Postdoctoral Researcher in the Regulation of Quantum-Safe Technology

Do you have a PhD and are you interested in researching the law and regulation of cybersecurity, and in combining this with insights from ethics and economics? If you are excited about doing this kind of research in an interdisciplinary environment, with a team of friendly and enthusiastic colleagues, and with partners from the financial and governmental sectors, then you may want to join us.

The Institute for Logic, Language and Computation and the Institute for Information Law at the University of Amsterdam are looking for an ambitious postdoctoral candidate. Your research is part of the NWO-funded research project Quantum Impact on Societal Security .

As the potential risks and consequences of cybersecurity breaches of existing cryptography by future quantum computers would be devastating, there is an urgent need to prepare for a transition to quantum-safe cryptography (QSC). Addressing the many complexities of this transition requires a multidisciplinary collaboration of academic experts, financial and governmental institutions, and civil society groups. The 'Quantum Impact on Societal Security' (QISS) consortium will analyse the legal, ethical and societal impact of this upcoming society-wide transition. QISS's objective is to contribute to the creation of a Dutch ecosystem where quantum-safe cryptography can thrive, and mobilize this ecosystem to align technological applications with ethical, legal, and social values.

QISS is a project led by the University of Amsterdam and carried out together with QuSoft , Fontys University of Applied Sciences and other academic, governmental, financial, and societal partners. The project leader is Dr. Sebastian De Haro and the co-PIs are Prof. Dr. Christian Schaffner , Prof. Dr. Sonja Smets , Mr. Ot van Daalen , Prof. Dr. Joris van Hoboken , Mr. Dr. Bart Wernaart , and Prof. Dr. Jeroen van Dongen .

QISS is funded by the National Science Agenda of NWO, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, and the Dutch Banking Association. You will be part of a new research group, hosted at the Amsterdam Science Park , and you will also have office space at IViR's location on the Roeterseiland Campus in the city centre.

We specifically encourage women and other underrepresented groups to apply for this position.

What are you going to do

Your research is aimed at situating the transition to QSC in law and policy related to encryption and information security more generally, including relevant general and sectoral cybersecurity regulations and human rights requirements. Your will collaborate with experts at the Institute for Logic, Language and Computation (ILLC) and the research group on the law and governance of quantum technologies at the Institute for Information Law (IViR). You will work together with the Rathenau Institute, with our partners from various Dutch Ministries (the Ministries of Foreign Affairs, of the Interior, of Justice, and of Infrastructure) and Dutch Banks (De Nederlandsche Bank, the Dutch Banking Association, and ABN-AMRO), and with our societal partners (ECP | InformatieSamenleving , Quantum Delta NL , Digital Power Datahub ).

Your specific tasks will include:

• to study the desirable regulations of QSC technology for the financial and governmental sectors;
• to determine the responsibility of businesses and of government to adopt and/or accelerate QSC technology;
• to research the possible implications of the EU-human rights frameworks for government and industry policies related to QSC;
• to write academic publications in relevant peer-reviewed international journals;
• to present at international workshops and conferences;
• to contribute to the supervision of PhD candidates in the group;
• to participate in and to contribute to the organisation of research activities and events;
• to contribute to the dissemination of research results to non-specialist audiences and the organisation of outreach events.

While this is primarily a research position, postdocs also get the opportunity to gain teaching experience relevant for their career development, e.g. by working as lecturers for courses in their area of expertise (with a maximum amount of lecturing of 9 EC a year).