PETRAS funded FIRE project tackles cybersecurity and digital payment systems

The PETRAS National Centre of Excellence awarded £3.6 M for 18 new research projects to research institutes across the UK to tackle cybersecurity at the edge of the internet.  This includes FIRE project which will explore the design requirements for cash-like digital payment systems as part of an efficient and robust payments infrastructure of the future.

The team consists of Dr Geoff Goodell  (Project Lead) as well as Prof Tomaso Aste ( both of UCL CS Financial Computing and Analytics group) and Prof Chris Speed (University of Edinburgh).

The project will look at systems that possess cash-like features such as accessibility, non-discrimination, privacy, and custodianship on the part of owners.  The solutions that have been proposed so far for central bank digital currency generally lack these features, but alternatives are possible.

Dr Geoff Goodell:

‘Modern retail payment technology creates honeypots of data that can be easily breached and emboldens criminals through its reliance upon asset custodians and high-stakes identity credentials. Through our partnership with the Bank of England, BSI, and everis UK, we seek to explore options that offer verifiable privacy, not just empty promises of data protection, and literally put control in the hands of users in the form of secure devices.’ 

Further reading:

https://petras-iot.org/project/future-infrastructure-for-retail-remittances-fire/

https://petras-iot.org/update/petras-awards-3-6-m-to-tackle-issues-of-cybersecurity-privacy-and-trust/