"When it comes to the topic of cybersecurity, many people think of the stereotypical image of a hacker sitting in their dark basement wearing a black hoody. In reality, cybersecurity in Saarbrücken looks quite different." In the large lecture hall of CISPA, the sonorous voice of CISPA faculty member Dr. Sven Bugiel can be heard as around 30 visitors listen intently to what he has to say about study opportunities and career prospects. From time to time, quiet murmurs waft through the open doors of the lecture hall, breaking the surprisingly reverent silence in the rows. It comes from the foyer, where cybersecurity students and CISPA staff answer questions from visitors.
Timna Henkel, for example, is not only interested in the content of the bachelor's program in cybersecurity but also in the support she receives during her studies. The Krefeld native is currently still enrolled in Spanish and political science at another university but is no longer happy with her choice. "Computer science has always been fun for me. But unfortunately, I grew up with the social image that math is not for girls. And since that's an important foundation of computer science, I didn't really go for it at first." What she hears about the cybersecurity degree appeals to her. "Cybersecurity as a separate degree hadn't really been on my radar until now."
A soft "Yes!" can be heard from the CISPA showroom next door. Again, someone at the "Password Cracker" has guessed one of the passwords that have been hacked in the past because it wasn't secure enough. Points are awarded for guesses like "liverwurst", "Passw0rt", and "Anna". It takes attackers less than a second to crack such passwords. "I find it exciting to see how attackers go about it," says Nicolas Gundal. The 17-year-old wants to start studying next year and is already looking for the right course of study. "I've been interested in computer science for a long time. Exactly which direction I will go, I don't know yet." No one can make that decision for him.
However, the importance of cybersecurity research is not only evident in the password cracker, but also in the Deepfake quiz. It's hard to guess whether the photos shown on the interactive screen are real or faked by artificial intelligence. Sometimes the background of the image helps visitors to decide or points of light in the pupils. But sometimes not. CISPA researchers are therefore working on a kind of watermark that makes deepfakes distinguishable from real photos.
Younger visitors also had something to discover. And indeed, the handicraft corner with the "Caesar disk" also attracted some schoolchildren and their parents. The cipher tool can be used to encrypt and decrypt secret messages. Accompanied by some frowning and wild twisting, some succeeded in deciphering the coded texts that the CISPA Cysec Lab team had encrypted.
Who will be sitting here as a student in the lecture hall in a few months is not yet clear. But sunshine, waffles, and lots of information about cybersecurity were well received by many and certainly aroused interest.
translated by Oliver Schedler
