Nadim Kobeissi
{{Short description|Canadian computer programmer and security researcher (born 1990)}}
{{Use dmy dates|date=April 2024}}
{{Infobox scientist
| name = Nadim Kobeissi
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| image = Nadim Kobeissi, RightsCon Rio 2012.jpg
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| caption = Nadim Kobeissi in 2012
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| birth_date = {{birth date and age|1990|9|28|df=y}}
| birth_place = Beirut, Lebanon
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| citizenship = Lebanon, France
| fields = Computer science, Cryptography, Internet Activism
| education = Philosophy (BA)
Computer science (PhD)
| alma_mater = Concordia University
École normale supérieure
French Institute for Research in Computer Science and Automation
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| known_for = Cryptocat
[https://drkobushi.com Dr. Kobushi's Labyrinthine Laboratory]
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| website = {{URL|https://nadim.computer}}
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Nadim Kobeissi ({{langx|ar|نديم قبيسي}}; born 28 September 1990) is a French-Lebanese computer science researcher specialized in applied cryptography. He is the author of Cryptocat, an open-source encrypted web chat client. Kobeissi is also known for speaking publicly against Internet censorship and Internet surveillance.{{cite web|last=Kobeissi|first=Nadim|date=21 June 2013|title=How to fight PRISM|url=http://newint.org/blog/2013/06/21/prism-surveillance-nsa-software/|website=New Internationalist|publisher=}}
Early life and education
Kobeissi was born in Beirut, Lebanon. He studied at the Lebanese American University in Beirut from 2008 to 2009, and graduated with a degree in philosophy at Concordia University in Montreal, Canada in 2013.
Kobeissi was a Ph.D. student in applied cryptography at Inria in Paris{{cite web|url=https://nadim.computer/|title=Nadim Kobeissi|website=nadim.computer}} from 2015 to 2018.
In 2018 and 2019 he was adjunct professor of computer science at New York University's Paris campus teaching a course on computer security.{{Cite web|title=CSCI-UA.9480: Introduction to Computer Security|url=https://computerscience.paris/security/|access-date=2021-11-09|website=computerscience.paris}} In 2021 Kobeissi was naturalized French Citizen. Kobeissi is fluent in Arabic, French, and English and is based in Paris.
Research
Kobeissi is the primary author of Cryptocat. The project was discontinued in 2019.{{cite web|url=https://crypto.cat|title=Crypto.cat}}
In 2015, Kobeissi became active in researching formal verification for cryptographic protocols.{{cite web|url=https://dblp.uni-trier.de/pers/hd/k/Kobeissi:Nadim|title=dblp: Nadim Kobeissi}} In December 2018, he defended his Ph.D. thesis, "Formal Verification for Real-World Cryptographic Protocols and Implementations. (Vérification formelle des protocoles et des implementations cryptographiques).".{{cite web|url=https://hal.inria.fr/tel-01950884|title=Formal Verification for Real-World Cryptographic Protocols and Implementations}}
Hacktivism
In 2010, Kobeissi was an early supporter of US army whistleblower Chelsea Manning.Nicks, Denver (2012). Private: Bradley Manning, WikiLeaks, and the Biggest Exposure of Official Secrets in American History. Chicago Review Press, p. 223. He organized a march through Montreal in December that year in support of WikiLeaks,{{Cite web |date=2010-12-18 |title=Montreal demonstrators march in support of WikiLeaks |url=https://montreal.ctvnews.ca/montreal-demonstrators-march-in-support-of-wikileaks-1.587415 |access-date=2022-07-23 |website=Montreal |language=en}} ran a WikiLeaks mirror site, and defended WikiLeaks on various Canadian news publications.{{cite web|date=8 Dec 2010|title=Montreal student hosts mirror WikiLeaks site|url=https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/montreal/montreal-student-hosts-mirror-wikileaks-site-1.936374|website=CBC News|publisher=}} During 2011 and 2012, Kobeissi hosted CHOMP.FM, a radio program on Internet activism that ran weekly on Montreal's CKUT-FM radio station. The show included guests from the Electronic Frontier Foundation (EFF), security researcher Bruce Schneier, and journalist Glenn Greenwald.{{Cite news|date=18 December 2010|title=Montreal demonstrators march in support of WikiLeaks|work=CTV News|agency=The Canadian Press|url=https://montreal.ctvnews.ca/montreal-demonstrators-march-in-support-of-wikileaks-1.587415}}{{cite news|last=Magder|first=Jason|date=11 February 2012|title=Proposed changes to copyright law go too far, protesters say|newspaper=Montréal Gazette|url=https://montrealgazette.com/business/Proposed+changes+copyright+protesters/6137394/story.html|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120308105203/http://www.montrealgazette.com/business/Proposed+changes+copyright+protesters/6137394/story.html|archive-date=8 Mar 2012}}
In 2013, Kobeissi led an effort known as the Skype Open Letter{{cite web|url=http://www.skypeopenletter.com/|title=PHEENIX::SELL|last=Pheenix|website=www.skypeopenletter.com}} which brought together more than forty organizations, including the Electronic Frontier Foundation, Reporters Without Borders, and the Open Technology Institute, calling on Microsoft and Skype to release transparency reports regarding Skype monitoring and surveillance. The effort was successful, and Microsoft released its first transparency report shortly after the letter was published.{{cite web|last=Galperin|first=Eva|date=29 January 2013|title=It's Time for Transparency Reports to Become the New Normal|url=https://www.eff.org/deeplinks/2013/01/its-time-transparency-reports-become-new-normal|website=EFF|publisher=}}
References
{{Reflist|30em}}
External links
{{commons}}
- [https://capsule.social Capsule Social, Inc.]
- [https://symbolic.software Symbolic Software]
- [https://nadim.computer Personal website]
- [https://techcrunch.com/2021/01/18/cryptocat-author-gets-insanely-fast-backing-to-build-p2p-tech-for-social-media/ Techcrunch article about Capsule Social]
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Category:French cryptographers
Category:Computer security specialists
Category:Concordia University alumni
Category:Lebanese expatriates in France
Category:Scientists from Beirut