Research Associate

Full time: 35 hours per week

Fixed Term: for 12 months

The successful candidate will contribute to the formal security specification, design and software implementation of cryptographic protocols in the Open Finance area. In Open Finance we envision multiple entities, each holding private data, that want to perform joint computation over this data to offer to customers the best possible financial products. The main goal of the project is to investigate what are the security requirements for Open Finance, and then provide a formal security of such a system. The successful candidate will in particular focus on optimizing the already developed cryptographic protocols and implement them focusing on a specific use case. The majority of the work will be related to the optimization and implementation of a cryptographic protocol for which we have already developed a high level specification. In this the successful candidate will be supported by members of the School of Informatics. The candidate will also be supported by members of the Business School to familiarize themselves with the concepts of Open Finance. The project is funded by Input-Output Global. 

The Opportunity:

Candidates must have a Ph.D. (or nearing completion) in cryptography or related fields. Evidence of strong research experience as demonstrated through publications at top-tier conferences or high-impact journals is essential. We are looking for a highly motivated candidate with strong initiative and commitment to excellence, and an ability to conduct world-class research.

The post is full-time, available immediately for 12 months with the possibility of further extension. We are also open to considering requests for hybrid working (on a non-contractual basis) that combines a mix of remote (based in UK) and regular on-campus working.  

The salary for this post is £40,247 to £47,874 per annum.

Your skills and attributes for success:

• Ph.D. (or near completion) in cryptography or related fields
• Experience in implementing cryptographic algorithms, and writing software for security-related applications
• Track record of strong publications
• Strong experience in provable security, and in the design of cryptographic protocols

The following criteria are not yes/no factors, but questions of degree.  Recruitment will aim at selecting those candidates with the best possible performance in all these criteria.

• Strong experience in research in one or more of the following areas: secure multi-party computation, zero-knowledge proofs, blockchain, functional encryption, fully-homomorphic encryption, and distributed algorithms.
• Ability to communicate complex information clearly, orally, and in writing.

Advert information