⬤ HOME ABOUT CISPA DIRECTOR PAGE DIRECTOR PAGE "We are committed to scientific excellence and cutting-edge research, and are aiming to develop CISPA into one of the leading cybersecurity research centers in the world." Prof. Dr. Dr. h. c. Michael Backes Founding Director & CEO DIRECTOR'S MESSAGE ON A GLANCE OFFICE AWARDS IN THE MEDIA MEDIA LIBRARY DIRECTOR'S MESSAGE When the president of the Helmholtz Association contacted me in December 2016 to jointly explore the foundation of a new Helmholtz Center for Information Security, I was both overwhelmed and flattered. Several weeks needed to pass until I started to understand the true dimension of what was being envisioned here: building up a world-class research center with truly comprehensive base funding for more than 500 researchers, committed to scientific excellence and cutting-edge research, and dedicated to targeting the grand Cybersecurity challenges that we face in our age of digitalization. I learned that the foundation of a new Helmholtz Center is an exceptionally rare, far-reaching decision taken with the objective of assuming a global lead in a research topic that is of sovereign importance. I was thrilled by the ability to build up such a center, and I felt that it was a journey, of which I for sure wanted to be part of. We are currently focusing on attracting some of the best national and international researchers to the Helmholtz Center for Information Security (CISPA) We know that we cannot compete with the long-standing traditions and renowned reputations of the top American and European universities. Yet we believe that we can offer an inspiring working place that is defined by our commitment to excellence and our blue-sky ambitions. We provide comprehensive sustained resources that enable freedom of research and the ability to tackle some of the grand, long-term Cybersecurity research challenges. I am convinced that this situation offers unique opportunities for outstanding researchers at all stages of their career, and I will do everything in my power to evolve CISPA into one of the leading Cybersecurity research centers in the world. I sincerely hope that this website conveys the spirit that animates this new research center. Most of all, I hope that you will soon have the opportunity to visit us here in the beautiful state of Saarland, right in the heart of Europe to renew old acquaintances or to create new ones. We are looking forward to welcoming you here. Best wishes, Michael Backes - Founding Director and Chairman of the Helmholtz Center for Information Security (CISPA) ON A GLANCE Michael Backes is founding director and CEO of the CISPA Helmholtz Center for Information Security. His current research focuses on innovative methods for the protection of personal data, especially in medicine, as well as on trustworthy methods for machine learning and on universal solutions for software and system security. His research results are documented in more than 300 publications in the leading international journals and conference proceedings. His research has been awarded with scientifically renowned prizes, in particular with the ERC Synergy Grant as the highest endowed EU research prize. He was the first German researcher to receive the international MIT TR35 Award. This prize is awarded interdisciplinary, to the world's best researchers under 35 years of age, whose achievements will have a "dramatic impact" on the world. Director Michael Backes, as of today, is the youngest member of the Academy of Engineering Sciences "acaTech" and is regularly listed in rankings as one of Germany's most important IT personalities. He was honored by former Federal Minister Johanna Wanka as one of Germany's digital minds. He holds an honorary doctorate by the Université de Lorraine and is a Fellow of the IEEE. In 2019 he was awarded the Karl-Heinz Beckurts Prize. MORE INFORMATION CONTACT BETTINA BALTHASAR Director's Office +49 681 87083 2459 OLGA KILL Director's Office +49 