About ZISC
Information Society of Tomorrow
The world is undergoing a dramatic transformation from the industrial society of the 20th century to the information society of the 21st. New information technologies and services emerge at a rapid pace and these innovations have a significant impact on our social, political, and economic lives. The change does not come without risks. Interruption of services can threaten lives and properties, corruption of information can disrupt the work of governments and corporations, and disclosure of secrets can damage individuals as well as institutions. These threats are no longer limited to hobbyists hackers; instead we witness attacks from organized crime, terrorists and governments. To counter such risks in the constantly evolving information technology landscape, we need a thorough understanding on the theoretical foundations of information security, as well as practical attacks and countermeasures.
Research Center
The Zurich Information Security and Privacy Center (ZISC) is an industry-supported research center of ETH Zurich, founded in 2003. The goal of ZISC is to bring academia and industry together to solve the information security challenges of tomorrow. In ZISC, PhD students and senior researchers perform academic research under the supervision of ETH Zurich faculty members. Many ZISC research projects are done in co-operation with an industry partner.
Research Areas
Our research areas cover a wide range of information security and privacy topics including foundations of security, formal methods, wireless systems, security architectures, Internet security, communication privacy and cryptography. Read more about our research.
Education
Besides research, ZISC provides world-class academic education in information security. This includes training through projects, classes at ETH Zurich, and workshops for ZISC researchers and industry partners. Read more about our education.
Why a Security Center in Zurich?
Zurich is a center of global banking and insurance, two industries that have particularly strong security needs and whose success inherently depends on their reputation as being secure. Zurich also hosts many leading technology companies that develop novel security and privacy solutions. Finally, Zurich is centrally situated in the heart of Europe. The goal of ZISC is to establish a critical mass of information security talent and research in Zurich that benefits academia, economy and society.