13 Jul UNCOVER Summer School and Capture the Flag Event
From the 4th to the 8th of September 2023, the UNCOVER project promoted a Summer School and a Capture the Flag Event in Prague, Czechia.
The event was aimed at Law Enforcement Agents (LEAs) and PhD students (with information technology background) to develop skills in steganography, learn new digital media steganalysis techniques and develop an efficient framework to discover hidden data in digital media!
The event was a combination of a short-term educational program covering a wide range of disciplines and lectures combined with practical activities, workshops and social events, which allowed students, researchers and professionals the opportunity to learn new skills, deepen their knowledge and interact with peers and experts in the field of cybersecurity.
The aim of the Summer School was to provide participants with a comprehensive understanding of the challenges of steganography and equip them with the knowledge and skills needed to be used at an operational level, particularly in their digital investigations.
The purpose of Capture the Flag was to promote a computer security competition where participants worked in teams to solve a variety of cybersecurity challenges and find hidden data called “flags”. Thus, the participants put into practice the skills and knowledge learned in the training, applying different approaches.
The agenda has been structured in order to allow the co-creative process between LEAs and students.
The several sessions allow academics and LEAs to present their view and methodologies. This allows a more comprehensive learning process from the two groups, and consequently, more dynamic takeaways at the end of the sessions. Almost each theoretical session is complemented with a hands-on experience and practical testing.
The Agenda is available for download HERE.
Kindly note that the agenda is subject to changes at any time
Each participant should bring their own computer in order to address the hands-on or practical lab sessions.
Special remark: A computer with Python installed along with “classical” libraries for data sciences : Numpy, Scipy, Matplotlib, etc (can be anaconda distribution).
Presenters will use Jupyter-notebook for demonstration.
Basic steganography, steganalysis and JPEG image manipulation toolboxes will be provided along with the lecture.
PhD students are invited to present their work if they wish. Please inform in the registration form.
The lectures will be delivered by renowned experts in the field of cybersecurity and will provide participants with the opportunity to learn about the latest research, developments and best practices in the field.
| Speaker | Organization | Title | Abstract |
| Christian Kraetzer | Otto-von-Guericke University Magdeburg (OVGU), Germany | Researcher | Researcher at the Multimedia and Security Group of the Otto-von-Guericke University Magdeburg (OVGU) in Germany. He received his Ph.D. in Computer Science in 2013 for a dissertation project focused on applied pattern recognition for audio forensics tasks. His current research interests include explainable AI solutions for multimedia forensics, steganalysis, biometrics, and cryptography |
| Erik Krupicka | Federal Criminal Police Office (BKA) in Germany | Forensic Expert | Erik Krupicka is a forensic expert at the Federal Criminal Police Office (BKA) in Germany. He works at the Department of IT-Forensics in the field of image, audio and video forensics. He is involved in multimedia casework and also conducts research on new analytical methods and techniques for forensic applications. His current main research and casework interest – besides steganography – is the forensic analysis of manipulated and synthetic images. |
| Katharina Schaar | Central Office for Information Technology in the Security Sector (ZITiS) | Researcher | Researcher at the Central Office for Information Technology in the Security Sector (ZITiS) in Germany. ZITiS is a federal agency that develops and researches innovative technical solutions, tools and methods for the security authorities in Germany. |
| Martin Benes | University of Innsbruck (UIBK) | Research assistant | Martin Beneš is a PhD student at the University of Innsbruck, focusing his research on the fields of steganography, steganalysis, and machine learning. In addition to his academic pursuits, he has developed the Python package jpeglib, which facilitates access to the interface of JPEG codecs to the broader community of multimedia security and forensics. |
| Michael Eichberg | Federal Criminal Police Office (BKA) | Senior Expert | Dr. Eichberg is a senior expert in the area of software and cryptoanalysis at the BKA. The BKA is the federal investigative police agency of Germany, responsible for coordinating cooperation between the federation and state police forces, investigating cases of international organized crime, terrorism, and national security, among other tasks. |
| Patrick Bas | National Center for Scientific Research (CNRS) | Researcher | Patrick Bas received the Electrical Engineering degree from the Institut National Polytechnique de Grenoble, France, in 1997, and the Ph.D. degree in signal and image processing from Institut National Polytechnique de Grenoble, France, in 2000. His research interests include synchronization and security evaluation in watermarking, and steganalysis. He has co-organized the 9th International Workshop on Information Hiding (IH07), the 2nd Edition of the Bows-2 contest on watermarking in 2007, the first edition of the BOSS contest on steganalysis in 2010 and the Kaggle-Alaska contest on steganalysis in 2020. |
| Rainer Böhme | University of Innsbruck (UIBK) | Professor of computer science | Professor of computer science at the University of Innsbruck (UIBK) in Austria. He leads the Security and Privacy Lab and his research focuses on information security economics, privacy-enhancing technologies, digital forensics, and multimedia security. |
| Ranieri Argentini | Netherlands Forensic Institute (NFI) | Forensic Scientist | Ranieri Argentini is a digital forensic researcher at the Netherlands Forensic Institute (NFI). The Netherlands Forensic Institute is a world-leading forensic laboratory that provides products and services to national and international clients in criminal cases. |
| Rémi Cogranne | University of Technology of Troyes (UTT) | Associate Professor | Rémi Cogranne started studying steganography and stegnalysis during his M.S. in 2008 and then continued during its doctoral studies (2008-2011) and until today. After more than 15 years of research focussing mostly on this topic, he is now a well-recognized expert who contributed, with Prof. Fridrich, in the most efficient steganographic scheme (MiPOD & J-MiPOD), features-based detector (fast linear classifier) as well as understanding the impact of correlation within images on steganalysis and CSM. |
| Tomas Pevny | Czech Technical University (CTU) | Assistant Professor of computer science | Tomas Pevny, born in 1979, is a researcher and lecturer at Czech Technical Universtity in Prague. He received his PhD in Computer Sciences from State University of New York in Binghamton in Computer Science in 2008 and an MS in Computer Sciences from Czech Technical University in Prague in 2003. In 2008–2009, T. Pevny spent one year in Gipsa-lab in Grenoble, France, as a post-doctoral researcher. From 2013-2019, he was partially working in Cisco as a consulting research. Currently, he partially works for Gen digital Inc. (former Avast). His main research interests is in tailoring machine learning algorithms to enable their application in a security industry. |
| Verena Lachner | Central Office for Information Technology in the Security Sector (ZITiS) | Research Assistant | Research Assistant at the Central Office for Information Technology in the Security Sector (ZITiS) in Germany. Lachner’s research interests include steganography and steganalysis, video compression, and cyber defence. She is also a Ph.D. student in computer science at the University of Innsbruck. |
The summer school is offered free of charge to all participants, including lunches and coffee breaks. But participants are responsible for their accommodation and transport costs to the venue.
