(13 July 2017) Strengthening links between science and technology is the goal of the Canada-Italy Innovation Award launched by the Canadian Embassy to Italy. The award is aimed at researchers, scientists, innovators, and 'Italian startupers' interested in developing and deepening their research with Canadian colleagues and counterparts in areas and sectors considered of priority by the Canadian government. One of the awards went to Antonio Caruso, Computer Science Researcher in the Department of Mathematics and Physics "Ennio De Giorgi" of the University of Salento. Professor Caruso was selected on the basis of a collaborative project with Professor Melike Erol-Kantarci from the University of Ottawa. After the G7 in Taormina, in late May, Caruso was invited (along with the other five winners from Bologna, Milan, Genova and Trento Universities and Research Centers) to the Office of the Canadian Ambassador in Rome, during Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau's visit. After obtaining his degree and a PhD in Computer Science at the University of Pisa, Caruso has been employed at the University of Salento since 2005. He worked at the IIT and ISTI (CNR) and conducted research at the EPFL (Lausanne), UCLA (Los Angeles), UFMG, and UFP institutes (Belo Horizonte and Curitiba - Brazil). He has been involved in more than 15 years of design issues and reliability analysis of distributed systems. He is currently working on the Internet of Things as an ensemble of Smart Enabling Technologies (Smart Grids, Smart Cities, etc). Thanks to this award, Antonio Caruso will work as a visiting researcher at Ottawa University until next September, developing the project's activities and laying the foundations for future collaborations between Italy and Canada on these issues. (Red)

THE PROJECT

The award-winning project is titled 'Privacy-Utility trade-off in the use of Big Data for Smart Grids' and addresses some privacy and security issues related to the use of these technologies. "Smart Grids are intelligent energy distribution networks," says Caruso, "where there is a key role in the presence of a communication and control layer that collects accurate information from the low levels of the system: consumer information at individual user level and possible local production of electricity through, for example, photovoltaic systems. This allows companies providing the service important feedback to optimise production levels and modes. Italy is at the forefront of this industry compared to other countries, especially for the widespread diffusion of so-called 'smart counters'. The way this data is collected and processed, and the use of Data-Mining techniques exposes users to new issues in both privacy and security, and it is necessary to study tailored solutions. In the broader context, the future new distribution network, in addition to vehicle electric power, will in effect be another 'Internet' and it is crucial to develop protocols and standards that protect it from new forms of cyber-attack".