Reposted by Sabine OechsnerClément Canonne @ccanonne.github.io · 29/09/2026A very important message from Omer Reingold to our TCS community, especially us (arg, already) senior researchers: "snap out of it." Please, digest, and share. theorydish.blog/2026/09/29/s... 47120
Reposted by Sabine Oechsnermccurley.bsky.social @mccurley.bsky.social · 28/09/2026I'd like to remind IACR members to sign up for discuss.iacr.org so they can participate in the discussion about how to adapt the society to the new world of publishing and conferences. If you don't have an account you can visit iacr.org/discuss/iacr.orgaccounts on discuss.iacr.org 044
Reposted by Sabine OechsnerLance Fortnow @lance.fortnow.com · 17/09/2026STOC call for papers is out. Deadline is November 2. acm-stoc.org/stoc202... New rules for the AI era: limited submissions, public posting and a required video. Is it a coincidence that the camera-ready deadline is April Fools Day? 0125
Reposted by Sabine OechsnerChris Peikert @chrispeikert.bsky.social · 10/09/2026“Now Lean, particularly in Navier-Stokes papers, is being used as a time-stamp, a way to claim your theorem before having to write it up properly in an explainable way.” A sentence that would’ve been seen as the ravings of a madman just ~1 year ago. blog.computationalcomplexity.org/2026/09/navi...blog.computationalcomplexity.orgNavier-Stokes and LeanI was working on this week's post on Lean after reading Kevin Hartnett's book The Proof in the Code: How a Truth Machine Is Transforming Ma... 0248
Reposted by Sabine OechsnerSchloss Dagstuhl – Leibniz-Zentrum für Informatik (LZI) @dagstuhl.de · 10/09/2026It is time for possible Dagstuhl proposals again! Proposals can be submitted between October 15 and November 1, 2026. For links to guidelines, more details on the process, and important dates see www.dagstuhl.de/en/institute...dagstuhl.deCall for Proposals (Deadline November 1, 2026)Call for Proposals (Deadline November 1, 2026) 0108
Reposted by Sabine OechsnerFredrik Dahlgren @fegge.bsky.social · 09/09/2026My colleague Marc found a 20-line Lean ”proof” of Fermat’s last theorem that really fits in the margin! 😁 blog.trailofbits.com/2026/09/09/a...blog.trailofbits.comA “proof” of Fermat’s Last Theorem that fits the marginFermat’s margin was too narrow for his proof. Ours would have fit just fine, thanks to a wonderfully cursed Lean bug. 221
Reposted by Sabine OechsnerSeny Kamara @senykamara.com · 08/09/2026Fantastic thread on math’s over-indexing on problem solving but applies to theoretical CS and crypto as well (in fact I think TCS and crypto are worse than math in this regard). Took me a few years after my PhD to converge to this viewpoint as well but I always thought I was just odd 071
Reposted by Sabine Oechsner🇵🇸Tim Henke (tɪm 'ɦɛŋ.kə) @timhenke.bsky.social · 30/08/2026I kinda consider this a soft confession to what I was theorising 1) He admits they only care about maths in so far as it brings good PR 2) they're only interested in announcing results that make it sound like they're gonna replace mathematicians ∴) they're optimising for impressive-soundingness 1215732
Reposted by Sabine OechsnerBen Brubaker @benbenbrubaker.bsky.social · 28/08/2026My latest for @quantamagazine.org is something a bit different from my usual fare: a first-person essay exploring what theoretical computer science has to do with computers.quantamagazine.orgDoes Computer Science Need Computers? | Quanta MagazineThe theoretical side of the field doesn’t require computing machines. But many questions would never have been posed without them. 0326
Reposted by Sabine OechsnerFOCS 2026 @focs2026.bsky.social · 24/08/2026Travel Awards for Students and Postdoctoral Fellows for #FOCS2026: details and application process are available at focs.computer.org/2026/travel-... Apply by ⏰ September 19!focs.computer.orgTravel Support – FOCS 2026 016
Reposted by Sabine OechsnerMatthew Green @matthewdgreen.bsky.social · 15/08/2026I wrote up a new post about what AI software finding might mean for the backdoor debate. blog.cryptographyengineering.com/2026/08/14/e...blog.cryptographyengineering.comEverything is about to “go dark”I’m coming down from spending a few days at Usenix Security, right here in my hometown of Baltimore. This means that my days have been taken up with two kinds of conversation: first, explaini… 810245
Reposted by Sabine OechsnerMatthew Green @matthewdgreen.bsky.social · 11/08/2026If you haven’t seen it, this new paper is great. They expand on a blog post I wrote that showed you could replay encrypted reasoning blobs from AI models. And they turned it into a full jailbreak. stolen-thoughts.comstolen-thoughts.comStolen ThoughtsEncrypted chain-of-thought blocks returned by Anthropic, OpenAI and Google APIs are interchangeable across sessions, users and models. We exploit this to decode hidden reasoning at scale. 210534
