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Department of Informatics - Communication Systems Group

Katharina O. E. Müller

 

Contact Information:

Universität Zürich

Institut für Informatik (IFI), BIM 4-005

Binzmühlestrasse 11 CH-8050 Zürich

mueller@ifi.uzh.ch
ProfileKM

 

Short Bio:

Katharina O. E. Müller joined the Communication Systems Group (CSG) to pursue her Doctoral Degree under the supervision of Prof. Dr. Burkhard Stiller in December 2021. Katharina holds an MSc. in Computer Science from the Free University Berlin, which she obtained in 2021 on the topic "Security Analysis of the ZigBee Protocol Stack by Penetration Testing of Well-Known Lighting Systems using Zigator", under the supervision of Prof. Dr. Jochen Schiller. 

Research Interests:

  • Crowdsourced Offline Finding Networks and Crowdsourced Finding Networks
  • Personal Trackers and Tags
  • Internet of Things (UWB, BLE, ZigBee)
  • Security & Privacy
  • Indoor and Outdoor Localization

Open Thesis:

Please check here to see list of open thesis (BA,MA,MP,... ). If you are interested to work on a project in the list mentioned above or any other project related to my research area feel free to contact me.

Research Projects

TRACE: Tracking Trackers and Bridging Legal, Technical, and Human Perspectives on Privacy in Crowdsourced Location Networks

CERTIFY

PasWITS - Passive Wireless Intelligence Tracking System

Publications:

2026

  • Katharina O.E. Müller, Johanna Bieri, Joel Meier, Burkhard Stiller: BLE Device Group Fingerprinting for High-Density IoT Environments; 22nd International Conference on Network and Service Management, Alcalá de Henares (Madrid), Spain, October 2026, pp 1–7.
  • Katharina O. E. Müller, Stefan R. Saxer, Daria Schumm, Bruno Rodrigues, Burkhard Stiller: Tracking Trackers: ML-Based Personal Tracker Detection in Crowded IoT Environments; 31st IEEE Symposium on Computers and Communications (ISCC), Vilamoura, Algarve, Portugal, June 2026, pp 1–7.
  • Pascal Kiechl, Katharina O. E. Müller, Burkhard Stiller, Rodrigues, Bruno: Distributed Pulse-Wave Simulator for DDoS Dataset Generation; 39th IEEE/IFIP Network Operations and Management Symposium 2026, "NOMS 2026, Experience Session", Rome, Italy, May 2026, pp 1–6.
  • Jonas Länzlinger, Katharina O. E. Müller, Burkhard Stiller, Bruno Rodrigues: Towards Interpretable Depression Detection: Linking Acoustic Features to DSM-5 Indicators; IEEE International Conference on Pervasive Computing and Communications - Workshops and Affiliated Events, "PerCom 2026 WIP", Pisa, Italy, March 2026, pp 757–761.

2025

  • Katharina O. E. Müller, Stefan Saxer, Daria Schumm, Weijie Niu, Bruno Rodrigues, Burkhard Stiller: AirTagged: A Dataset and Processing Framework for Heterogeneous High-Density IoT Environments; 21st International Conference on Network and Service Management (CNSM), "Proceedings International Conference on Network and Service Management", Bologna, Italy, October 2025, pp 1–7. URL: https://dl.ifip.org/db/conf/cnsm/cnsm2025/1571162871.pdf.
  • Katharina O. E. Müller, Samuel Frank, Dario Monopoli, Daria Schumm, Bruno Rodrigues, Burkhard Stiller: Smart Shielding: Using ML and AirTag RSSI Data for Better Privacy; 50th IEEE Conference on Local Computer Networks (LCN), "2025 IEEE 50th Conference on Local Computer Networks (LCN) Proceedings", Sydney, NSW, Australia, October 2025, pp 1–7. doi:10.1109/LCN65610.2025.11146294.
  • Katharina O. E. Müller, Keisuke Yokota, Weijie Niu, Daria Schumm, Bruno Rodrigues, Burkhard Stiller: Towards Markov Synthetic BLE Packet Generation for IoT Systems; 21st International Conference on Network and Service Management, "Proceedings International Conference on Network and Service Management", Bologna, Italy, October 2025, pp 1–7. URL: https://dl.ifip.org/db/conf/cnsm/cnsm2025/1571162869.pdf.
  • Daria Schumm, Cedric Von Rauscher, Katharina O. E. Müller and Burkhard Stiller, "Metadata Privacy in Decentralized Identity Applications," 2025 IEEE International Conference on Blockchain and Cryptocurrency (ICBC), Pisa, Italy, 2025, pp. 1-3,. URL: https://ieeexplore.ieee.org/document/11114450.
  • Daria Schumm, Katharina O. E. Müller and Burkhard Stiller, "Are We There Yet? A Study of Decentralized Identity Applications," in IEEE Access, vol. 13, pp. 125232-125259, 2025. URL: https://ieeexplore.ieee.org/document/11078258.

