Project description
Improving personal devices’ security
As smart devices become increasingly common, the EU has expressed concerns about non-EU vendors exerting excessive control over personal data, potentially limiting personal freedoms. To address these concerns, the MSCA-funded SPUCS project is dedicated to developing novel privacy-preserving structures for personal devices that can curtail vendor control. These will empower users to maintain their preferred operating systems and applications in a secure and private manner. The project’s objectives encompass enhancing mobile device security by enabling multiple operating systems to operate securely and privately. Additionally, it intends to create secure methods for running individual applications independently of the operating system or vendor software. Finally, the project will focus on implementing an adoption strategy aimed at fostering a more secure and self-sovereign Europe.
Objective
People increasingly depend on their personal smart devices (smartphones, smart watches, voice assistants) to communicate, access information, transact, and perform critical functions. These devices overwhelmingly comprise proprietary software and hardware components made by a handful of non-EU vendors. These vendors have exceptional control over those devices, raising justified concerns over anti-competitive practices, massive data gathering, surveillance, denial of service, and consequently personal freedoms and democracy. Digital sovereignty has been identified as a key political priority for the EU. SPUCS: “software architectures for Secure, Private, and User-Controlled Smart devices” contributes novel privacy-preserving architectures, realizable on existing hardware, that limit the control of vendors on user devices towards a future of open, sovereign personal devices. While previous initiatives for open and privacy-preserving smart devices lacked in functionality and therefore in adoption, SPUCS introduces concepts and methods that enable users to continue using their preferred operating systems and applications in an isolated way, with increased privacy protection. Specifically, the project will contribute secure mechanisms to seamlessly run multiple mobile operating systems simultaneously on a mobile device with strong isolation and privacy guarantees – limiting vendors’ ability to collect and connect data. Furthermore, the project will develop methods for securely running individual applications (phone, messaging, banking) on an open platform without trusting the operating system or proprietary vendor software. Finally, the project will plan an adoption strategy that will boost the scientific and industrial impact of the results towards a secure and self-sovereign Europe. The project also fosters interdisciplinary two-way transfer of knowledge between the researcher and the host, as well as training of the researcher in advanced scientific techniques.
Fields of science
- natural sciencescomputer and information sciencessoftwaresoftware applicationssystem softwareoperating systems
- social sciencespolitical sciencesgovernment systemsdemocracy
- engineering and technologyelectrical engineering, electronic engineering, information engineeringinformation engineeringtelecommunicationsmobile phones
Keywords
Programme(s)
- HORIZON.1.2 - Marie Skłodowska-Curie Actions (MSCA) Main Programme
Funding Scheme
HORIZON-TMA-MSCA-PF-EF - HORIZON TMA MSCA Postdoctoral Fellowships - European FellowshipsCoordinator
11251 Athens
Greece