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Mahmoud Alfadel

Faculty

Mahmoud Alfadel

Assistant Professor

  • Software Ecosystems
  • Software Releases
  • Build Systems
  • Security Vulnerabilities
  • Mining Software Repositories

Almost every modern application — from banking and hospital systems to the apps on our phones — is assembled rather than written from scratch. Developers build on thousands of shared, freely available software components and on automated pipelines that continuously assemble, test, and ship their code. This vast and interconnected foundation is known as the software supply chain. When a single hidden component is flawed or insecure, the failure can cascade to millions of systems at once — as the world saw in the Equifax breach and the Log4j software security incidents.

My research aims to make such a largely invisible foundation more secure, reliable, and efficient. Specifically, I answer questions such as: How do dangerous vulnerabilities spread through shared software components, and how quickly are they fixed? Why do the automated systems that build and test software break down or slow to a crawl, and how can we repair them automatically? The work produces both new scientific evidence and practical tools that developers and companies can use directly.

The reach of this program is demonstrated by publications in the field's most selective venues, including ICSE, the flagship software engineering conference, and IEEE TSE, one of the field's leading journals. It is also reflected in the adoption of my group's open-source tools and invitations to participate in international research events. My NSERC Discovery Grant, Toward a Trustworthy Software Supply Chain, supports this research agenda through 2030.

Education

  • Ph.D. in Software Engineering, Concordia University, Canada, 2021
    • Thesis: Assessing and Enhancing the Security of Software Packages
  • M.Sc. in Software Engineering, KFUPM, Saudi Arabia, 2017
    • Thesis: Quantitative Assessment of the Functional Effectiveness of Design Patterns on the Presence of Software Smells
  • B.Eng. in Information Technology, Damascus University, Syria, 2013

Publications