About Steve
Steve Babbage graduated from Oxford University in 1987 with a first class honours degree in Mathematics & Philosophy. In 1994 he received a PhD from Royal Holloway, University of London, and in 2017 he was appointed a visiting professor at the same institution.
From 1987 to 1995, Steve worked as a mathematician and cryptographer at Racal Comsec Ltd, a company specialising in communications security equipment. In 1995 he moved to Vodafone, where he remained until 2021. He quickly assumed the role of Chief Cryptographer for the Vodafone Group, and went on to lead the security research team in Vodafone Group R&D. For Vodafone, he covered a number of highly specialised technical areas, from mathematical optimisation and spectrum auctions to cybersecurity and quantum computing.
He also became very well known and influential in the mobile industry as a whole: he chaired the European Telecommunications Standards Institute (ETSI) security algorithms group for many years, and was known as a cryptography and security expert in the GSM Association (GSMA) and 3GPP. In 2012, Steve was appointed one of the first Vodafone Distinguished Engineers – one of only seven at the time from the whole Vodafone Group.
Steve was a director of tScheme Limited, a technical advisor to PGP Corporation, and a founding member of the IoT Security Foundation’s Executive Steering Board. He is currently a technical advisor to Nok Nok, Votem Corp. and Sandbox AQ.
In 2021 he became the first recipient of a GSMA Fraud & Security Group Outstanding Contribution Award.