The Idiap Research Institute is seeking a qualified candidate for a Postdoctoral position on trustworthy and privacy-preserving technologies for identity systems.
The Biometrics Security and Privacy group develops trustworthy technologies for personal identity. Our research spans a broad range of biometric modalities - face, voice, fingerprint, finger-vein, gait, and others - together with the security of biometric systems, including presentation attack detection, deepfake detection, morphing attack detection, and privacy preservation. The group currently runs several projects funded through industrial collaborations and Swiss and European research grants. Among these, the group participates in the EU-funded project CERTAIN, which develops technologies and processes to help manufacturers of AI products demonstrate compliance with EU regulations, notably the EU AI Act.
We are looking for a Postdoctoral Researcher to join the CERTAIN project, with a principal focus on privacy-preserving technologies for biometric data protection. Within this scope, we are particularly interested in a rigorous, practically grounded exploration of homomorphic encryption (HE). The group already has some background on this topic, and we are seeking an expert to deepen our understanding of:
- Trade-offs across different HE algorithms;
- Concrete challenges and pitfalls of applying HE to biometric data;
- Evaluation methodologies for assessing the security and privacy properties of HE schemes;
- Advances towards post-quantum HE;
- How HE-based biometric data protection contributes to meeting the requirements of relevant privacy regulations, such as the GDPR and the EU AI Act.
The ideal candidate combines a deep understanding of HE schemes with hands-on implementation experience and, crucially, the ability to communicate their knowledge and experimental findings clearly to non-experts. Your main responsibilities will include integrating HE algorithms into existing biometric systems to protect the underlying biometric data, designing and running experiments to evaluate the efficacy, trade-offs, and attack vulnerabilities of different HE schemes, contributing to project deliverables, and strengthening the group's overall expertise on the topic.
Duties include:
- Carry out research as stated in the assigned project(s) and follow the evolution of project(s)
- Fulfil project-related assignments (evaluations, deliverables, ...) as requested
- Publish results (in journal papers and conferences; favour joint publications with other Idiap staff and/or project partners)
- If required, participate in project meetings and boards
- When appropriate, assume leading role as Idiap contact point or work package leader
- Help supervise PhD students and interns in collaboration with supervisors
- Participate in various Idiap activities and projects as requested by supervisor(s) or Idiap management
The Postdoctoral candidate will work within the Biometrics Security & Privacy group under the supervision of Prof. Sébastien Marcel and Dr. Vedrana Krivokuća Hahn.
Postdoctoral appointments, for full-time on-site work at Idiap, are typically for one year with possibilities of renewal, conditional on performance.
Candidates must have the following requirements:
- PhD in a relevant field such as cryptography, computer science, applied mathematics, or a closely related discipline (e.g. engineering, biometrics, computer vision, machine learning)
- Deep understanding of homomorphic encryption (HE) algorithms, with hands-on experience implementing and evaluating HE schemes in code
- Strong background in mathematics relevant to cryptography as well as statistics, optimisation and linear algebra
- Strong programming skills, particularly in Python, and comfort working in a Linux environment
- Excellent research experience, a strong publication record, and the ability to conduct creative and significant research with a good level of autonomy
- Excellent written and verbal communication in English, including the ability to explain technical findings to non-experts
Preferred:
- Prior experience in the field of biometrics
- Familiarity with deep learning (DCNNs, Transformers, GANs, Diffusion Models, Foundation and Large Multimodal Models) and frameworks such as PyTorch
- Additional programming experience (e.g. C/C++)
- Contributions to open-source projects or publicly available research code
Required languages: Fluency in English. French is a plus
Approximate start date: As soon as possible or no later than the end of 2026
Application deadline: Screening of applications will start from July 1st 2026
Idiap is a research institute of national importance that engages in fundamental research, education and technology transfer in artificial intelligence. Idiap offers competitive salaries and conditions in a dynamic, multicultural environment.
Idiap is located in Martigny, Valais, a scenic region in the south of Switzerland, surrounded by the highest mountains of Europe, and offering exceptional quality of life, exciting recreational activities, including hiking, climbing and skiing, as well as varied cultural activities.
At Idiap, we believe that diversity fosters creativity and innovation. We are committed to equality of opportunity, to being fair and inclusive, and to being a place where we all belong. If you believe that you could excel in this role, but you are not sure you meet all the required criteria, we very much welcome your application.
