CS Colloquium: "Trust and Accountability in Computer Systems"

Thursday, February 21, 2019
11:00 am
SEH, B1270

Speaker: Dr. Joshua Kroll, The University of California, Berkeley

Abstract

The increase in both ubiquity and importance of  software systems in modern society causes a commensurate increase in demands that such systems uphold normative requirements, such as privacy, fairness, or accountability. However, while human decision-makers and bureaucracies are subject to time tested recordkeeping, oversight, and control mechanisms, a governance gap often emerges when critical functions are replaced or augmented with software. This talk explores the nature of this gap through the twin lenses of trust and accountability, as conceptualized in computer security and in legal and political philosophy, respectively. This gap can be narrowed through careful system design. As an example, the talk presents a concrete system for building cryptographically auditable logs for automated decision-making systems that support robust analysis of procedural regularity, a foundational requirement of due process. Finally, the talk lays out a research agenda in the governance of software systems, framing research challenges and open questions around relating complex social, political, or legal norms to implementable engineering requirements.

Please see the event flyer for Bio and more information.

Refreshments will be provided.