Gabriele Marra Profile Image

Gabriele Marra

Toulouse, France · info@gabrielemarra.tech

Software Engineer specializing in space cybersecurity, with experience across research, product engineering, and satellite software. I build secure, production-ready systems for space and ground segments, from containerized services and mission-control integrations to flight software and simulation tooling. Across industry and research, I have led satellite flight software initiatives and contributed to security-focused products in the space domain.

Alongside industry work, I hold a Master's degree in Computer Engineering and have contributed to research published at NDSS and 3S in the space security domain. I am comfortable moving between system design, implementation, integration, and security-focused problem solving, with hands-on experience in Rust, Python, Java, gRPC, and embedded and backend software.

Last updated: April 2026

Experience

Software Security Engineer

CYSEC
01/2025 - Present
Toulouse, France

Responsible for the ground-side development of ARCA Satlink, CYSEC's Rust-based SDLS implementation for secure space-ground communications, deployed as a containerized service. I brought Satlink Ground from demo stage to a production-ready solution used by multiple customers in their ground systems and mission control software.

My work includes delivering and maintaining a containerized gRPC service for securing CCSDS TC, TM, AOS, and USLP Frames, improving reliability, packaging, and release quality for production deployments. I also extended SDLS capabilities through custom Extended Procedures and developed a demo MCS and UI to support integration validation and product demonstrations.

Space Cybersecurity Researcher

CISPA - Helmholtz Centre for Information Security
10/2023 - 03/2024
Saarbrücken, Germany

Contributed to two research projects at CISPA. First, I designed an application sandboxing solution for RACCOON OS, an open-source satellite operating system developed on Yocto Linux with leading universities, assessing the feasibility of secure application isolation for space missions. This work later led to the SpaceSec 2024 paper Sandboxing in Space.

Second, I designed and developed a satellite simulator and honeypot to emulate satellite and ground-station behavior for cybersecurity research. This work later led to the NDSS 2026 paper HoneySat.

Flight Software Engineer - CubeSat Mission

PoliSpace Association
11/2021 - 09/2023
Milan, Italy

Led a team of four software engineers in flight software testing and requirements definition. Actively collaborated on the creation of secure and well-designed CubeSat software, balancing software quality, mission constraints, and cross-team coordination.

Software Engineer Freelancer

Level11 Software on Fiverr
2022 - Present

Developed various software solutions, including web apps, backends, and neural network algorithms for multiple clients. I gained experience in working with lots of tasks for numerous customers.

Publications

López-Morales, E., Planta, U., Marra, G., et al. (2026). HoneySat: A Network-based Satellite Honeypot Framework. NDSS 2026. (PDF on NDSS Website)

Marra, G., Planta, U., Wüstenberg, P., & Abbasi, A. (2024). On the Feasibility of CubeSats Application Sandboxing for Space Missions. Workshop SpaceSec 2024, at the NDSS Symposium 2024. (PDF on NDSS Website)

Planta, U., Rederlechner, J., Marra, G., & Abbasi, A. (2024). Let Me Do It For You: On the Feasibility of Inter-Satellite Friendly Jamming. 2024 Security for Space Systems (3S), Noordwijk, Netherlands. (PDF on IEEE Website)

Education

Master of Science in Computer Engineering

Politecnico di Milano
2021 - 2024
Milan, Italy
Focusing on cybersecurity and deep learning courses.
Relevant courses: Computer Security, Offensive and Defensive Cybersecurity, Internet of Things, Artificial Neural Networks, Advanced Operating Systems, and Uncertainty in AI.

Erasmus+ program in M.Sc. Computer Science

Universität Konstanz
03/2022 - 09/2022
Konstanz, Germany
Relevant courses: Big Data Management and Analysis, Deep Learning for Computer Vision, Biorobotics, and Physical Computing.

Bachelor’s Degree in Computer Engineering

Politecnico di Milano
2017 - 2021
Milan, Italy

Programming Languages & Skills

Core Languages
  • Rust
  • Java
  • Python
  • C/C++
  • JavaScript
Application, Backend & Platform Work
  • gRPC
  • Protocol Buffers
  • Web App Development
  • Django
  • FastAPI
  • PostgreSQL
  • MySQL
  • MongoDB
  • ROS2
Additional Technical Areas
  • Space cybersecurity
  • Embedded and satellite software
  • TensorFlow
  • Vulkan Graphics API

Languages

Italian

Mother Tongue

Native command in professional and everyday contexts.

Native

English

Full Professional Proficiency

Comfortable across technical writing, international collaboration, presentations, and research communication.

Full professional

French

Basic Professional Proficiency

Able to work through everyday professional interactions and practical communication.

Basic professional

German

Elementary Proficiency

Basic understanding suitable for simple exchanges and introductory communication.

Elementary

Achievements

  • 1st place, Leanspace Hackathon 2022

    Designed, implemented, and deployed a software to manage a 100-satellite constellation and handle live imagery requests, beating five international teams. Awarded 80’000 euros of university sponsorship.