Research on ICT Security

SnT: secure and trustworthy ICT systems and services

Launched in 2009 at the University of Luxembourg, the Interdisciplinary Centre for Security, Reliability and Trust (SnT) is an internationally leading research and innovations centre that establishes Luxembourg as a European centre of excellence for secure, reliable, and trustworthy ICT systems and services. In order to create a great impact, SnT follows an interdisciplinary research approach, taking not only technical aspects into account, but also addressing business, human, and regulatory issues. SnT therefore provides a valuable platform for interaction and collaboration between university researchers and external partners.

Smart homes, intelligent cars, innovative satellite technology

Research activities include among others innovative smart home solutions, intelligent automotive technologies and state-of-the-art satellite technology. To achieve secure, reliable and trustworthy ICT, input from several research disciplines is required, explains founder and director Professor Björn Ottersten: “We focus on interdisciplinarity, competitiveness and partnership on an international level. The SnT therefore brings together expertise from engineering, natural, law, and human science.”

According to Björn Ottersten, SnT targets research in one of today’s most important fields of ICT: “Communication networks and software systems are becoming more and more interconnected as we expect to access services and applications anywhere and anytime. Vital infrastructures and societal functions depend on the security and reliability of these systems. The failure of a network or system can lead to severe financial consequences or even loss of lives.”

Collaboration with industrial and government partners

A key to success in this context is the interaction and collaboration of SnT and its 230 employees with now 24 industrial and government partners investing an annual funding of about 3 Mio Euros. The partnership program allows external partners with a long term interest in developing secure and reliable ICT systems to contribute to excellence in research at an international level. Within its strategic areas, SnT’s portfolio of European projects funded by the European Commission and the European Space Agency plays another key role when it comes to establishing critical mass.