Cybersecurity research at Baskin Engineering is safeguarding the technologies that shape our daily lives. From securing transportation networks and smart power grids to strengthening data centers and medical devices, researchers are addressing evolving threats to build a more resilient, secure digital world.
Ukraine blackouts caused by malware attacks warn against evolving cybersecurity threats to the physical world
Baskin Engineering researchers uncovered first-of-its-kind insights into cybersecurity threats that pose global security risks.
The team, led by Associate Professor of Computer Science and Engineering Alvaro Cardenas, built a sandbox—a software environment—that revealed how two major malware attacks in Ukraine operated and interacted with physical power system equipment to cause blackouts.
Research in action
UC Santa Cruz engineers join major transportation cybersecurity project
Researchers from UC Santa Cruz will play an important role in protecting the United States’ transportation systems against cybersecurity threats as part of a new national center. The team will focus on improving the artificial intelligence systems that power autonomous vehicles such as driverless cars.
UC Santa Cruz named National Center of Academic Excellence in Cyber Research
The University of California, Santa Cruz, has been named a National Center of Academic Excellence in Cyber Research (CAE-R) by the U.S. National Security Agency, highlighting Baskin Engineering’s research and educational contributions to advancing cybersecurity.
A new project will develop safer, highly accurate GPS alternative
Developing a resilient system in rural forested territory will improve tracking and navigation of aerial vehicles for search-and-rescue, emergency services, and more. The new system will provide information by taking advantage of signals of opportunity—a growing area of interest in the cyber-physical systems research community.
Computer engineering research prompts bug fixes and updates to major GPU frameworks
Graphical processing units (GPUs) are used in devices such as computers and phones, and tests are needed to ensure software can be run safely and efficiently. New GPU tests developed by Assistant Professor of Computer Science and Engineering Tyler Sorensen and team led to changes to an important framework for programming web browsers.
UCSC students discover and help patch cybersecurity flaw
Two Baskin Engineering students uncovered a security bug in internet-connected laundry machines, that could have allowed millions to do their laundry for free. The pair investigated the issue then collaborated with the company to fix the bug.
Developing AI-enabled cybersecurity defense
Baskin Engineering researchers will lead a project addressing new ethical dilemmas in using AI agents for cyber defense. The team will develop a set of use cases that highlight the ethical dilemmas in training AI agents for cyber security and as a byproduct, AI agents that can launch sophisticated cyber attacks.
BE experts
Martin Abadi
Ishtiyaque Ahmad
Peter Alvaro
Owen Arden
Scott Brandt
Alvaro Cardenas
Melissa Cline
Cormac Flanagan
Lise Getoor
Liting Hu
Mohsen Lesani
Heiner Litz
Darrell Long
Ethan Miller
Chen Qian
Ram Sundara Raman
Hamid Sadjadpour
Ricardo Sanfelice
Tyler Sorensen
Chenguang Wang
Cihang Xie
Yuanchao Xu
For media inquiries contact: Emily Cerf, Engineering Writer and Media Relations Specialist: ecerf@ucsc.edu
Specialty areas
Data privacy
Baskin Engineering researchers are developing advanced methods to protect personal and sensitive information. Through work on secure data management, encryption, and privacy-preserving technologies, we are ensuring digital systems operate responsibly.
Storage systems
Advanced storage systems are needed to meet growing data demands. Researchers at Baskin Engineering are improving scalability, reliability, and security of such systems to support large-scale data centers, high-performance computing, and emerging applications that depend on fast, reliable access to information.
Software engineering
Researchers at Baskin Engineering are rethinking how complex software is designed, tested, and maintained. By developing scalable tools, enhancing code reliability and security, and advancing automated testing and analysis techniques, our work is at the forefront of modern software systems.
Computer security
Focused on protecting computer systems and networks against cyber threats, Baskin Engineering research leads efforts in threat detection, vulnerability assessment, and building secure systems to defend vital digital infrastructures.
Cyber-Physical Systems Research Center
The Cyber-Physical Systems Research Center facilitates collaborative research between UC Santa Cruz and academic and industrial partners on key cyber-physical systems topics, supporting applications such as smart cities and buildings, power grids, agriculture, manufacturing, transportation, and connected health.
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