Reposted by Sabine OechsnerTressie McMillan Cottom @tressiemcphd.bsky.social · 01/08/2026Anyway, your problem isn‘t finding the time to take notes. The problem is that taking notes is thinking and thinking has to be done by someone. women have been doing a lot of metacognition that looks like a task when it’s really thinking. 161867290
Reposted by Sabine Oechsnermccurley.bsky.social @mccurley.bsky.social · 09/07/2026The IACR board has put forward a proposal to revamp the publishing of the general conference proceedings for Eurocrypt, Crypto, and Asiacrypt. iacr.org/hybridpropos... I would encourage members to engage in discussion about this on iacr.org/discussiacr.orgConcrete Hybrid Journal Proposal 01911
Reposted by Sabine OechsnerMarcel Keller @mkskeller.bsky.social · 06/07/2026The documentation now includes a section on security fixes. mp-spdz.readthedocs.io/en/latest/se...mp-spdz.readthedocs.ioSecurity Fixes — MP-SPDZ documentation 021
Reposted by Sabine OechsnerNils Fleischhacker @cryptomaeher.bsky.social · 02/07/2026I'm looking for a job! I'm an experienced researcher in cryptography. My focus is on the transition to post-quantum cryptographic protocols and protocols related to blockains. If that sounds like someone you might want to hire or you know someone who might, let's talk! 11412
Reposted by Sabine OechsnerePrint Updates @eprint.ing.bot · 30/06/2026Principles for pRHL Proofs of Cryptographic Protocols: How to Convince EasyCrypt that your Protocol is Secure (Manuel Barbosa, François Dupressoir, Cameron Low, Charlotte Mylog, Sabine Oechsner, Théo Vignon) ia.cr/2026/1334 022
Reposted by Sabine OechsnerTianxin Tang @koptxin.bsky.social · 17/06/2026I am looking for a (fully funded) PhD student working with me in Glasgow on provable security! www.iacr.org/jobs/item/4226iacr.orgPhD Student 087
Reposted by Sabine OechsnerTianxin Tang @koptxin.bsky.social · 12/06/2026Seems like a nice program. See you at Bristol :) uk-crypto-day.github.io/2026/06/17/u...uk-crypto-day.github.ioUK Crypto DaySchedule 09:00 - 09:45 Arrival 09:45 - 10:00: Opening remarks 10:00 - 10:45: Sofia Celi: Threshold Post-Quantum Signatures 10:45 - 11:15: Break 11:15 - 12:00: Thalia Laing: Lessons from deploying LMS ... 011
Reposted by Sabine OechsnerMiro Haller @mirohaller.bsky.social · 11/06/2026The Workshop on Attacks in Cryptography 8 (WAC8) website is finally up, and our call for talks is open. Submit your cool cryptanalysis before July 3! We'll also invite speakers. If you had a favorite cryptographic attack from the last two years that we should invite, please put it in the comments. 074
Reposted by Sabine OechsnerCOSIC @cosic.bsky.social · 10/06/2026Check out the latest blog post on our website by Neus Vayà, who attended #TPMPC 2026 in Denmark. In the post, she discusses the paper “When Trying to Catch Cheaters Breaks the MPC” by Andreas Brüggemann and Thomas Schneider: www.esat.kuleuven.be/cosic/blog/t...esat.kuleuven.beTPMPC 2026: “When trying to catch cheaters breaks the MPC” - COSICCOSIC - TPMPC 2026: “When trying to catch cheaters breaks the MPC” (COSIC Cryptography Blog ) 001
Reposted by Sabine OechsnerShriram Krishnamurthi @shriram.bsky.social · 09/06/2026As GenAI systems do more and more, even generate proofs, the focus shifts to getting high-quality specifications. What can a *responsible* programmer do? Any solution should generate work that is *meaningful* and *moderate*. We've been working on that! blog.brownplt.org/2026/06/09/p...blog.brownplt.orgHuman Judgment as a Specification 2175
Reposted by Sabine OechsnerMarcel Keller @mkskeller.bsky.social · 05/06/2026UNSW Sydney is hiring an associate professor and a lecturer in cryptography, and the description explicitly mentions *secure computation*. Didn't you want to live in the sunniest of the most livable cities in the world?external-careers.jobs.unsw.edu.auAssociate Professor in CryptographyJoin an organisation that is shaping the future direction of cryptography and secure computation in Australia, in a senior academic role that combines research leadership, strategic contribution, and ... 166
Reposted by Sabine OechsnerHimanshu @h-vash.bsky.social · 03/06/2026Just read through this blogpost "Contextualising Cryptography" by @senykamara.com. It hits some of the issues I have been facing in choosing the right problems for my research, even before starting my phd (advisor reveal post coming up soon). senykamara.substack.com/p/contextual...senykamara.substack.comContextualizing CryptographyWhat Is Cryptography For? 1123
