Background
I am Selen, a researcher from Frankfurt, Germany, with a background in information security and critical infrastructure. I hold a Bachelor’s degree in Computer Science and a Master’s degree in Information Systems, with a focus on cyber risk analysis and the security of critical and cyber-physical infrastructures.
Alongside my academic training, I have several years of industry experience in IT security within highly regulated environments, including public administration and the automotive sector, where I worked on vulnerability and risk management in research and development contexts. Prior to starting my PhD, I also worked as a university lecturer in computer science. This combination of academia and applied practice has shaped my understanding of security as an operational, organizational, and regulatory challenge rather than a purely technical one.
Motivation
Within BRIDGITISE, I work at the intersection of cybersecurity and physical infrastructure, where digital vulnerabilities have tangible real-world consequences. I approach cyber risk in operational systems as a systemic effect of digitalization in physical infrastructures, with a particular focus on risks emerging from aggregated interactions rather than isolated components. My PhD research focuses on secure identity provisioning and network monitoring in structural health monitoring systems. In particular, I examine how authentication, access control, and trusted data exchange can be realized in distributed, sensor-based infrastructures while remaining compatible with the operational constraints of real-world SHM and IoT environments. This work ensures the reliability and trustworthiness of the digital information chain in bridge monitoring systems.