2024

  • Katharina O. E. Müller, Elliott Wallace, Daria Schumm, Bruno Rodrigues, Burkhard Stiller: SHIFT: a Security and Home Integration Framework for IoT; 37th IEEE/IFIP Network Operations and Management Symposium (NOMS 2024), Seoul, South Korea, May 2024, pp 1–7. URL: https://ieeexplore.ieee.org/document/10575751
  • Armin R. Veres, Daria Schumm, Thomas Grübl, Katharina O. E. Müller, Bruno Rodrigues, Burkhard Stiller: Demo: Secure Inventorying and Lifecycle Management of IoT Devices with DLT; 49th Conference on Local Computer Networks, "IEEE LCN 2024", Caen, France, October 2024, pp 1–4. URL: https://ieeexplore.ieee.org/document/10639716
  • Katharina O. E. Müller , Delia Datsomor, Daria Schumm, Bruno Bastos Rodrigues, Burkhard Stiller: Big Brother is Watching You: Non-Intrusive ZigBee User Profiling; 20th International Conference on Network and Service Management, "IEEE CNSM 2024", Prague, Czech Republic, October 2024, pp 1–7. URL: https://ieeexplore.ieee.org/document/10814609.
  • Sara Matheu, Stefano Sebastio, Antonio Skarmeta, Riccardo Orizio, Stefanos Vasileiadis, Vasilis Kalos, Katharina Müller, Thomas Grübl, Rosella Omana Mancilla, Simon Tuck, Thomas Bocek, Vincenzo Cuomo, Roland Atoui, Sreedevi Beena, Luigi Coppolino, Roberto Nardone, Dinesh Sharma, Rohit Bohara, Javier Parra-Domínguez, Javier Prieto: Active Security for Connected Device Lifecycle: The CERTIFY Architecture; Distributed Computing and Artificial Intelligence, Special Sessions I, 21st International Conference, "Lecture Notes in Networks and Systems ((LNNS,volume 1198)", Salamanca, Spain, June 2024, pp 301–310. URL: https://link.springer.com/chapter/10.1007/978-3-031-76459-2_28.

2023

  • Katharina O. E. Müller, Louis Bienz, Bruno Bastos Rodrigues, Chao Feng, Burkhard Stiller: HomeScout: Anti-Stalking Mobile App for Bluetooth Low Energy Devices; The 48th IEEE Conference on Local Computer Networks (LCN), Daytona Beach, Florida, U.S.A., October 2023, pp 1–8. URL: https://ieeexplore.ieee.org/document/10223406
  • Jonas Brunner, Bruno Bastos Rodrigues, Katharina O. E. Müller, Salil S. Kanhere, Burkhard Stiller: Deciphering DDoS Attacks through a Global Lens; 2023 19th International Conference on Network and Service Management (CNSM), Niagara Falls, Canada, October 2023, pp 1–7. URL: https://ieeexplore.ieee.org/stamp/stamp.jsp?tp=&arnumber=10327886.

2022

  • Katharina O. E. Müller, Jan von der Assen, Chao Feng, Burkhard Stiller: An Overview and Ontology of Privacy to Preserve Privacy in Ultra-Wideband Networks; 8th IEEE International Conference on Privacy Computing, "2022 IEEE Smartworld, Ubiquitous Intelligence & Computing, Scalable Computing & Communications, Digital Twin, Privacy Computing, Metaverse, Autonomous & Trusted Vehicles (SmartWorld/UIC/ScalCom/DigitalTwin/PriComp/Metaverse)", Haikou, China, December 2022, pp 1–9.
  • Bruno Rodrigues, Eder John Scheid, Julius Willems, Maximilian Tornow, Katharina O. E. Müller, Burkhard Stiller: FusIon Data Tracking System (FITS); IEEE, IEEE Sensors Journal, Vol. 22, No. 19, October 2022, ISSN 1530-437X, pp 19060–19072 doi:10.1109/JSEN.2022.3196262  URL: https://ieeexplore.ieee.org/document/9852970.