Reposted by Sabine OechsnerClément Canonne @ccanonne.github.io · 02/06/2026A list of principles put forth by mathematicians, for mathematicians and other researchers, regarding the use of AI in research. "Number #9 will surprise you!" leidendeclaration.aileidendeclaration.aiLeiden Declaration on Artificial Intelligence and MathematicsThis declaration calls for action to address the challenges posed by the use of artificial intelligence within mathematics research. 02711
Reposted by Sabine OechsnerClément Canonne @ccanonne.github.io · 01/06/2026And the website with details and registration form is up! sites.google.com/view/sydney-... Join us on July 22–24 at #USyd, in the @sydneycompsci.bsky.social, for a 3-day (free) intensive winter school on Interactive Proofs and the PCP Theorem! [Remote participation possible]sites.google.comSydney TCS Winter School 2026📅 July 22—24, 2026 🌏 Sydney (Australia) 2127
Reposted by Sabine OechsnerClément Canonne @ccanonne.github.io · 31/05/2026Teaser: a colleague (Sasha Rubin) and I are planning a 3-day (free) "intensive Winter school" at #USyd on computational complexity: specifically, interactive proofs (IP=PSPACE) and the PCP theorem. July 22-24! I don't know how many people here are nearby and keen, but if you are: please do join! 1235
Reposted by Sabine OechsnerPavel @spavel.bsky.social · 30/05/2026Thinking about why women might not want to use a product that has forced itself into every software interface to confidently shout things that are wrong 6070211616
Reposted by Sabine OechsnerMatthew Green @matthewdgreen.bsky.social · 29/05/2026Last week I discovered that ChatGPT and Claude will send you their “encrypted raw reasoning” and of course I immediately wasted a weekend trying to do something bad with it. What I got for my trouble was this blog post: blog.cryptographyengineering.com/2026/05/29/f...blog.cryptographyengineering.comFooling around with encrypted reasoning blobsThis is a quick post I wanted to write about a “hobby project” I spent a weekend on. It has little to do with real cryptography, and mostly doesn’t expose a particularly exciting … 47824
Reposted by Sabine OechsnerReal World Crypto Symposium @rwc.iacr.org · 28/05/2026The Call for Contributed Talks for the 2027 edition of the Real World Crypto Symposium 2027 is now open. If you’ve built, deployed, broken, measured, migrated, or learned something the community should hear about, submit it. rwc.iacr.org/2027/contrib...rwc.iacr.orgRWC 2027 call for papersReal World Crypto Symposium 097
Reposted by Sabine OechsnerAndrea Lathrop @cabernet.bsky.social · 26/05/2026Cross-posting this from Twitter, because I like it: (by @littmath.bsky.social) 23510
Reposted by Sabine OechsnerDr. Michelle Fullwood @michelleful.bsky.social · 23/05/2026I'm making a puzzle game where you discover German for yourself, starting from shared etymology and cultural knowledge. It's called German Is ~~Awful~~ Easy and the first five levels are up! Feedback welcome! michellefullwood.com/languages/ge... #puzzles #etymology #LearnGerman 55911
Reposted by Sabine OechsnerGro-Tsen @gro-tsen.bsky.social · 23/05/2026Very insightful short essay by Petra Schwer ( mathstodon.xyz/@PetraSchwer ): ‘The meaning of doing mathematics’ “(Can AI solve all math? What do we actually mean by doing mathematics? How do we communicate mathematics? What is mathematics beyond problem solving?)” arxiv.org/abs/2509.15998arxiv.orgThe meaning of doing mathematicsCan AI solve all math? What do we actually mean by doing mathematics? How do we communicate mathematics? What is mathematics beyond problem solving? This essay is my attempt to answer these question... 22813
Reposted by Sabine OechsnerTianxin Tang @koptxin.bsky.social · 22/05/2026For anyone interested in being a tadpole reviewer (interesting concept, suitable for PhD students and early post-docs) for PETS 2027, you can submit an application using the following link: cryptpad.fr/form/#/2/for.... The PC application form can also be found on the website. 111
Reposted by Sabine OechsnerNalini Joshi @monsoon0.bsky.social · 21/05/2026You may find the comments by Melanie Matchett Wood on the discovery of a counter example to Erdős’ Unit Distance Conjecture as interesting as I did 👇🏼(see previous post for a link) 27818
Reposted by Sabine OechsnerClément Canonne @ccanonne.github.io · 21/05/2026The OpenAI breakthrough on the unit distance problem seems genuinely impressive to my semi-layman eye. (It is!) One possible takeaway, though, is that if you throw an incredible amount of money and resources at focused research, there WILL be impressive progress. I wish we tried that, too. 1517
