PhD Position in Trustworthy Authorization and Compliance for Cybersecurity Platforms (EU CIPHER Project) Delft University of Technology in Netherlands

This fully funded PhD position at Delft University of Technology (TU Delft) offers an exciting opportunity to advance the state of the art in trustworthy authorization and compliance for cybersecurity platforms, as part of the EU CIPHER project. The research focuses on designing a just-in-time authorization and usage control stack that dynamically responds to risk signals while ensuring legality, privacy, and ethical safeguards across organizations. The project aims to operationalize distributed ledger technology (DLT)-backed policies, smart contracts, and verifiable credentials to enforce context-aware access and data provenance in a dedicated experimentation laboratory.

As a doctoral candidate, you will unite two key research strands: (i) translating EU regulatory frameworks (such as NIS2 and GDPR) into concrete, ethics- and regulation-aware engineering requirements, and (ii) developing real-time, risk-adaptive usage control mechanisms that function across organizational boundaries. Your work will involve designing a usage-control pipeline that evaluates every data request against dynamic context, encoding policies as smart contracts on blockchain for transparent, tamper-evident enforcement, and integrating verifiable credentials for cross-border trust. The system will adapt permissions on the fly, supported by a Security Response Manager, and will include compliance-aware guidance, regulatory checkers, and provenance tracking for auditability and continuous monitoring.

The research is hands-on and evaluative, with deployment in realistic cyber-range scenarios and sectoral use cases (e.g., transport, telecommunications, water). You will demonstrate end-to-end workflows from risk monitoring to authorization and compliance reporting. Collaboration with cybersecurity engineers, legal and ethics experts, and industry partners is integral to the project. You may also co-supervise master’s students and are expected to publish your results at leading venues in security, distributed systems, and responsible/regulated AI.

The position is based at the Faculty of Technology, Policy & Management (TPM) at TU Delft, a top international university renowned for its contributions to science, engineering, and design. TPM is known for its interdisciplinary approach, combining engineering, social sciences, and humanities to address complex technical-social issues, including cybersecurity. TU Delft offers a vibrant, diverse, and supportive research environment, with a strong commitment to innovation, diversity, and global impact.

Employment conditions include a 4-year contract (1.5 years initial, 2.5 years extension upon positive assessment), a competitive salary (€3059–€3881 gross/month), 8% holiday allowance, 8.3% end-of-year bonus, and additional benefits such as health insurance discounts and relocation support. As a PhD candidate, you will be enrolled in the TU Delft Graduate School, benefiting from a comprehensive Doctoral Education Programme and mentorship.

Applicants must have an MSc in Computer Science, Computer/Software Engineering, or a closely related field, with proven skills in access control/usage control and blockchain technologies. Strong programming skills and a collaborative, motivated mindset are essential. English proficiency is required. The application deadline is 3 December 2025. For more information and to apply, visit the official application link.