GMU Software Engineering Seminar Series

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Date: Thursday, 06/19/2008

Time: 1:00 – 2:00 PM

Location: 430A ST2

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Title: User Guidance of Resource-Adaptive Systems.

Speaker: Joao Pedro Sousa

Abstract: This talk presents a framework for engineering resource-adaptive software targeted at small mobile devices. The proposed framework empowers users to control tradeoffs among a rich set of service-specific aspects of quality of service. The research question addressed in this talk is the feasibility of coordinating resource allocation and adaptation policies in a way that end-users can understand and control in real time. The evaluation covered both systems and the usability perspectives, the latter by means of a user study.

Bio: Joao Pedro Sousa is an Assistant Professor with the Computer Science Department. His research interests include applications of software architectures and artificial intelligence to self-aware systems, end-user development, and smart spaces. Joao worked for 10 years in IT for the financial industry in Lisbon, Portugal, before attending grad school at Carnegie Mellon, where he obtained a PhD in CS.

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Title: Improving the Security of Mobile-Phone Access to Remote Personal Computers

Speaker: Alireza P. Sabzevar

Abstract: Cell phones are assuming an increasing role in personal computing tasks, but cell phone security has not evolved in parallel with this new role. In a class of systems that leverage cell phones to facilitate access to remote services, compromising a phone may provide the means to compromise or abuse the remote services. This talk presents the background to this class of systems, examines the threats they are exposed to, and discusses possible countermeasures. A concrete solution is presented, which is based on multi-factor authentication and an on-demand strategy for minimizing exposure.

Bio: Alireza Sabzevar is a PhD. student in Information Technology with a concentration in Information Security. He earned his B.Sc. in Computer Science (1996) and his M.Sc. in Computer Engineering (1998) both from Sharif University of Technology (Tehran, Iran). His research interests include ubiquitous computing, computer security and distributed systems. Alireza has over 10 years of experience in network administration and information systems management.