In recent years, there has been a significant increase in demand for secure and efficient systems to process data. In-network computing has emerged as a promising solution for offloading computation tasks, reducing latency, and relieving the workload of connected computing nodes. This technology uses smart network interface cards (smartNICs) to perform computation tasks on the network. However, limited adoption of this technology is due to the maturity of the software stack and related programming models, particularly for security applications.

This PhD scholarship aims to investigate many aspects of enabling in-network computing as a newer paradigm for solving security challenges, including cryptography. After conducting a literature review to identify relevant research and industry efforts in this area, focusing on existing systems such as NVIDIA Bluefield and programming models like DOCA or sPIN, the PhD candidate will identify challenges associated with adopting an in-network computing model for security and propose novel technical solutions. Additionally, the PhD candidate will conduct experimental evaluations to measure the performance and security of the proposed solutions (e.g., cryptographic algorithms implemented on smartNICs) and compare these results with traditional approaches. The findings of this research can guide future research and development in this area and can be applicable to industries that require secure and efficient data processing.