Research and Education in Cybersecurity
At the ZHAW, various experts are researching the challenges of cybersecurity. The diverse team has a wide range of expertise, including technical IT security, human factors, data protection and law. This combination of perspectives enables the ZHAW to take a holistic approach to cybersecurity challenges and develop innovative solutions that can be applied in practice.
Our main research areas
Our research and innovation work is divided into various key topics. Each of the research groups develops innovative solutions - usually together with partners from industry or academia.
Research Group Information Security
Our vision is to combine science and practice in order to develop innovative security solutions for companies and the public and thus strengthen the cyber security of tomorrow.
Research Group Internet of Things
We bridge the gap between science and practice regarding the security of embedded systems. We have extensive and proven project experience designing secure, reliable networks of low-cost, energy-efficient IoT nodes.
Research Group Human-Centered Cybersecurtiy
Our goal is to develop practical solutions in the area of information security and data protection that not only take into account the technical aspects, but also the human factor and the organization.
Research Group Data Protection and IT Law
Our vision is to combine legal expertise with practical applications in the field of information security, specializing in particular in the areas of data protection, privacy and information technology law.
Educational Offers
We offer a wide range of training and further education courses. Would you like to make the digital world a safer place? Then look for the offer tailored to you.
Bachelor
At Bachelor's level, cybersecurity is an integral part of the Computer Science, Medical Informatics and Business Informatics degree programs. In many other degree programs, cybersecurity can be taken as an elective module.
Master of Science in Engineering Profile Information and Cyber Security
The "Information and Cyber Security" profile of the Master of Science in Engineering (MSE) focuses on various technical aspects of IT security. In contrast, the Master's in Information Systems focuses on organizational aspects.
Doctorate
We also offer doctoral positions. Doctoral students are supervised in cooperation with other universities.
Capture the Flag (CTF) Team
Bachelor, Master and PhD students have the opportunity to join our Capture the Flag team. At Capture the Flag events, practical IT security skills are practiced by searching for so-called flags in specially developed applications. The flags are hidden behind security vulnerabilities, which the participants have to find and cleverly exploit. CTF events are played in teams, so experienced players can pass on their knowledge to less experienced players and strengths in different areas can be combined in a team.
The CTF Team supports interdisciplinary participation, welcoming students from various
fields such as computer science, electrical engineering, and data science who are eager to explore cybersecurity. By participating in Capture the Flag (CTF) competitions — hands-on cybersecurity challenges covering topics such as cryptography, web security, reverse engineering, and forensics — students learn security in a practical way. Through CTFs, students gain experience in ethical hacking, vulnerability analysis, and secure coding while developing problem-solving and teamwork skills, and they can earn ECTS credits for their active participation.
Continuing Education
If you already have several years of professional experience, you can deepen your knowledge in the field of cybersecurity in one of our further training courses:
Swiss Support Center for Cybersecurity (SSCC)
The Swiss Support Center for Cybersecurity (SSCC) is a joint organization of EPFL, ETHZ and ZHAW. The SSCC supports the government, civil society and industry by providing advice, training and knowledge transfer in the critical areas of cybersecurity, cybersecurity policy, information security and digital trust.
CYRENZH
The Cyber Resilience Network for the Canton of Zurich (CYRENZH) is a joint initiative of the University of Zurich, the ZHAW School of Management and Law and the ZHAW School of Engineering. CYRENZH aims to enable collaboration and exchange between partners in the Canton of Zurich and beyond to empower the most adaptive forces to prepare for and recover from cyber incidents: People.
Through research, education and our network, CYRENZH engages its partners in active collaboration to anticipate and prepare for emerging risks to our daily lives.
Reporting vulnerabilities and security incidents
Internal employees can report vulnerabilities and security incidents on the intranet: ICT-Sicherheit | ZHAW Intranet (German)
External security specialists can find the information for reporting vulnerabilities in the ZHAW infrastructure in security.txt.