News Archive

2023: 

Aug 203: My collaborative work with Joshua Harrison and Ehsan Toreini has gone viral! An acoustic side channel attack on laptop keyboard via Zoom!Aug 2023: I am presenting our new paper: "Mind the FemTech Gap: Regulation Failings and Exploitative Systems" co-authored with @ThylaVdMerwe and Mike Catt at Privacy Engineering in Practice at @SOUPSConference @USENIXSecurity https://pep23.com/assets/pdf/pep23-paper6.pdf…Jul 2023: We welcomed Dr Adriano Villalva as a Research Fellow to AGENCY project.Jul 2023: I attended an presented at RHUL KTP on digital HealthJul 2023: I attended the RHUL CDT Summer School as a panel member on Interdisciplinary researchJun: New paper: "A Practical Deep Learning-Based Acoustic Side Channel Attack on Keyboards", Authors: Joshua Harrison (@durham_uni), @toreini1957 (@UniOfSurrey) & myself (@RoyalHolloway,@ISGnews) Supported by @PETRASiot! Yep, be cautious when u type!Jun 2023: We had a series if successful events for CyFer including the CyberMi2 Research Day and the opening of the CyFer Art Exhibition. May 2023: I gave two talks on FemTech security and privacy (SP) to a mixed audience in two different @PETRASiot-led events. Lesson learned: gender and SP is the elephant in the room! Everyone knows its there, but scared to address it!May 2023: I am honoured to be the scholar of the month by Gender Institute @GenderRHUL @ISGnews. In an invited talk on our work on gender and SP, we explored the range of complex harms and risks!Apri 2023: I have joined the Research Institute for Sociotechnical Cyber Security (RISCS) as one of the 5 Research Associate Fellows. I was invited to join RISCS as a 'rising star' in the sociotechnical space and am very excited to collaborate with this initiative. Mar 2023: PETRAS is excited to host a session at MozFest/!  Join us in a creative exchange on 20/3 with artists & designers, led by our synthesis fellow @JoeBourne & the CyFer project, to find out more about the security & privacy of Female oriented technology. Feb-Mar 2023: My PhD student's work on animal tech ad cybersecurity and privacy issues is widely covered by the medial (telegraph, the sun, Naked Scientist, etc.). Feb 2023: I am chairing (with Ruba from KCL) STAST'23 this year. Consider sending papers to us. Jan 2023: I am very happy to welcome Adrian Dr Adriano Villalva and Stephen Cook as RAs to my group. The will be working on the cybersecurity and privacy of FemTech, funded by PETRAS CyFer. Jan 2023: For the list of MSc projects, click here. Jan 2023: I reviewed a proposal for the Natural Sciences and Engineering Research Council of Canada. Jan 2023: Reviews of ACM CHI'23 and the third round of PoPETs'23 are finished. Hope everyone get the results they are hoping for (including myself :D)Jan 2023: Two of my research (online tracking and Femtech security) was features in a collection of Newcastle University 10 top research and news of 2022.

2022: 

