Cranor Receives Bosch Chair

CyLab Director and ISR faculty member, Lorrie Cranor, has received the Bosch Distinguished Professorship in Security and Privacy Technologies, enabling her to lead a new era of security and privacy research at Carnegie Mellon University. Cranor began her new role as CyLab director on January 15.

The Bosch Chair provides funding support for groundbreaking research addressing important issues related to the security of our connected environment and the privacy of personal data. At the same time, the Bosch Chair affords recognition for the work and career achievements of the CyLab director.

“The Bosch Chair reflects the long-standing relationship between Bosch and CMU, which continues to grow deeper,” says Sylvia Vogt, president of the Carnegie Bosch Institute. “With Lorrie and CyLab as our partner, we at Bosch are looking forward to the opportunity to help shape the future of security and privacy research, together with the world’s leading institution on the topic.”

In addition to serving as the director of CyLab, Cranor is a professor in the Institute for Software Research and in the Department of Engineering and Public Policy, and she serves as co-director of Carnegie Mellon’s Privacy Engineering master’s program.

“I am excited to work with the CyLab faculty to develop a strategic vision to guide our activities, as well as to coordinate security and privacy research and education efforts across the university,” says Cranor. 

Bosch first established the chair in 2015 to support security and privacy research. The chair is reserved for the director of CyLab to further support research in areas of high priority for international industry as well as Bosch: security and privacy technologies. David Brumley, former CyLab director and a professor in the department of Electrical and Computer Engineering, was the inaugural recipient of the Chair.

“As one of the world’s leading technology and IoT companies, it is part of our DNA that we believe it’s vital to provide lasting technological solutions to the significant challenges facing our society,” says Vogt. “As we harness the power of the internet to deliver next-generation connected products and services, our customers expect to also be protected against malicious attacks and that it is ensured that the privacy rights of the owners of personal information are respected.” 

Bosch’s history with CMU runs deep. In 1990, the Carnegie Bosch Institute was established as an entity within Carnegie Mellon through a major endowment gift provided by the Bosch Group. In 1999, the company established the Bosch Research and Technology Center in Pittsburgh’s Strip District neighborhood with several active CMU/Bosch collaborations in place. More recently, the company expanded to establish the Bosch Center for Artificial Intelligence in Bosch’s Pittsburgh offices and establish new collaborations between CMU faculty and Bosch.