|
|
Sudhir
Aggarwal |
[Research] [Teaching] [Biosketch]
[Fall 2024: Theory of Computation – COT 4420]
Smartphone Related Systems
Development
·
Developing a scalable multiphone targeted data extracting system
(SM-TDES) that implements a ``forensics intelligence" platform able to
selectively extract data from multiple phones during mass incident events. This
data is collected and analyzed in quasi real-time to provide law enforcement
with actionable forensic intelligence for such situations.
·
Exploring AI-enabled community supervision for criminal justice
services (AI-SMS). Developing an AI based support and monitoring system
(AI-SMS) based on the 5-Key Model that includes an app for Android smartphones,
a dashboard for supervisors, and a backend system to support parolees in their
reentry into the community.
·
Research and development in targeted data extraction: Developed techniques and a prototype
software system (TDES) that supports targeted data extraction from iOS or
Android based mobile devices in a forensically sound manner. Applied machine learning techniques to
identify classes such as photos and videos. A goal is to ensure privacy for
data that does not need to be extracted.
Cybersecurity and Forensics
·
Directing the E-Crime Investigative Technologies Laboratory (ECIT)
·
Explored techniques to identify vault applications and automatically
extract data from such apps.
·
Probabilistic Password Cracking: Developed new techniques for password
and passphrase cracking based on probabilistic context-free grammars
(PCFGs). Adding methods to learn patterns such as keyboard, multi-words and
Leetspeak, to improve the guesses generated. Also exploring how to build better
attack and training dictionaries. Techniques for cracking passwords based on
knowledge of targets’ information has also been explored. Also developing
a distributed systems for faster cracking.
·
Developed a technique to identifying passwords on media. We have been
using string filtering techniques on hard disks and the context-free grammar
based probabilistic cracking approach to suggest to an investigator the top N
strings that could be passwords.
·
(Automated Disk Investigation Toolkit: AUDIT): Explored automatic
analysis of hard disk through developing an expert system that can be used by
expert and non-IT expert users alike. The systems integrates open source tools with the goal of providing an
“intelligent assistant” to support forensic examinations.
·
(Password Analysis and Modification (AMP): Explored ways to build
strong and secure passwords that are also usable. Exploring metrics for
evaluating the strength of passwords.
·
Explored virtualization technology for analyzing malware in email
attachments.
·
(Accountable Systems): Investigated a new model of accountability for
internet systems such as email, based on a dynamic trust management model, and
exploring legal ramifications of this model. Explored how such accountable
systems could be complementary to traditional security system.
·
(UnMask): Built software tools to support the
analysis of phishing and threatening emails by law enforcement analysts. UnMask automatically deconstructs an email and populates a
database, searches the internet for relevant additional information and
provides a customized database GUI and reporting facility. (DNA Online) Developed an online
interface to link with a commercial backend system to help law enforcement in
code breaking
·
(PAPA2 & PAPA): Built a prototype monitoring tool for environments
such as prisons, libraries, and parolee interactions. Built a system (predator
& prey alert system) to support law enforcement in investigating
cyberstalking crimes. The system
supports monitoring of the victim and gathering of evidence for prosecution.
This research prompted many media interviews.
Computer and
Communication Networks
·
Explored the use of social networks to locate hard-to-find individuals.
·
Explored research problems in distributed network games. Issues included the notion of dynamic
authority assignment and how to ensure accuracy and fairness in massively
multiplayer online games (MMOG).
Two patents have been filed related to this research.
·
Developed a security architecture called SAMOA for efficient and secure
communication of mobile devices based on segmented security. Patent issued.
·
Built a multicast application level software
system called Mercury for dynamic and efficient audio and video
distribution. Patent issued for
part of this work.
·
Explored R&D issues in building content networks: intelligent 4/7
web switches, caching, DRM, security, streaming and supporting 3rd party
applications.
·
Explored building optimal and reliable application-level multicast
networks. Developed a reliable multicasting scheme.
·
Developed a multicast protocol, called CSM (conference Steiner
multicast) as an alternative to protocols such as PIM and CBT. It supports
authentication, application assisted routing, and dynamic tree
modifications.
·
Developed a new approach to QoS for many-to-many multicasting based on
the use of Steiner trees and Lagrangian relaxation
methods. Patent issued for this
work.
Distributed Systems and
Parallel Computing
·
Developed a mathematical
model of parallel computation and a software development environment, called
DECCA (distributed environment for coordinating concurrent activities), for
building distributed system applications.
·
DECCA
incorporates a methodology, toolkit and Java API that supports development
using Java’s conventional and OOP features, but
permits high-level coordination control.
Real-time Systems
·
Developed a
software simulation package (ASSERTS) for real-time systems that permits
exploring real-time scheduling and the timely execution of tasks in a
distributed environment.
·
Developed a new
real-time tasking model (hyper-periodic) for flexibly scheduling tasks
involving monitoring and control.
·
Explored
middleware for software self-monitoring in a real-time environment.
Search Engines and
Databases
·
Developed WIRE
(Web information retrieval and extraction) for retrieving and extracting
relevant data from the Web based on hierarchically structured
queries.
·
Developed a
system, SCOPE, for coping with a deluge of data in a dynamically evolving
database system.
Design, Analysis and
Verification of Protocols
·
Developed a new
approach for the formal specification, analysis and validation of communication
protocols based on a novel communications algebra for coordination.
·
Developed a file
transfer protocol for a network of heterogeneous nodes.
·
Designed and
developed software tools for the specification and analysis of protocols. A
prototype system (SPANNER) was used for research and led to the development of
a commercial system.
Modeling and Simulation
·
Developed
techniques for improving the scalability of distributed interactive
simulations.
·
Developed
mathematical methods for the probabilistic and approximate simplification of
models of complex systems, based on the notion of ergodic machines.
·
Developed
simulation models to: assess risk of nuclear waste
burial; aid almond growers in evaluating pest management strategies; assess
virtual circuit behavior in an Ethernet local area network; and test C with
Classes (a forerunner of C++) as a simulation language.
Current Courses
Fall
2024: Theory
of Computation – COT 4420
Some
Recent Courses Taught
Spring
2024: Theory of Automata
and Formal Languages – COT 5310
Fall
2023: Theory
of Computation – COT 4420
Spring
2023: Theory of Automata
and Formal Languages – COT 5310
Fall
2022: Theory
of Computation – COT 4420
Spring
2022: Network Security
– CNT 5412 / CNT 4406
Spring
2022: Theory of
Computation – COT 4420
Spring
2021: Theory of
Computation – COT 4420
Fall
2020: CNT
5505 / 4504 Data/Computer Comm & Networks
Spring
2020: Internet Security
(Hands-on) -CIS 5930
Interests: Network Security, Password Cracking, Systems Development of Mobile Apps
and Environments for real-world applications, Computer Network Multicasting,
Automata Theory and Formal Languages, Algorithms and Data Structures, Digital
Forensics, Formal Methods for Specification and Verification, Distributed
Systems, Real-time Systems, Modeling and Simulation.
Last modified: August 2024