After completion of the course, the participants will be able to receive a certificate of attendance upon formal request by email.
The school is primarily aimed at law enforcement agents (LEAs) and PhD students (with an information technology background); however, other applications are also welcome to register (e.g., Master students, young researchers, and other interested in the broader domain of steganography).
Please note that we have a limited capacity of participants, registration forms must be submitted as early as possible as law enforcement agents (LEAs) will be prioritized on a first come, first served basis.
Link to Registration: https://forms.gle/ypK3yvXUymKGEPwA7
Deadline for registration: 15th August, 2023.
Download the Invitation here
After submitting the form, the UNCOVER team will analyse the data before confirming your place. If all information is correct, you will receive an email confirming your participation.
If you have any questions, send an email to: office@uncoverproject.eu
The UNCOVER Summer School and Capture the Flag Event will both be held at the Czech Technical University in Prague.
(Karlovo nám. 13, 121 35 Praha 2 – Nové Město, Czechia – Building E)
Google Maps: https://goo.gl/maps/DMAdckCWwS6JhqaJ7
How to get there from:
Airport:
According to the web search results, the best option from “Václav Havel Airport Prague” to “Karlovo nám. 293/13, 120 00 Nové Město, Czechia” using public transportation is:
– take the 119 bus from the airport to Veleslavín train station and then you will have two options:
Option 1) change to the metro Line A to Karlovo náměstí, (green) direction Skalka, go to Mustek
Option 2) Change to a metro line B (yellow) direction Zlicin, go to Karlovo Namesti. Alternatively, you can walk from Mustek to Karlovo namesti, since it is close.
The travel time is approximately 30 minutes and the ticket price is 40 CZK (and is valid for 90 minutes). You can buy the ticket in the bus with your credit card,.
Prague Main Station: the best option from “Prague Main Station, Wilsonova 300/8, 120 00 Vinohrady, Czechia” to “Karlovo nám. 293/13, 120 00 Nové Město, Czechia” using public transportation is to take the metro Line C from “Praha hlavní nádraží” to I. P. Pavlova Metro station and then change to the tram line 22 “Charles Square” (Karlovo náměstí). The travel time is approximately 15 minutes and the ticket price is 30 CZK. You can buy the ticket from the ticket vending machines or in the bus/tram with your credit card.
Car: the best option from “Václav Havel Airport Prague” to “Karlovo nám. 293/13, 120 00 Nové Město, Czechia” using car is to drive via Evropská and Legerova streets. The distance is about 18 km and the travel time is approximately 20 minutes without traffic. You can use Google Maps to get the detailed directions and the current traffic conditions.
Tips for using Local Transport in Prague:
- Buy a ticket – and get it stamped. You can buy a ticket at any metro station and most tram stations, directly from bus drivers, at selected tobacconists or via SMS or mobile app.
- Choose your means of transport: subway, tram or bus. Metros serve most major attractions in and around the city center. Trams are not just used for transport – they can also be used for sightseeing. Buses run every 6-8 minutes at peak times and 15-30 minutes at off-peak hours.
- Be careful with your belongings and your manners. Public transport in Prague consists of metro, trams, buses, taxis, Uber, funicular and ferries.
Hotels recommendations near “Czech Technical University” in Prague:
Hotel Name | Rating | Distance |
Radisson Blu Hotel, Prague | 8.6/10 | 0.1km |
ibis Praha Wenceslas Square 3 stars | 8.7/10 | 1.1km |
Novotel Praha Wenceslas Square | 8.0/10 | 0.9 km |
Hotel Páv | 8.5/10 | 0.5 km |
Best Western Hotel Moran | 8.7/10 | 0.5 km |
Hotel Caesar Prague | 8.3/10 | 0.4 km |
For more information, email the UNCOVER Committee: office@uncoverproject.eu