Theses
Thesis projects and finished theses with the cryptology and data security research research group at the University of Bern and in the Swiss Joint Master in Computer Science.
Thesis topics are related to our research and offered courses.
Many projects address theory and practice of cryptology and data security; some are purely theoretic but very few are only of practical nature.
Available projects for BSc and MSc theses
The indication of a BSc or MSc project type may be discussed and a smaller version of a project labeled MSc may often be carried out as a BSc thesis.
Many more projects in the research domain of the group are possible. If you would like to suggest a topic for a thesis project, please contact a team member to discuss your idea.
These projects are intended for computer-science students at the University of Bern and those enrolled in the Swiss Joint Master of Science in Computer Science. We do not offer any internships.
| Posted | Title | Type | Contact | Status |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2024 | An Assessment of Regulation-Friendly Blockchain Technology | MSc | François-Xavier Wicht | Available |
| 2024 | Privacy Study of the Swiss e-ID | BSc/MSc | François-Xavier Wicht | Available |
| 2024 | Analysing the MEG-RDT | BSc | David Lehnherr | Available |
| 2024 | Formalising Lockstep Protocols | MSc | David Lehnherr | Available |
| 2023 | Analysis and Documentation of the Snowman Consensus Protocol | BSc/MSc | Philipp Schneider | Available |
| 2023 | Vertex coloring in the hybrid network model | BSc/MSc | Philipp Schneider | Available |
| 2022 | Practical multiparty computation | MSc | Michael Senn | Available |
| 2022 | Analyzing a modern Byzantine consensus protocol and its primitives | MSc | David Lehnherr | Available |
| 2022 | Validity in Byzantine consensus | Bsc/MSc | Christian Cachin | Available |
| 2021 | Evaluation communication over the Internet | BSc | Christian Cachin | Available |
| 2021 | Implementing asymmetric Byzantine consensus | MSc | Christian Cachin | Available |
Current thesis projects
| Semester | Title | Type | Advisor | Student |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| FS2025 | Scalable revocation of credentials using cryptographic accumulators | BSc | Mariarosaria Barbaraci, François-Xavier Wicht | Mehmet-Akif Onay |
| FS2025 | Privacy-preserving credentials with BBS+ | BSc | François-Xavier Wicht | Lukas Leuba |
| HS2024 | Exploring the Consensus Mechanism of the BNB Smart Chain | BSc | François-Xavier Wicht, Michael Senn | Daniele De Jeso |
| FS2024 | Exploring Central Bank Digital Currencies implementations | BSc | François-Xavier Wicht | Joel David Auerbach |
Completed thesis projects
Instructions and templates for theses
Once you have agreed with your supervisor on a topic and on a start- and end-date, fill in the corresponding form and complete the respective procedure:
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For a BSc thesis, the form is available from the Studienfachberatung.
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For a MSc thesis, follow the JMCS process.
Presentation
Every thesis must be presented near the completion or at the end of the project. Usually this occurs during the semester, within the regular seminar organized by the Cryptology and Data Security group. BSc students must also attend the seminar as a regular participant and get credit for it. The seminar’s title may vary; see the course page for details. You should agree with your supervisor in the initial stage of the thesis on where and when to present your work.
Software
For archiving software and thesis report, log in once to the INF gitlab
server with your Campus Account (small login box at
the bottom). This creates your user representation inside the server.
Then ask your supervisor to create a repository for the project under the
group crypto-students according to the pattern:
https://gitlab.inf.unibe.ch/crypto-students/2019.bsc.firstname.lastname
https://gitlab.inf.unibe.ch/crypto-students/2020.msc.firstname.lastname
Templates
For a seminar report you may use the sample article template used by the CRYPTO group.
For a BSc thesis a sample template is available on the Cryptography and Data Security group website.
For a Msc thesis, the sample template is available on JMCS website.
The final version of a thesis consists of a single PDF file. Printed copies are not needed. This file must also contain the signed declaration (“Erklärung”), in which the candidate confirms that she/he personally authored the work. (Print, sign, scan, and include the declaration at the end of the thesis.)
Research advice
Computer-science research can, roughly, be divided into “systems” and “theory” projects.
In systems research, one builds, experiments, and measures. Research results are typically demonstrated through an evaluation. However, measuring the behavior of a complex system is tricky. If you measure anything in your project, then you should read and follow this useful resource:
- Always Measure One Level Deeper (PDF Format), authored by John Ousterhout, a distinguished systems researcher at Stanford University.
Theoretical research demonstrates its insight in abstract form, through algorithms, protocols, and (crypto)schemes described abstractly in the computer-science dialect of the language of mathematics. Here, results are typically demonstrated through proofs. If you author a theoretical thesis, then you should read and follow some advice on mathematical writing, such as:
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Mathematical Writing by Knuth, Larrabee, and Roberts (PDF Format). Read points 1-27 on pages 1-6.
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Many guides to mathematical writing can be found online. Pick one that you like.
Writing advice
Theses are written in English. Refer to a manual of style for guidance on writing scientific texts. You should read and follow at least the first two.
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Advice on writing in computer science, published by Renée Miller of the University of Toronto, is a concise summary with pointers to more material.
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The BSc thesis template explains how to assemble and format the bibliography using BibTeX.
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Advice on Writing, Presentation & Plagiarism from the JMCS programme.
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The Elements of Style by Strunk and White is a classic style guide (it even has its own Wikipedia page!) and one can find versions online.
Graduation
After finishing the thesis, some forms have to be processed:
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For BSc, the advisor completes the form and hands it to the Studiensekretariat.
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For MSc, you fill in parts “Finishing…” and “Pledge…” on the back of the JMCS form for MSc theses and hand this to the Studiensekretariat at Uni BE. The advisor the completes the JMCS form, fills the form of Uni BE, and hands both to the respective recipients.
Finally, follow the steps to graduate.