681 87083 2014 JULIA VERENA SCHWARZ Personal Assistant to the Director +49 681 87083 2232 AWARDS & HONORS SCIENTIFIC AWARDS 2019: Karl Heinz Beckurts Price 2018: IEEE Fellow 2018: Honorary Doctorate 2017: NSA Cybersecurity Research Award 2017: IEEE Golden Core Award 2017: CNIL-INRIA Privacy Award 2014: ERC Synergy Grant 2014: IEEE Outstanding Community Service Award 2011: IEEE Outstanding Community Service Award 2009: ERC Starting Grant 2008: IBM Faculty Award 2007: Fellow of the German Max Planck Society 2005: IBM Outstanding Achievement Award for Linking Formal Verification and Cryptography 2005: IBM Research Division Award for contributions to Web Services Security 2004: Microsoft Award for outstanding research in privacy enhancing technologies 2004: IBM Outstanding Achievement Award for contributions to Enterprise Privacy Architectures 2002: VDI Diploma Thesis Award 2001: Scholarship of the DFG graduate studies program ”Quality Guarantees for Computer Systems” HONORS BEYOND THE SCIENTIFIC COMMUNITY 2015: Member of the German Academy of Science and Engineering (acatech) 2015: Teaching Award of the State of Saarland 2014: Named one of Germany’s Digital Minds by Federal Minister Wanka 2014: CS Teaching Award of Saarland University 2009: MIT TR35 (35 most outstanding researchers / innovators under the age of 35 worldwide) 2010/11: Top-40 of German IT people, ranking of Computerwoche 2010 - 2014: Top-40-under-40 of German researchers, ranking of Capital 2009: CS Teaching Award of Saarland University 2007: CS Teaching Award of Saarland University SCIENTIFIC PROFESSIONAL ACTIVITIES (SELECTION) TECHNICAL PROGRAM (PC) CHAIR 2018: ACM Computer and Communication Security Conference (CCS) 2016: IEEE European Symposium on Security and Privacy (EuroS&P) 2014: IEEE Symposium on Security and Privacy (S&P) 2013: IEEE Symposium on Security and Privacy (S&P) 2011: IEEE Computer Security Foundations Symposium (CSF) 2010: IEEE Computer Security Foundations Symposium (CSF) 2009: European Symposium on Research in Computer Security (ESORICS) 2006: Information Security Conference (ISC) STERRING COMMITTEE MEMBER 2015 - present IEEE European Symposium on Security and Privacy (EuroS&P, chair) 2013 – present IEEE Symposium on Security and Privacy (S&P) 2010 – present IEEE Computer Security Foundations Symposium (CSF) 2009 – present European Symposium on Research in Computer Security (ESORICS) 2003 – 2008 ACM Workshop on Formal Methods in Systems Engineering (FMSE) EDITORIAL RESPONSIBILITIES 2016 – present CACM’s Research Highlights 2014 – present Foundations and Trends in Security and Privacy, Editorial Board 2012 – 2013 Journal of Computer Security, Editor 2007 – 2012 International Journal of Information Security, Editorial Board DIRECTOR IN THE MEDIA May 8, 2020 KAMPF GEGEN PANDEMIE: DARAN HAKT ES BEI DER CORONA-APP tagesschau.de Apr 29, 2020 HELMHOLTZ-ZENTRUM ERWARTET START DER CORONA-APP IN DEN NÄCHSTEN WOCHEN Handelsblatt Apr 22, 2020 STREIT GEFÄHRDET CORONA-APP Deutsche Welle Previous 1 2 3 4 Next MEDIA LIBRARY If you need a photo for your coverage of the CISPA or CISPA CEO Professor Dr. Dr. h. c. Michael Backes, please have a look at our Media Library. Portrait photos are available for download. GO TO MEDIA LIBRARY RESEARCH ABOUT US CAREER NEWS & EVENTS TRANSFER & OUTREACH CISPA is committed to the highest international academic standards. We offer a world-class research environment that grants extensive resources to a wide range of researchers and constitutes an attractive destination for the best talents and scientists from all countries. In addition, we strongly support undergraduate and graduate education of Cybersecurity students, and we seek to become an elite training ground for the next generation of Cybersecurity experts and scientific leaders in this field. CISPA Helmholtz Center for Information Security Stuhlsatzenhaus 5 66123 Saarbrücken +49 681 / 87083 1001 +49 681 / 302 71942 IMPRINT DATA PRIVACY POLICY SITEMAP Copyright CISPA 2020