Bellovin received a BA degree from
Columbia University, and an MS and PhD in computer science from the
University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. As a graduate student, Bellovin was one of the originators of
USENET. Bellovin has been active in the
IETF. He was a member of the
Internet Architecture Board from 1996 to 2002. Bellovin later was security area codirector, and a member of the
Internet Engineering Steering Group (IESG) from 2002 to 2004. He identified some key security weaknesses in the
Domain Name System; this and other weaknesses eventually led to the development of
DNSSEC. He received 2007 National Computer Systems Security Award by the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) and the National Security Agency (NSA). In 2001, he was elected as a member into the
National Academy of Engineering for his contributions to network applications and security. In 2015, Bellovin was part of a team of proponents that included
Matt Blaze,
J. Alex Halderman,
Nadia Heninger, and
Andrea M. Matwyshyn who successfully proposed a security research exemption to Section 1201 of the Digital Millennium Copyright Act. Bellovin is an active
NetBSD user and a
NetBSD developer focusing on architectural, operational, and security issues. He is a two-time recipient of the
Usenix Lifetime Achievement Award. In 1995 he and two others received the award “for their work in creating
USENET.”. In 2023, he and two others received the award “for a profound and lasting impact on Computer Science, Computer Security, Law, and Public Policy through their groundbreaking research, their influential publications, and their dedication to advancing knowledge that informs public policy.”. == Selected publications ==