Dec 2022: I am attending and presenting at W3C Permission Workshop. Fantastic discussions. Nov 2022: I am a PC member of the W3C Workshop on Permissions. If you are interested to get involved visit the website. Oct 2022: I gave a guest lecture to two MSc classes at ISG, RHUL for Network Security Module. 3 hours in person, a first after covid!. Excellent discussions from the students both in class and then follow-up online (email, Moodle). Oct 2022: Our paper titled: Security and Privacy Concerns of Pet Tech Users, Harper, Mehrnezhad, and Leach has been accepted in STaR-IoT: 1st International Workshop on Socio-technical Cybersecurity and Resilience in the Internet of Things, 2022.Sep 2022: I have two Research Assistant positions for my CyFer project. Contact me if interested. Sep 2022: I am the PC co-chair of STAST 2022. Consider joining the conference in person or online. Sep 2022: I said goodbye to Newcastle University after more than a decade as a PhD student, Research Fellow (tenured track), Lecturer, and Senior Lecturer, and joined RHUL as a Lecturer :) Aug 2022: Our paper titled: ``I feel spied on and I don't have any control over my data": User Privacy Perception, Preferences and Trade-offs in University Smart Buildings, by Taher, Mehrnezhad, and Morisset, has been accepted by STAST 2022.Jul 2022: Our paper titled: Risks of Mobile Ambient Sensors and User Awareness, Concerns, and Preferences, by Mehrnezhad, Makarouna, and Gray has been accepted by the 2022 European Symposium on Usable Security. Jul 2022: Open call! Artists, designers and creative technologists, we want you to respond to the ethics, trust, privacy and security of female-oriented technology. £1500 per creative. We've done our best to ensure this is an accessible opportunity. Jul 2022: Our paper titled: Vision: Too Little too Late? Do the Risks of FemTech already Outweigh the Benefits? by Mehrnezhad, Shipp, Almeida, Toreini has been accepted by the 2022 European Symposium on Usable Security. Jun 2022: I gave a talk on MINORITY OR MINORITIZED? CYBERSECURITY AND PRIVACY FOR WOMEN at the Zurich Information Security and Privacy CenterJun 2022: Spring Lab at @EPFL_en has kindly hosted me for a research day and talk. I am excited to meet with these fantastic people and know about their research. Thank you @carmelatroncoso and @hiddenmarkov for hosting me. Jun 2022: Our paper titled: Bodies Like Yours: Enquiring Data Privacy in FemTech, by Almeida, Shipp, Mehrnezhad, Toreini, has been accepted t NordicCHI 2022. May 2022: Our paper titled User Privacy Concerns in Commercial Smart Buildings, Harper, Mehrnezhad, Mace, has been accepted by the Journal of Computer Security, 2022.Apr 2022: Between April 2022 to June 2022, I will be based at ETH Zurich as an Academic Visitor working with Dr Thyla van der Merwe;  focusing on security and privacy standards and policies designed for female-oriented technologies; attending to the blind spots. We will be looking for ways to improve Fem-tech in order to enable women to use such technologies and improve the quality of their lives without risk and fear. If you wanna discuss this topic, let me know and we can meet in person or virtually!Apr 2022: Our paper titled: SenSig: Practical IoT Sensor Fingerprinting Using Calibration Data by Gray, Mehrnezhad, Shafik is accepted in SSR, co-located with Euro S&P. Apr 2022: Our paper titled: Are Our Animals Leaking Information About Us? Security and Privacy Evaluation of Animal-related Apps by Harper, Mehrnezhad, Leach is accepted in SSR, co-located with Euro S&P.Mar 2022: See the latest news on my research around online tracking practices of websites and apps!Feb 2022: We have a new 3-years (Senior) RA post in cybersecurity and privacy as a part of our AGANCY project. Contact me for more info.Feb 2022: A list of MSc projects are provided here. Feb 2022: I have a fully-funded PhD position on cybersecurity and privacy of female-oriented technologies. Contact me if interested. Feb 2022: I have a post-doc position on IoT security and privacy. Contact me if interested. Feb 2022: Invited by DOS research centre, I gave a talk on my research on cybersecurity and privacy of marginalised and disadvantaged user groups. Feb 2022: Read my blog on Fem-Tech security and privacy at Newcastle University blog. Jan 2022: I am on the PC of SSR 2022. Consider submitting your work to it. Jan 2022: I am attending and presenting at Fertility 2022. It is always amazing to network across disciplines!Jan 2022: I am delighted to welcome my new RA to our group, Laura Shipp will be working on CyFer. 

