The 2nd Workshop on Whole-Lifecycle Security for Smart Systems: Methods and Tools (LIFESEC) will be held on 22 June 2026, in Messina, Italy, collocated with the 12th IEEE International Conference on Smart Computing (SmartComp 2026).
The workshop aims to bring together researchers, industry professionals, and policymakers to discuss approaches, methods, and tools that address cybersecurity across the entire lifecycle of IoT and cyber-physical systems. Topics include security-by-design and security in operation, automated compliance and certification, AI-assisted security tools, digital twins, and alignment with EU regulatory frameworks such as the GDPR, the Cybersecurity Act, and the Cyber Resilience Act. LIFESEC is organised by the Horizon Europe projects DOSS, EMERALD, COBALT, CUSTODES, TELEMETRY and CURIUM, and seeks to foster dialogue on building secure, trustworthy, and compliant smart systems.
Call for Papers
Ensuring secure hardware and software systems requires trustworthy methodologies for analysis, verification, and dynamic testing, supported by best practices and IT security guidelines and certification throughout a product’s lifecycle. A holistic approach combining runtime monitoring and design-time methods like static analysis and program synthesis is crucial for robust formal guarantees. Key areas include firmware, communication protocols, operating systems, APIs, and cloud software, with careful consideration of supply chain integration of hardware and software.
Papers are invited to discuss research into addressing challenges about the whole-lifecycle of software & hardware components: from upstream hardware & software supply chains, where dependencies are brought into the device under test (DUT) or system under test (SUT); through security by design of the DUT/SUT; and the secure operation of that device/system in many and varied cyber-physical situations, each of which has different priorities and presents different threats.
Topics of relevance include, but are not limited to:
- Access control management of devices in systems
- Management of updates and patching at scale and in different environments
- Modelling of security threats and effects in terms of risks to stakeholders in cyber-physical situations
- Security throughout the lifecycle of the IoT/CPS
- Holistic methodologies for whole-lifecycle security management and how components and tools interoperate within such a methodology
- Methodologies adherent to the EU Cyber Resilience Act
- Support for current relevant regulation, e.g. Cybersecurity Act, GDPR, Cyber Resilience Act
- Security by design and / or security in operation
- Certification & security evaluation • Security and Digital Twins
- New solutions for secure bootstrapping and commissioning
- Tools and methods providing assurances about the hardware / software supply chain – e.g. provenance assurance of upstream libraries / components
- Audit methods, plus auditable data structures and tools to support whole-lifecycle security assurance and device provenance
- Dynamic scanning and detection tools, e.g. advanced vulnerability / attack / anomaly detection tools
- Vulnerability scanning tools for hardware and software
- Software-bill-of-materials generation from binaries
- AI-assisted tools for security testing • Artificial Intelligence for Cybersecurity and Cybersecurity for Artificial Intelligence
- Security Assurance for Quantum Systems and Quantum Computing Resilience
- Certification of AI and Quantum Systems
- Privacy in Computer Vision
Paper submission
Authors are invited to submit papers for presentation at the workshop. Submissions should describe original, previously unpublished work that is not currently under review by any other workshop, conference, or journal. Regular papers expected to offer novel perspectives within the general scope of the workshop.
Important dates
Paper submission deadline: 9 March 2026
Paper notification date: 29 April 2026
Camera-ready deadline for workshop papers (tentative): TBA
Template and format
Paper submissions should be no longer than 6 pages, including text, figures, tables, and references formatted in a 10-point font, 2-column layout, using the IEEE standard transaction template (US letter format).
Submission
Papers must be submitted electronically as PDF files through the EDAS Online Application. New users must first register for an EDAS account. All submissions will undergo a single-blind peer review process conducted by the Technical Program Committee and other field experts. For manuscript preparation guidelines, please consult the IEEE Author Digital Toolbox.
Camera ready
The camera-ready instructions are to be determined.
Publication
All accepted papers will be included in the SMARTCOMP 2026 Workshop Proceedings and published in IEEE Xplore.
Workshop Co-Chairs:
Robert Seidl, Nokia
Christian Banse, Fraunhofer AISEC
Georgios Xilouris, NCSR Demokritos
Erol Gelenbe, IITiS
Publicity Chair:
Spyridoula Markou, Athens Technology Center
Technical Program Committee:
Bernd-Ludwig Wenning (MTU)
Robert Seidl (Nokia)
Antonio Skarmeta (University of Murcia)
Steve Taylor (University of Southampton)
Alan McGibney (MTU)
Oscar Garcia (I4RI)
Dave Singelee (KU Leuven)
Sayon Duttagupta (KU Leuven)
Martin Gilje Jaatun (SINTEF)
Ravishankar Borgaonkar (SINTEF)
Erol Gelenbe (Polish Academy of Sciences)
Sara Nieves Matheu Garcia (University of Murcia)
Immanuel Kunz (AISEC/Fraunhofer)
Ioannis Koufos (Demokritos)
Dionysios Kehagias (CERTH)
Cristina Regueiro (TECNALIA)
Björn Fanta (Fabasoft Research)
Angelika Schneider (Fraunhofer AISEC)
Angela Fessl (Know Center)
Marinella Petrocchi (CNR)
Michela Fazzolari (CNR)
Georgios Xilouris (National Centre for Scientific Research ‘Demokritos’)
Michal-Alexandros Kourtis (National Centre for Scientific Research ‘Demokritos’)
Ioannis Koufos (National Centre for Scientific Research ‘Demokritos’)
Xavi Masip Burin (Polytechnic University of Catalonia)
Adrian Asensio (Polytechnic University of Catalonia)
Immanuel Kunz (Fraunhofer Institute for Applied and Integrated Security)
Ioannis Kefaloukos (Hellenic Mediterranean University)
Evangelos Markakis (Hellenic Mediterranean University)
Konstantinos Lampropoulos (University of Patras)
Spiros Denazis (University of Patras)
Nineta Polemi (University of Piraeus)
Argyro (Iro) Chatzopoulou (Apiroplus solutions)
Jasmin Cosic (DEKRA SE)
Verena Geist (SCCH)
