Trustworthy Collaboration in Cyber Threat Intelligence (CTI)

About the Project

Organizations benefit from sharing cyber threat intelligence (CTI), yet direct sharing of raw data, rules, or logs can reveal sensitive business information and undermine security. This PhD explores how to enable collaboration with verifiable trust, so parties can rely on each other’s security signals, without exposing internal data or detection logic.

This is a research agenda at the intersection of security engineering, applied cryptography, and distributed systems, with an emphasis on practical, interoperable mechanisms suitable for enterprise, cloud, and edge environments.

Core research questions

• How can organizations confirm the credibility and integrity of shared security signals without revealing proprietary details?
• What assurance mechanisms and audit processes allow third parties (e.g., consortium peers or regulators) to evaluate claims of detection or software integrity without needing access to underlying inputs or rules?
• How can such mechanisms be made lightweight, scalable, and standards-friendly so they fit into existing CTI workflows and SOC automation pipelines?

The focus is on frameworks and protocols that provide trust and verifiability while preserving privacy and IP. Specific techniques will be explored during the PhD; this advertisement intentionally avoids disclosing solution details.

Academic qualifications

First degree (minimum 2:1 classification) in:

• Computer Science OR
• Cybersecurity / Information Security OR
• Computer Engineering OR
• Mathematics or Applied Mathematics OR
• Electrical/Electronic Engineering

English language requirement

IELTS score must be at least 6.5 (with not less than 6.0 in each of the four components). Other, equivalent qualifications will be accepted. Full details of the University’s policy are available online.

Essential attributes:

• Fundamental knowledge of computer security and distributed systems
• Strong interest in computer security, applied cryptography, distributed systems, or related areas

Desirable attributes:

• Secure systems design
• Protocol thinking
• Solid programming ability (e.g., Python/C++/Rust/Go)
• Prior experience with SOC tooling, CTI workflows, or formal verification is a plus but not required.

APPLICATION CHECKLIST

• Completed application form
• CV
• 2 academic references, using the Postgraduate Educational Reference Form (download)
• Research project outline of 2 pages (list of references excluded). The outline may provide details about
  1. Background and motivation of the project. The motivation, explaining the importance of the project, should be supported also by relevant literature. You can also discuss the applications you expect for the project results.
  2. Research questions or objectives.
  3. Methodology: types of data to be used, approach to data collection, and data analysis methods.
  4. List of references.

The outline must be created solely by the applicant. Supervisors can only offer general discussions about the project idea without providing any additional support.

• Statement no longer than 1 page describing your motivations and fit with the project.
• Evidence of proficiency in English (if appropriate)

To be considered, the application must use

• the advertised title as project title

For informal enquiries about this PhD project, please contact N.Moradpoor@napier.ac.uk

Application link: https://evision.napier.ac.uk/si/sits.urd/run/siw_sso.go?ElOlarlItFiG37xnH5PRRBvv3d563wLdwX4JfhYskMa3bJWTuc

PhD Start Date: October 2026

Funding Notes

International applicants should note that visa application costs and the NHS health surcharge are additional costs to be taken into consideration, and successful applicants will need to cover these expenses themselves.