Reposted by Sabine OechsnerMathy Vanhoef @vanhoefm.bsky.social · 19/05/2026Nominate yourself to help review papers for USENIX Security 2027! sec-rms.com/submit-appli... (or rms.swag.cispa.de/submit-appli... ). Deadline: May 28, 2026. We're looking for both senior and junior people. See Andrei Sabelfeld's LinkedIn post for more info: www.linkedin.com/feed/update/...sec-rms.comSignal PC interest - USENIX Security Symposium 025
Reposted by Sabine OechsnerAram Zucker-Scharff @chronotope.aramzs.xyz · 11/05/2026I think the screenshoted take is insane. If a mathematician discovered something with Matlab, if a scientist uses an algorithm, if a designer uses Adobe, if anything like that, the work belongs to the user. But big tech companies have been trying to claim the work of their users for a decade now. 5306
Reposted by Sabine OechsnerRasmus Pagh @rasmuspagh.net · 11/05/2026Join us June 11-12 for a workshop on Differential Privacy and Unlearning in Machine Learning at University of Copenhagen! The workshop will feature tutorials, three great invited speakers (@grahamrc.bsky.social, @ahonkela.bsky.social and @koloskova.bsky.social), as well as contributed talks. 164
Sabine Oechsner @proofnerd.bsky.social · 10/05/2026Fascinated by this M.C. Escher-esque suitcase on the Charles de Gaulle Airport website 030
Reposted by Sabine OechsnerDoreen Riepel @doreenriepel.bsky.social · 08/05/2026Join us tomorrow for ProTeCS, one of Eurocrypt’s affiliated events! We are thankful to have two amazing invited speakers, Bart Mennink and Mike Rosulek! We are also happy to have seven contributed talks from the community. Check out our full program here: protecs-workshop.gitlab.io/programprotecs-workshop.gitlab.ioProgramWorkshop on Proofs and Proof Techniques for Cryptographic Security. Affiliated with Eurocrypt 2026. 163
Reposted by Sabine OechsnerNils Fleischhacker @cryptomaeher.bsky.social · 07/05/2026My time at RUB is coming to an end and I'm looking for an industry position. Primarily looking for remote or Rhine-Ruhr area positions, but will consider any exceptional offers. So if you're looking to hire a cryptographer to work on cryptographic protocols, or related areas, maybe we should talk! 158
Reposted by Sabine OechsnerNational Trust @nationaltrust.org.uk · 03/05/2026We have an *extremely* important announcement to make. From Wednesday, we will be launching our puffin live cam, coming to you from the Farne Islands. So you can watch puffins all day long. In celebration, please enjoy this clip of puffins being really busy for 39 seconds straight. 7872012473
Reposted by Sabine OechsnerClément Canonne @ccanonne.github.io · 30/04/2026SIGACT is providing travel support to attend #STOC2026! "These travel awards are for students who are short on funds and are intended to help cover their registration, travel, and accommodation expenses." Deadline: ⏰ May 13 acm-stoc.org/stoc2026/tra...acm-stoc.orgSTOC 2026 - 58th ACM Symposium on Theory of Computing 0106
Reposted by Sabine OechsnerSabine Oechsner @proofnerd.bsky.social · 17/04/2026I'm looking for a PhD student to work with me on formal verification for cryptographic protocols. This is a 4-year position at VU Amsterdam, co-supervised with Kristina Sojakova. Send me an email if you want to know more! 11013
Reposted by Sabine OechsnerAravind (Sri AravindaKrishnan Thyagarajan) @aravind16coiner.bsky.social · 27/04/2026📢 📢 📢 🚨 I am looking for two PhD students to hire in post quantum cryptography. Exciting opportunity to work at University of Sydney @sydneycompsci.bsky.social and the theory/crypto groups here. Do share with your students and contacts. #hiring #phd #pqc #cryptography 🔗 iacr.org/jobs/item/4199iacr.orgTwo PhD Positions in Post-Quantum Cryptography (PQC) 023
Reposted by Sabine OechsnerMark Riedl @markriedl.bsky.social · 22/04/2026Fantastic (long) piece on what AU means to mathematics (and what mathematics is) So many insights. The first begins why so may people in AI research are getting obsessed with “taste”. davidbessis.substack.com/p/the-fall-o...davidbessis.substack.comThe fall of the theorem economyHow AI could destroy mathematics and barely touch it 14010
Reposted by Sabine OechsnerFredrik Dahlgren @fegge.bsky.social · 17/04/2026Two weeks ago, Google published a paper proving in zero-knowledge that they had an efficient implementation of Shor's algorithm. Today, Trail of Bits can prove that we have an even better implementation which beats Google's on all metrics! 🫢 blog.trailofbits.com/2026/04/17/w... 18230