register in ILIAS.

    Diese Vorlesung führt in diskrete Mathematik ein und behandelt eine Reihe von zentralen Methoden und Konzepten, welche wichtig sind für das tiefere Verständnis der Informatik. Diskrete Mathematik ist ein Teilgebiet der Mathematik, das sich hauptsächlich mit endlichen und abzählbaren Strukturen beschäftigt. Zuerst werden Grundlagen der Logik eingeführt, insbesondere Aussagenlogik und Prädikatenlogik. Wichtige Themen sind danach Mengen, Relationen und Funktionen. Es folgen Themen aus Algebra und Zahlentheorie, welche auch für kryptographische Verfahren oder Codierungstheorie die Basis bilden. Darüber hinaus werden Konzepte aus der Graphentheorie vorgestellt. Die Vorlesung dient der Vorbereitung auf weitergehende Themen der theoretischen Informatik, wie Berechenbarkeit, Komplexität, Effizienz und probabilistische Algorithmen.

    Kurssprache ist Deutsch. Unterlagen sind in Englisch.

  • Distributed Algorithms

    University of Bern and Joint Master in Computer Science; KSL 454448; please register in ILIAS.

    This course provides an introduction to computing in a distributed environment without a central coordinator. It presents fundamental programming abstractions for distributed systems and fault-tolerant, highly available, and secure protocols that implement them. Important problems of distributed computing are discussed and influential impossibility results are shown. The central question of the course is how to tolerate uncertainty and adversarial influence, which may arise from network delays, faults, or malicious attacks in a distributed system. Topics include replication, quorums, reliable broadcast, distributed storage, consensus, Byzantine agreement, atomic broadcast, and notions of consistency arising in this setting. Applications to real-world systems will be presented, in the domain of cloud computing, cryptocurrencies, and blockchain systems.

  • Seminar: Cryptography and Data Security

    University of Bern and Joint Master in Computer Science; KSL 453835; please register in ILIAS.

    Dr. Jayamine Alupotha and Prof. Christian Cachin

    The seminar in cryptology and data security covers various relevant topics in the area and its contents will change from one semester to another. Typical subjects are cryptographic protocols, secure computation, privacy, distributed trust and blockchains. A seminar will start with an overview of the topic, where some basic principles are introduced. The main content will typically consist of interactive presentations by the participants, on the basis of the existing literature, ranging from classic research papers to recently developed systems. In addition, students as well as members of the cryptology and data security research group will present their own current work.

    Theme of the seminar in Fall 2024 (More details will appear in ILIAS)

    Blockchains and Cryptocurrencies

    Blockchain networks power cryptocurrencies and enable automated decentralized-finance (DeFi) solutions through smart contracts. These systems rely on cryptography and on protocols for distributed consensus. Following the advent of Bitcoin, many other protocol networks have been developed in the recent years such as Ethereum, Cardano, XRP Ledger (Ripple), Avalanche, or the Internet Computer. They achieve a combined market capitalization of trillions (10^12 USD). Every one of these networks has its own cryptocurrency and is called a “Layer 1” network.

    In addition to cryptocurrencies that are powered by their dedicated distributed ledgers, many acceleration protocols and support systems have been introduced. These can typically achieve higher transaction throughput, supply critical information to cryptocurrency networks, or offer support for privacy. These networks are at “Layer 2” because their security usually relies on a “main” cryptocurrency at “Layer 1”.

    This seminar covers the most prominent Layer-1 and Layer-2 networks in the cryptocurrency domain. Every participant (or team) selects one cryptocurrency and will present its protocol, the programming model, and other important aspects. A participant will also develop a sample application on the chosen platform and describe it as part of a presentation.

Spring 2024

  • Algorithmen, Wahrscheinlichkeit und Information (in German)

    Bachelor Informatik, University of Bern; KSL 451670; please register in ILIAS.

    Diese Vorlesung führt das Gebiet der randomisierten Algorithmen und probabilistischen Verfahren ein, welche heute in der Informatik eine grosse Rolle spielen. Darüber hinaus werden auch die Grundlagen der Informationstheorie und der Begriff der Entropie vorgestellt. Probabilistische Methoden und Analysen treten in vielen Gebieten auf, in der Kommunikation, in Machine Learning, zur Datenanalyse und in der Kryptologie. Nach einer Einführung in die Wahrscheinlichkeitsrechnung mit diskreten Ereignissen werden wichtige probabilistische Methoden und deren Analyse behandelt, so zum Beispiel Abschätzungen mittels Chernoff-Bounds und die probabilistische Methode. Randomisierte Algorithmen auf Graphen und in der Zahlentheorie werden diskutiert. Entropie als Informationsmass wird eingeführt und Methoden für Codierung und Datenkompression behandelt.

    Kurssprache ist Deutsch. Unterlagen sind in Englisch.

  • Privacy and Data Security

    University of Bern and Joint Master in Computer Science; KSL 471352; please register in ILIAS.

    The reliance of the information society on pervasive networks, mobile computing, online services, and cloud platforms continues to grow. The privacy of human activities and the security of personal data are challenged by today’s information technology in ways never seen before in history. This course focuses on privacy and security in a digital world. It presents cryptographic and non-cryptographic methods relevant for protecting privacy, anonymity, and data security. Topics include pseudonymity, data anonymization and de-anonymization, notions of privacy and privacy regulation, measures for the privacy of data, steganography and traffic hiding, network anonymity, and censorship resistance. Systems like onion routing (TOR) and Freenet are presented. Knowledge in computer science and networking is needed, but no background in cryptography is expected.

  • Seminar: Cryptography and Data Security

    University of Bern and Joint Master in Computer Science; KSL 453835; please register in ILIAS.

    Dr. Philipp Schneider and Prof. Christian Cachin

    The seminar in cryptology and data security covers various relevant topics in the area and its contents will change from one semester to another. Typical subjects are cryptographic protocols, secure computation, privacy, distributed trust and blockchains. A seminar will start with an overview of the topic, where some basic principles are introduced. The main content will typically consist of interactive presentations by the participants, on the basis of the existing literature, ranging from classic research papers to recently developed systems. In addition, students as well as members of the cryptology and data security research group will present their own current work.

    Landmark Results of Distributed Computing

    Real-life distributed systems, such as distributed blockchains or systems for Internet routing are underpinned by certain landmark results of Distributed Computing. In this seminar we will look at a selection of theoretical articles which touch some of the core problems that are encountered in distributed systems and can be considered breakthroughs. The program is divided into the three themes:

    • Consensus
    • Distributed and parallel symmetry breaking
    • Distributed shortest paths

    For each theme, the seminar will introduce a problem, the corresponding distributed (and parallel) computational models, and solutions.

Earlier semesters

  • Past courses

    Information about courses in earlier semesters can be found in the archive.