2021: 

Dec 2021: I have an exciting post-doc post on IoT security. Contact me if interested. Also, share! Dec 2021: In collaboration with Durham University, we have won a UKRI grant for £3.5m (AGANCY) on protecting citizens online, more details to follow! Nov 2021: I am co-teaching CSC3632: System and Network Security this semester, if you have questions, please contact me.  Nov 2021: Enjoy the online historical account of the thirty-four Annual International Seminars on the Teaching of Computing Science that were held here from 1968-2001, created by Prof Brian Randell!Oct 2021: Read our special issue on Security and Privacy in IEEE Communications Standards Magazine. Oct 2021: I gave a presentation on my recent work around the security and privacy aspects of ambient sensors from the user perspective in W3C TPAC. there was a fantastic discussion around our findings. See the minutes in here. Sep 2021:  I have an RA (post-doctoral) position for 18 months on Security, Privacy, Trust and Bias in FemTech. Email me if interested. Aug 2021: Our paper titled: I feel invaded, annoyed, anxious and I may protect myself”: Individuals’ Feelings about Online Tracking and their Protective Behaviour across Gender and Country ? by Coopamootoo, Mehrnezhad, and Toreini has been accepted in USENIX Security 2022. Details to follow.Jul 2021: Our paper titled How Can and Would People Protect from Online Tracking? by Mehrnezhad, Coopamootoo, and Toreini has been accepted in PoPETs 2022. Details to follow.Jan 2021: I attended and presented at Security and Human Behaviour (SHB)2022.  See the summary here, and video here. Jun 2021: I am glad to welcome Chris Dillon who is our new PhD student and will work on Blockchain in Agritech in collaboration with the Agriculture group. May 2021: I presented our new paper: Caring for Intimate Data in Fertility Technologies, by Mehrnezhad and Almeida in ACM CHI 2021. This paper has attracted international media e.g. Expoknews, Ny Teknik,  European Hospital, Fastcompany.com, and Information Security Buzz.Apr 2021: Our paper titled On Secure E-Voting over Blockchain by, McCorry, Mehrnezhad, Toreini, Shahandashti, and Hao has been accepted by ACM digital threats: research and practice. Mar 2021: Our proposal on Fertility Technologies Security (CyFer) has been accepted by PETRAS. See the details here. Feb 2021: We have shortlisted and interviewed our applicants for the Agri-tech and blockchain studentship. The successful candidate will start in June 2021.Feb 2021: I am co-teaching CSC3124: System and Network Security this semester, if you have questions, please contact me.   Feb 2021:  A list of MSc projects are provided here. 

2020: 

Dec 2020: Our paper by myself and Teresa Almeida titled: "Caring for Intimate Data in Fertility Technologies"  has been accepted in CHI 2021. Follow up news will come soon. Dec 2020: I am guest co-editor of a Special Issue Artificial Intelligence Systems Design for IoT Applications in Sensors Journal (Q1, Open Access). The deadline is 31 July 2021. Consider submitting your related work to this special issue. Dec 2020: I gave a talk on our recent STAST paper on Smart Buildings Privacy to Cambridge University Security Seminar Series. Nov 2020: Our paper titled "The OpBench Ethereum Opcode Benchmark Framework: Design, Implementation, Validation and Experiments", has been accepted to be published in the Journal of Performance Evaluation. Nov 2020: I attended the online Workshop on Security and Human Behaviour (SHB). Interesting talk around security and privacy of C-19 tech.Oct 2020: I am guest co-editor of a special issue on Security and Privacy in IEEE Communications Standards Magazine. The Manuscript Submission Deadline: 31 December 2020. Consider submitting your related work to this special issue. Oct 2020: The programme of SSR 2020 is out. Register to attend our free online conference and enjoy an excellent set of papers and invited talks.  Oct 2020: I am reviewing papers for CHI 2021. So far, exciting papers!Sep 2020: We have welcomed Scott Harper to our group as a PHD student.  Scott will be working on sensors security in animal tech under my supervision and Matt Leach. Aug 2020: our paper titled: User Privacy Concerns and Preferences in Smart Buildings has been accepted in STAST2020. Aug 2020: I gave a talk on my recent EUROUSEC 2020 paper on user privacy Digital Women - An Institute of Coding Event.Jun 2020: My paper titled: A Cross-Platform Evaluation of Privacy Notices and Tracking Practices is accepted in The 5th European Workshop on Usable Security 2020, co-located with Euro S&P 2020. Jun 2020: I presented my research on user privacy in Security and Human Behaviour 2020. See Ross Anderson's blog about the workshop.Jun 2020:  I attended the FemTech Forum 2020. Very interesting discussions around this growing industry including security and privacy. Jun 2020: A PhD studentship for 2020/21 on  Blockchain and Agri-tech (schools of computing and agriculture) is available at Newcastle University. Contact me if you are interested.  May 2020: Our paper titled: "End-to-End Verifiable E-Voting Trial for Polling Station Voting at Gateshead " has been accepted in IEEE Security and Privacy Magazine. Apr 2020:   I'm PC member of 10th International Workshop on Socio-Technical Aspects in Security (STAST), 2020, co-located with ESORICS 2020. Consider submitting you work. Apr 2020:  I am the PC co-chair of the 6th Security Standardisation Research Conference 2020. Please consider submitting your relevant work.Mar 2020: I am on the PC of the IEEE Blockchain 2020 (Sep, Greece). Consider submitting your work to it (Deadline: June 2020). Feb 2020: A PhD studentship for Sep 2020 on Cyber Security in Farm and Companion Animal Technologies (schools of computing and agriculture) is available at Newcastle University. Contact me if you are interested.  Feb 2020:  A list of MSc projects are provided here. Jan 2020-Dec 2021: Together with Raphael Spreitzer, we are writing a book on the security and privacy of mobile sensors to be published by  CRC Press (part of Taylor & Francis Group).  If you are an active researcher in this area and want to see any special content in this book, email us.   Jan 2020: I will be attending ACM Conference on Fairness, Accountability, and Transparency (ACM FAT*) in Spain.  Look at the paper published by NU colleagues:  The relationship between trust in AI and trustworthy machine learning technologies. See the video here.Jan 2020: Newcastle University is hosting UK Phd winter school on cyber security. Look at the programme here. 