Datasets

Supervised Theses/Projects

Bachelor Thesis:

Master Thesis:

  • Dominic Vogel: In the Eye of the Bystander: Semi-Automated Privacy Analysis of AI-Enabled Smart Glasses Using a Multi-Stage LLM Pipeline; Universität Zürich, Communication Systems Group, Department of Informatics, Zürich, Switzerland, September 2026.
  • Jorge Alejandro Ortiz Valerio: Identity-verified Gesture Recognition based on Time-of-Flight Sensors; Universität Zürich, Communication Systems Group, Department of Informatics, Zürich, Switzerland, March 2026.
  • Delia Datsomor: From Encrypted Traffic to User Awareness: Designing Privacy Awareness Dashboards for Long-Term Tracking of Lightbulbs; Universität Zürich, Communication Systems , Zürich, Switzerland, August 2026.
  • Stefan R. Saxer: Scalable Dataset Generation and Feature Extraction for Improved Robustness in High-Traffic Environment Personal Tracker Identification; Universität Zürich, Communication Systems Group, Department of Informatics, Zürich, Switzerland, April 2026.
  • Johanna Bieri: Scalable BLE Cluster Fingerprinting for High-Density IoT Environments; University Zurich, Communication Systems Group, Department of Informatics, Zurich, Switzerland, January 2026.
  • Daniel Ritter: From Policy to Practice: Development of a Personal Data Application Adhering to Data Localization Law Requirements; Universität Zürich, Communication Systems Group, Department of Informatics, Zürich, Switzerland, August 2025.
  • Xiong Li: Functional Requirements Engineering for Decentralized Identity Applications; Universität Zürich, Communication Systems Group, Department of Informatics, Zürich, Switzerland, August 2025, URL: https://files.ifi.uzh.ch/CSG/staff/schumm/extern/theses/MA-X-Li.pdf.
  • Joel Meier: Clustered Fingerprinting and Tracking in High-Density Internet of Things (IoT) Environments; Universität Zürich, Communication Systems Group, Department of Informatics, Zürich, Switzerland, July 2025.
  • Keisuke Yokota: Targeted Synthetic BLE Packet Data Generation Approach; Universität Zürich, Communication Systems Group, Department of Informatics, Zürich, Switzerland, March 2025, URL: https://files.ifi.uzh.ch/CSG/staff/mueller/extern/theses/MA-thesis-KY.pdf.
  • Dimitri Degkwitz: UWB-based In-Transport Artwork Positioning and Design of a Respective Alert System; Universität Zürich, Communication Systems Group, Department of Informatics, Zürich, Switzerland, February 2025, URL: https://files.ifi.uzh.ch/CSG/staff/mueller/extern/theses/thesis_final_DD.pdf.
  • Yuanyuan Huang: Privacy Analysis and Compliance Approach with a Focus on Children; Universität Zürich, Communication Systems Group, Department of Informatics, Zürich, Switzerland, August 2024, URL: https://files.ifi.uzh.ch/CSG/staff/mueller/extern/theses/MA-thesis-YH.pdf.
  • Ramize Abdili: Dataset Generation for ML Personal Tracker Detection; Universität Zürich, Communication Systems Group, Department of Informatics, Zürich, Switzerland, June 2024, URL: https://files.ifi.uzh.ch/CSG/staff/mueller/extern/theses/MA-thesis-RA.pdf.
  • Andy Aidoo: Federated Governance in a Digital Trust Coalition; Universität Zürich, Communication Systems Group, Department of Informatics, Zürich, Switzerland, February 2024, URL: https://owncloud.csg.uzh.ch/index.php/s/czirRi5BqQCkR4N/download/ma-andy-aidoo.pdf.
  • Andrina Vincenz: Design and Evaluation of a Generic IoT Network Topology Detection and Visualization Approach; Universität Zürich, Communication Systems Group, Department of Informatics, Zürich, Switzerland, October 2023, URL: https://files.ifi.uzh.ch/CSG/staff/mueller/extern/theses/MA-thesis-AV.pdf.
  • Qianhui Wang: Portable Internet of Things (IoT) Security Scoring Application; Universität Zürich, Communication Systems Group, Department of Informatics, Zürich, Switzerland, October 2023, URL: https://files.ifi.uzh.ch/CSG/staff/mueller/extern/theses/MA-thesis-QW.pdf.
  • Jie Liao: Bluetooth Low Energy Device Classifier; Universität Zürich, Communication Systems Group, Department of Informatics, Zürich, Switzerland, August 2023, URL: https://files.ifi.uzh.ch/CSG/staff/mueller/extern/theses/MA-thesis-JL.pdf.
  • Pascal Kiechl: Simulator of Distributed Datasets for Pulse-wave DDoS Attacks; Universität Zürich, Communication Systems Group, Department of Informatics, Zürich, Switzerland, August 2023, URL: https://files.bruno-br.com/public/theses/ma-pascal-kielch.pdf.
  • Charlotte Eder: Design and Evaluation of Ultra-Wideband (UWB) Architectures with a Focus on Privacy-Preserving Characteristics; Universität Zürich, Communication Systems Group, Department of Informatics, Zürich, Switzerland, July 2023, URL: https://files.ifi.uzh.ch/CSG/staff/mueller/extern/theses/MA-thesis-CE.pdf.
  • Louis Bienz: HomeScout: A Modular Bluetooth Low Energy Sensing Android App; Universität Zürich, Communication Systems Group, Department of Informatics, Zürich, Switzerland, January 2023, URL: https://files.ifi.uzh.ch/CSG/staff/mueller/extern/theses/MA-thesis-LB.pdf.
  • Fabian Kueffer: CH2TF ? Collaborative Heavy Hitter Traffic Filtering; Universität Zürich, Communication Systems Group, Department of Informatics, Zürich, Switzerland, December 2022, URL: https://files.ifi.uzh.ch/CSG/staff/rodrigues/extern/theses/ma-fabian-kueffer.pdf.

