CSIRO (Australia's National Science Agency) 
Adelaide, Australia Project Description
Funding and duration
four year scholarship package totalling approximately $48,000 per annum tax exempt (2026 rate); four-year scholarship and research training program.
Project overview
Project title
Dark Web Analytics for Ransomware Threat Actor Profiling.
Project description
Ransomware groups pose an ongoing threat to our data privacy and national security. Hence, it is imperative to investigate the ransomware groups that operate on the dark web to retain anonymity. More academic research is needed to extract actionable intelligence on the ransomware groups and analyse their tactics, techniques, and procedures for launching attacks. This project aims to investigate active ransomware groups and identify their key characteristics, attack signatures, victims, and stolen data. In addition, a dataset will be developed as the first of its kind to serve as an essential resource for academic and professional research communities interested in the ransomware ecosystem.
Supervisory team
University
Name of university supervisor | Mohiuddin Ahmed
Name of university | Adelaide University
Email address | mohiuddin.ahmed@adelaide.edu.au
Faculty | School of Computer Science and Information Technology
CSIRO
Name of CSIRO supervisor | Sid Chau
Email address | sid.chau@csiro.au
CSIRO Research Unit | Technology
Industry
Name of industry supervisor | Ruman Sarawer
Name of organisation | CipherShield Pty Ltd
Email address | ruman.sarawer@ciphershield.au
Further details
Primary location of student | Adelaide University, North Terrace, Adelaide SA 5005, Australia
Industry engagement component location | CipherShield Pty Ltd, Level 29, 221 St Georges Terrace, Perth WA 6000, Australia
Other locations | CSIRO Marsfield, 26 Pembroke Road, Marsfield NSW 2122, Australia
Ideal student skillset | A hard‐working and driven PhD candidate with problem‐solving and management skills.Experience with malware analysis, machine learning and research publications in high-quality venues. Strong cybersecurity backgrounds and data analysis skills are high desired.
Application close date | Open until position filled
Apply | Contact Mohiuddin Ahmed