25th International Conference on Cryptology and Network Security
23 - 25 November 2026, Wollongong, Australia

Call for Papers PDF

The International Conference on Cryptology and Network Security (CANS) is a well-established forum for research in cryptography, cybersecurity, and network security. CANS 2026 marks the 25th edition of the conference and will be held in Wollongong, Australia, a coastal city just south of Sydney, known for its beaches, dramatic escarpment, and relaxed atmosphere.

CANS brings together researchers from both cryptography and systems/network security, with an emphasis on work that bridges theory and practice. The conference seeks academic, industry, and government submissions on all theoretical and practical aspects of cryptology and network security, and its extended domains in modern computing systems.

Topics of Interest

Submissions are invited on all aspects of cryptology and network security, including but not limited to:

Cryptography

  • Public-key cryptography, including post-quantum cryptography
  • Symmetric-key cryptography and cryptanalysis
  • Hash functions, MACs, and authenticated encryption
  • Zero-knowledge proofs and secure multiparty computation
  • Fully homomorphic encryption and advanced cryptographic primitives
  • Lattice-, code-, isogeny-, and other post-quantum systems
  • Cryptographic protocols and formal security models

Systems and Network Security

  • Network security and protocols
  • Distributed systems security and consensus
  • Cloud, edge, and IoT security
  • Software and systems security
  • Malware, intrusion detection, and threat analysis
  • Privacy-enhancing technologies
  • Applied cryptography in deployed systems

Cross-Cutting Topics

  • Implementation security and side-channel analysis
  • Hardware security
  • Usable security and human factors
  • AI/ML for security and security of AI systems
  • Blockchain and decentralized systems
  • Measurement studies and empirical security

Important Dates

Event Date
Paper Submission Deadline 10 June 2026 (AoE)
Notification of Acceptance 10 August 2026
Camera-ready 17 August 2026
Registration for Authors 24 August 2026
Early Bird By 1 October 2026
Conference 23-25 November 2026

Submission Instructions

Submissions must present original work that has not been previously published or submitted elsewhere. All submissions will be double-blind and will undergo a rigorous peer-review process.

All Submissions must be fully anonymous with no author names, affiliations, acknowledgments, or obvious references. Submissions must be written in English and may include up to 20 pages of text and up to 10 pages for references and appendices, totaling no more than 30 pages using Springer's LNCS package with no changes to the style. Papers should be sufficiently intelligible and self-contained without appendices so that PC members can make decisions without reading appendices. Submissions not meeting the submission guidelines risk rejection regardless of their merits.

The proceedings will be published by Springer-Verlag as a volume of the Lecture Notes in Computer Science series. Authors of accepted papers must guarantee that at least one of the authors will register and attend the conference and present their paper.

Author instructions and LaTeX/Word templates for LNCS publications can be found via the following link: https://www.springer.com/gp/computer-science/lncs/conference-proceedings-guidelines

Springer
Springer



Submission Server

Papers should be submitted via easychair at https://easychair.org/conferences/?conf=cans2026

AI Tool Policy

CANS 2026 plans to generally follow the ACM Policy on the use of AI tools.

If you have used any generative AI tools more than grammar and spell checking, please disclose and describe your use of AI, either in the text (including abstract and main body), appendix or in supplementary material. This disclosure must include the AI version, prompt, query and other information to the best of your ability.

The following is a paraphrased version of the ACM policy on AI tools.

Can I use generative AI software tools to prepare my manuscript?

Yes, the use of such tools is permitted, subject to the following requirements:

  • That these systems do not plagiarize, misrepresent, or falsify content in ACM submissions.
  • That the resulting Work in its totality is an accurate representation of the authors' underlying work and novel intellectual contributions and is not primarily the result of the tool's generative capabilities.
  • That the authors accept responsibility for the veracity and correctness of all material in their Work, including any computer-generated material.

If I use generative AI software tools, under what conditions must I disclose their use in my Work?

Today's generative AI software tools perform different tasks and it is reasonable to expect that their use and use cases will expand and become more robust over time. Whether disclosure in your published ACM Work is necessary depends on how you utilize these tools. The following guidelines should be followed when determining whether and to what extent disclosure must be provided in your Work.

  • If you are using generative AI software tools such as ChatGPT, Jasper, AI-Writer, Lex, or other similar tools to generate new content such as text, images, tables, code, etc. you must disclose their use in either the acknowledgements section of the Work or elsewhere in the Work prominently. The level of disclosure should be commensurate with the proportion of new text or content generated by these tools.
  • If entire sections of a Work, including tables, graphs, images, and other content were generated by one of these tools, you should disclose which sections and which tools and tool versions you used to generate those sections by preparing an Appendix or a Supplementary Material document that describes the use, including but not limited to the specific tools and versions, the text of the prompts provided as input, and any post-generation editing (such as rephrasing the generated text). Authors should also note that the amount or type of generated text allowable may vary depending on the type of the section or paper affected. For example, using such tools to generate portions of a Related Work section is fundamentally different than generating novel results or interpretations.
  • If the amount of text being generated is small (limited to phrases or sentences), then it would be sufficient to add a footnote to the relevant section of the submission utilizing the system(s) and include a general disclaimer in the Acknowledgements section.
  • If you are using generative AI software tools to edit and improve the quality of your existing text in much the same way you would use a typing assistant like Grammarly to improve spelling, grammar, punctuation, clarity, engagement or to use a basic word processing system to correct spelling or grammar, it is not necessary to disclose such usage of these tools in your Work.

Can a generative AI tool be listed as an author?

No, generative AI tools cannot be listed as authors.

Why Attend CANS 2026?

  • Balanced program committee spanning cryptography and systems security
  • Single-track format encouraging interaction and discussion
  • Accessible location, approximately 90 minutes from Sydney International Airport
  • Coastal setting with beaches, national parks, and scenic views
  • Timely focus on post-quantum transition and emerging security challenges

CANS is intentionally sized to promote depth of engagement over breadth of parallel sessions.