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Call for Papers: Workshop on the Security of Space and Satellite Systems
(SpaceSec 2024)

Call for papers is now closed.

The scope of SpaceSec comprises all systems that are directly or indirectly related to or dependent on space and satellite systems. More concretely, this includes the communication links (satellite – ground, satellite – satellite), the ground segment (including ground stations, systems dependent on satellite communications), and the space segment (i.e., satellites and launch vehicles) as well as all potential use cases (e.g., imaging or navigation) and dependencies of satellite applications. All space orbits are of interest, but particularly research into modern low-Earth orbit mega-constellations is invited. The workshop welcomes contributions that have a clear relevance to space and satellite systems and applications. 

SpaceSec will bring together academic researchers, industry professionals, and government representatives to contribute to new theories, technologies, and systems for security/privacy challenges in space and on the ground. SpaceSec will be held in San Diego, CA, in conjunction with the Network and Distributed System Security Symposium (NDSS) 2024.

Submission Guidelines for Papers

All papers must be original and not simultaneously submitted to another journal or conference. The following paper types are welcome: (1) Short Paper: Submissions must be no longer than four pages. Short papers should provide enough context and background for the reader to understand the contribution. We envision that short papers will be preliminary work type papers, but this is not a hard requirement; (2) Long Paper: Submissions must be no longer than eight pages. These are typically traditional research papers.

All papers are to be submitted in double-column NDSS format. The page limits do not include bibliography and well-marked appendices, which can be up to 2 pages long for each long paper and up to 1 page long for each short paper.

The submission portal for papers: https://spacesec24a.hotcrp.com/

Inspired by the CSET workshop, we invite the following paper categories. There is no requirement to mark them as such but we expect that extended work papers are clearly positioned and set apart against prior work:

  • Research Paper: make a novel contribution in line with one of the topics of interest.
  • Position Paper: discuss new or provocative security-related ideas of interest to the satellite and space communities.
  • Experience Paper: describe activities and recount lessons learned (e.g., from experiments or deployments) that might help researchers and practitioners in the future. 
  • Preliminary Work Paper: describe early results from interesting and new ideas. We anticipate that such works-in-progress papers may eventually be extended as full papers for publication at a conference. 
  • Extended Work Paper: expand upon unpublished aspects of a previous work (published in any venue) fitting into any of the topics of interest. We welcome papers that provide a compelling addition to a previously developed approach, method, tool, measurement, benchmark, data set, simulation/emulation, evaluation results, etc.

Anonymization and the Review Process: The review process will be double-blind; all submissions should be anonymized so as not to reveal the authors’ names or affiliations during the review process.

Publication: SpaceSec24 proceedings will be published as post-conference proceedings with the Network and Distributed Systems Symposium (NDSS) 2024.

Further Notes: At least one author from every accepted paper must register for the workshop and present the paper. Fraud and dishonesty are prohibited, including: simultaneous submission of the same work to multiple venues, submission of previously published work, and plagiarism.

Areas of Interest

Topics of interest include but are not limited to the following:

Space Systems Security

  • Small Satellite and CubeSat Security
  • Ground/User Segment Attacks and Vulnerabilities
  • Legacy Space System Security Analysis
  • Space System Security Testbeds
  • Measurement Infrastructure and Data Collection of Space Mission Security Data 
  • Security of Launch Vehicles and Launch Processes
  • GNSS Attack and Defense Mechanisms
  • Security of Space Situational Awareness (SSA) Technologies 
  • Data- and ML-driven security of space missions
  • Secure Satellite Software/Hardware Development
  • Reverse Engineering and Tampering of Space and Ground Segments
  • Side-Channels and Fault Attacks on Space- or User Segment Devices
  • In-Orbit Intrusion Detection

Space Security Strategies

  • Economics of Space Security
  • Game Theory-based Security Analysis Approaches
  • Red Teaming and Blue Teaming in Space
  • Supply Chain Security for Space Mission Components
  • Forensics in Space Security Incidents

Communications Security

  • Satellite Link Jamming and Spoofing
  • Securing and Attacking Inter-Satellite Links
  • Optical Satellite Communication Security
  • (Post-quantum) Cryptography for Space Communications
  • LEO Constellation Routing Security
  • Secure Optimized Satellite Communication Protocols (e.g., PEPs, QUIC)
  • Key Management for (LEO) Constellations and Space Systems

Privacy and Usability

  • Localization and Anonymity in satellite networks
  • Privacy issues in satellite communication
  • Ethical Aspects of Satellite Security
  • Usability of existing Space Software and Standards

Important Dates

  • 1st Paper Submission Deadline: 7 December 2023 Anywhere-on-earth (AOE)
  • 2nd Paper Submission Deadline: 12 January 2024 Anywhere-on-earth (AOE)
  • Notification of Acceptance (1st Deadline): 22 December 2023 Anywhere-on-earth (AOE)
  • Notification of Acceptance (2nd Deadline): 2 February 2024 Anywhere-on-earth (AOE)
  • Workshop Date: 1 March 2024, 8:30 am (Pacific Standard Time)
  • Camera Ready Submission: 17 March 2024 Anywhere-on-earth (AOE)

Contact

All questions about submissions should be emailed to [email protected]