2019: 

Dec 2019: I am a PC member of Workshop on Emerging Technologies for Security in IoT (ETSecIoT), to be held in April 2020, co-located with CPS-IoT-Week. Please consider to submit to this workshop. Nov 2019: I chaired Security Standardisation Research Conference 2019 as a part of ACM CCS in London.  Around 50 people attended and a fantastic set of papers were presented.  See the summary here. Oct 2019: I have become a member of the PhD Progression Panel of the School of Computing, Newcastle University. Oct 2019: I have served as reviewer of IEEE Security and Privacy Magazine. Sep 2019: I have been accepted by Newcastle University to attend the Aurora's Advance HE's leadership development initiative for women, in 2019-2020. Sep 2019: My PhD student, Dante Gray, has joined our SRS group in the School of Computing. He will work on the Security of Sensors in collaboration with Rishad  Shakif in the Engineering School. Sep 2019: Attended and presented in W3C TPAC 2019, Fukuoka, Japan. See the minutes of my talk here. This was through a European Commission grant via StandICT. See the report here. Aug 2019: SSR 2019 has accepted 7 papers (out of 20 submissions). Please see the website for the program. Jun 2019: We are celebrating 50 Years of Campus-wide Computing at the USB, Newcastle University.Jun 2019: Our paper: "DOMtegrity: ensuring web page integrity against malicious browser extensions" by Toreini, Shahandashti, Mehrnezhad, Hao, is officially published in the International Journal of Information Security, Springer, 2019. May 2019: We ran a trial of our verifiable e-voting system alongside local elections in Gateshead (paper,  Gateshead,  BBC). May 2019: SSR 2019 will be an ACM CCS workshop this year.  I have been awarded a grant by the Business Engagement Office, Newcastle University to chair SSR. May 2019: Our paper "OpBench: A CPU Performance Benchmark for Ethereum Smart Contract Operation Code" by Aldweesh, Alhabry, Mehrnezhad, and Van Moorsel will appear in IEEE Blockchain, USA, 2019. Apr 2019: SSR 2019 website is live and paper submission is open.  SSR is alongside CCS this year, both in London. Apr 2019: I am a PC member of  STAST 2019  (alongside ESORICS), both in Luxembourg. Please consider submitting to our workshop.Mar 2019: EuroUSec 2019 reviews are finished, the program will be published soon.Mar 2019: In collaboration with Mozilla London and University of Warwick, I will be chairing the Int Security Standardisation Research (SSR) Conference,  in London, 11 Nov19. Email me if you want to be involved. Jan 2019: Two fully funded PhD studentships on "Securing Sensors in Insecure IoT", and "Security and Privacy of Medical IoT Devices" available in Newcastle University, email me if interested. Jan 2019: Our paper "What Is This Sensor and Does This App Need Access to It" by Mehrnezhad and Toreini was published in the Informatics Journal.Jan 2019: Nominated by the School of Computing for Newcastle University for Success Celebration Awards for EDI (equality diversity inclusion) activities.   

