Ryan Ko

Professor Ryan Ko is Director of Research, Chair & Director - Cyber Security at the School of Electrical Engineering and Computer Science, The University of Queensland. He holds a Bachelor of Engineering (Computer Engineering)(Hons.) (2005), and PhD (2011) from Nanyang Technological University, Singapore. Ko has held senior scientific leadership, executive, and directorship roles across industry and academia, and has over 15 years of board, governance, and advisory experience. He is also Adjunct Professor at the Singapore Institute of Technology and Affiliate Faculty Member at NIATEC at Idaho State University, USA. He has been a co-founder of four start-ups, including First Watch Ltd, an industrial cybersecurity spin-off based on his patented OT security and provenance research at the University of Waikato. Since joining UQ in 2019, he has served in various leadership roles, including Deputy Head of School (External Engagement) and Founding Discipline Leader of the Cyber Security and Software Engineering discipline.

Ryan Ko is a Chair Professor and Centre Director at the University of Queensland's Cyber Research Centre, specializing in Cyber Security, Data Provenance, Cloud Computing Security, Data Privacy, and ICS Security. His research focuses on enhancing accountability, trust, and security in cloud computing environments through innovative frameworks like TrustCloud and mechanisms such as S2logger and Flogger. Ko also explores data provenance tracking, privacy regulations, and the intersection of machine learning with industrial control systems. His work addresses vulnerabilities, evasion attacks, and the human-centric aspects of AI in cybersecurity. His publications highlight the importance of auditability, transparency, and security in distributed systems.