Spring School on Symmetric Cryptography

(SoSC 2026)

March 16-18, 2026 - Singapore, Singapore
affiliated with FSE 2026

The 2nd Spring School on Symmetric Cryptography takes places 16 – 18 March 2026 in Singapore, Singapore (one week before FSE 2026). It covers a broad spectrum within the field of symmetric cryptography and is organized in cooperation with IACR.

The program features three internationally renowned researchers, each dedicating an entire day to their specialized topic. Each day begins with morning lectures, where the students can absorb cutting-edge knowledge and theoretical insights directly from leading experts. In the afternoon, hands-on exercises enable participants to apply what they’ve learned, reinforcing their understanding through practical application.

This spring school is primarily intended for early PhD students and Master’s students in their last year of studies.

Previous Editions

SoSC 2025 affiliated with FSE 2025 in Rome, Italy.

Organizers

Christof Beierle (Ruhr University Bochum, Germany)
Gregor Leander (Ruhr University Bochum, Germany)
Shahram Rasoolzadeh (Ruhr University Bochum, Germany)
Shichang Wang (Nanyang Technological University, Singapore)

Sponsors

Lecturers

Kai Hu

Shandong University, Qingdao, China.


Kai Hu has been a Research Professor at Shandong University, China, since November 2023. He received his Ph.D. in June 2021 under the supervision of Professor Meiqin Wang and subsequently held a postdoctoral position at Nanyang Technological University, Singapore, in the research group of Professor Thomas Peyrin. His research focuses on the cryptanalysis of symmetric-key cryptographic primitives. To date, he has authored or co-authored 18 papers published in conferences and journals of the International Association for Cryptologic Research (IACR). His doctoral dissertation was awarded the Best Thesis Award by the China Association for Cryptologic Research (CACR), and he has also received the CACR Outstanding Youth Award in recognition of his early-career achievements.

Kazuhiko Minematsu

NEC, Kawasaki, Japan.

Kazuhiko Minematsu joined NEC since 1998 and works as Research Fellow since 2020. He received Dr.S degree from Waseda University, Japan, in 2008. His research interests are design and analysis of symmetric-key ciphers and its application systems. He served as a visiting professor at Yokohama National University from 2019 to 2025. Since 2013 to 2017 he joined CRYPTREC Lightweight Cryptography Working Group, a Japanese cryptography standardization project on lightweight cryptography. He received the best paper awards at FSE 2015 and CRYPTO 2019. More information is available from https://www.nec.com/en/global/rd/people/kazuhiko_minematsu.html

Ling Song

Jinan University, Guangzhou, China.

 

Ling Song is a Professor at Jinan University, China. Before, she was a researcher at the Institute of Information Engineering, Chinese Academy of Sciences, and a postdoctoral researcher with the Cryptanalysis Taskforce, led by Professor Jian Guo at Nanyang Technological University. Her primary research interest lies in the cryptanalysis of symmetric cryptographic algorithms.

Program

For the exact location of the lecture halls, please check here.

Here are some useful map application and websites to find the rooms:

NTU map applicaiton: NTU Omnibus

NTU map website: https://maps.ntu.edu.sg

 

You can find the slides, exercises and solutions for the lectures at:

1st Day     2nd Day     3rd Day

 

 
 Monday 16th MarchRoom
 
08:30 – 09:00Registration and OpeningLHS-LT
09:00 – 10:301st Lecture by Ling Song LHS-LT
 The Key Recovery in Differential Cryptanalysis
10:30 – 11:00Coffee & Tea BreakLHS-LT
11:00 – 12:002nd Lecture by Ling Song LHS-LT
12:00 – 13:30Lunch BreakLHS-LT
13:30 – 14:30Ice Breaking IntroductionOpen Space
14:30 – 15:303rd Lecture by Ling Song LT27
15:30 – 16:00Coffee & Tea BreakLT27
16:00 – 17:30Exercises by Ling Song LT27
  
  
 
 Tuesday 17th March
 
09:00 – 10:301st Lecture by Kazuhiko Minematsu LHS-LT
 Provable Security in Symmetric Cryptography
10:30 – 11:00Coffee & Tea BreakLHS-LT
11:00 – 12:002nd Lecture by Kazuhiko MinematsuLHS-LT
12:00 – 13:30Lunch BreakLHS-LT
13:30 – 14:303rd Lecture by Kazuhiko Minematsu LT4
14:30 – 15:00Coffee & Tea BreakLT4
15:00 – 16:30Exercises by Kazuhiko Minematsu LT4
  
  
 
 Wednesday 18th March
 
09:00 – 10:001st Lecture by Kai Hu TCT-LT
 Cryptanalysis and Tool-Based Search
10:00 – 10:30Coffee & Tea BreakTCT-LT
10:30 – 11:302nd Lecture by Kai Hu TCT-LT
11:30 – 13:00Lunch BreakTCT-LT
13:00 – 14:303rd Lecture by Kai Hu LT25
14:30 – 15:00Coffee & Tea BreakLT25
15:00 – 16:30Exercises by Kai Hu LT25
20:00 – 22:00Farewell GatheringSymmetry
 

 

Registration is now closed due to capacity limits!

 

The Spring School takes place at
Nanyang Technological University 50 Nanyang Avenue, Singapore 639798.
 

Here are some useful map application and websites to find the rooms:

NTU map applicaiton: NTU Omnibus

NTU map website: https://maps.ntu.edu.sg

Contact Information

If you have any questions about the school, please contact the organizers using the email provided for the spring school:

 Photo by: tawatchai07 @ freepik.com