2018: 

Dec 2018: Awarded an StandICT grant to collaborate with sensor industry and standardisation bodies in 2019. Nov 2018: I attended the Mozilla Security Research Summit  in London.Nov 2018: STAST 2018 reviews are finished, the program will be published soon.Oct 2018: Hosted a Woman in Mathematics Day in NU, Awarded by the London Mathematical Society. Read the report published by London Mathematical Society (page 19).Jun 2018: I will be in the jury of SOUPS18 posters. Consider submitting your work to it. May 2018:  Shortlisted Alumni for Alumni Achievement Award Lifelong Achievement,  Newcastle University May 2018: Organised a Sensor Security Workshop in the Thinking Digital Conference. Feb-Sep 2018: Maternity Leave (had a baby girl, Maya)Jan 2018: Being interviewed by the Science News Magazine, see the excellent article by Maria Temming here. 

2017: 

Dec 2017: Our paper "Making Sense of Sensors: Mobile sensor security awareness and education " by Mehrnezhad, Toreini, Alajrami, published in STAST, USA. Dec 2017: Our paper "A Child Recognition System Based on Image Selection Patterns " by Nezhad, Mehrnezhad published in STAST, USA. Nov 2017: Attended the "Current issues in SDO decision-making for the internet" conference, The Houses of Parliament, London.Nov 2017: Spoke at the Cyber Security Breakfast event as a panel member, hosted by the Newcastle City Council in the Centre for Life. Aug 2017: School of Computing moved from Claremont Tower to the USB. May 2017: Spoke at Security and Human Behaviour Workshop on human aspects of sensor security, Cambridge.Apr 2017: Out research on Sensor Security was widely featured by the international media e.g. Newcastle University Press Office, BBC, Guardian, Telegraph, Independent, Dailymail, NewYork Post, Sun, The Australian, Economic Times, TechCrunch, Engadget, Popular Science, Science Friday, ars Technica, Reddit, xda-developers, CBC News, German Public Radio Deutschlandfunk, Die Welt (German national daily newspaper), Sina , Sohu (Chinese), Masjable (French), Lavoz (Spanish), Etc. Apr 2017: Our paper "Stealing PINs via mobile sensors: actual risk versus user perception", by Mehrnezhad, Toreini, Shahandashti, Hao, was published in the International Journal of Information Security, with a high Altmetric Score (In the top 5% of all research outputs scored by Altmetric ). Apr 2017: Officially finished my PhD "On the security of Mobile Sensors" in the School of Computing, Newcastle University.Mar 2017: Finished my collaboration with Global Black Swan company as R&D ResearcherFeb 2017: Started my new job as a Research Fellow, School of Computing, Newcastle University. 

2016: 

Dec 2016: Our paper NFC Payment Spy: A Privacy Attack on Contactless Payments, by Mehrnezhad, Ali, Hao, Moorsel, was accepted and published in SSR, USA.Nov 2016: Won the 2016 Economist Cybersecurity Challenge sponsored by Kaspersky. This work is featured in CoinDesk. See the details here. Nov 2016: Passed my PhD viva. My supervisor was Prof Feng Hao.  For publications, please visit my Google Scholar.