Master Project: 

  • Nina Emmermann, Georg Emmermann: Examining Communication Behaviors and Privacy Protection in Contemporary Smart Glasses; Universität Zürich, Communication Systems Group, Department of Informatics, Zürich, Switzerland, August 2026.
  • Karoline Siarsky, Thomas Luis Stoller: Expanding RSSI-based Approach and Evaluation for Identifying Device Groups in Crowded IoT Spaces; Universität Zürich, Communication Systems Group, Department of Informatics, Zürich, Switzerland, June 2026.
  • Delia Datsomor, Dominic Vogel: IMPACT: IoT Mapping for Privacy Assessment and Compliance Tool; Universität Zürich, Communication Systems Group, Department of Informatics, Zürich, Switzerland, July 2025.
  • Yves Meister, Robin Bättig: CERTIFY Artwork Tracking: Backend Services and Bootstrapping Process; Universität Zürich, Communication Systems Group, Department of Informatics, Zürich, Switzerland, June 2025, URL: https://files.ifi.uzh.ch/CSG/staff/mueller/extern/theses/MAP-thesis-RB-YM.pdf.
  • Dylan Puser, Remo Hertig, Zhishan Yan: Design and Prototypical Implementation of HomeScout; Universität Zürich, Communication Systems Group, Department of Informatics, Zürich, Switzerland, February 2023, URL: https://files.ifi.uzh.ch/CSG/staff/mueller/extern/theses/MAP-thesis-DD-RH-YZ.pdf.
  • Dimitri Degkwitz, Charlotte Eder, Andrina Vincenz: Ultra-Wideband: Just a Fad or here to stay? Visualizing and Analyzing UWB Network Traffic; Universität Zürich, Communication Systems Group, Department of Informatics, Zürich, Switzerland, January 2023, URL: https://files.ifi.uzh.ch/CSG/staff/mueller/extern/theses/MAP-thesis-AV-CE-DD.pdf.

Additional Information

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