Coker earns first place in computing research competition

Zack Coker, a senior in Auburn University’s Department of Computer Science and Software Engineering, has earned first place in the Association for Computing Machinery (ACM) Student Research Competition for his research, “Security-oriented Program Transformations to Cure Integer Problems in C Programs.” The competition was held at the Systems, Programming, Languages and Application: Software for Humanity (SPLASH 2012) conference, held Oct. 19-25 in Tucson, Ariz.

Coker’s work is part of a larger project on C refactorings, called OpenRefactory/C, led by faculty members Munawar Hafiz and Jeffrey Overbey in the Department of Computer Science and Software Engineering. Coker is also working with Hafiz on security-oriented program transformations targeting C programs. He is a member of the Software Analysis, Transformation and Security (SATS) research group.

ACM is the world's largest educational and scientific computing society that brings educators, researchers and professionals together to share dialogue and resources to address the field’s challenges. SPLASH is an annual conference that embraces all aspects of software construction and delivery.