usenixsec-review-process
Use when reasoning about how a USENIX Security Symposium cycle actually decides — early-reject notifications, multi-round reviewing, the retirement of Major Revision in favor of shepherd-approval acceptances, resubmission restrictions between cycles, and what each notification email means for planning.
Profile →npx skills add brycewang-stanford/Awesome-Journal-Skills --skill usenixsec-review-process --agent claude-code
Same command for any agent — swap --agent for codex, cursor, copilot.
Weekly change comes from our own snapshots, not the repository page — it measures attention, not adoption.
# USENIX Security Review Process USENIX Security reviews in two annual cycles, each a self-contained pipeline from registration to notification. The '26 cycle mechanics below were read from usenix.org pages on 2026-07-08 (via search renderings; direct fetch 403'd), with the '25 reviewing-model page as documented history. The '27 mechanics under chairs Adam Doupé (Arizona State) and Andrei Sabelfeld (Chalmers) are only partially posted — treat everything here as one venue-generation's snapshot. ## The cycle pipeline, with '26 dates as the worked example | Stage | Cycle 1 ('26) | Cycle 2 ('26) | What is happening | |---|---|---|---| | Registration | Aug 19, 2025 | Jan 29, 2026 | HotCRP record frozen; bidding data set | | Submission | Aug 26, 2025 | Feb 5, 2026 | Format/policy screening begins | | Early reject | Oct 7, 2025 | Mar 17, 2026 | Bottom of the pool exits after first-round reads | | Final notification | Dec 4, 2025 | May 14, 2026 | Accept / shepherd-approval / reject | | Finals due | Jan 15, 2026 | Jun 11, 2026 | Shepherding + Phase-1 AE complete | The '25 model (last fully published) shows the shape inside those windows: two first-round reviews; online discussion; survivors
- The cycle pipeline, with '26 dates as the worked example
- The decision vocabulary changed — don't plan on 2025 rules
- What reviewers here weigh
- Reading each email
- Confidentiality and conduct
- Reverify each cycle
- Output format
What does the usenixsec-review-process skill do?
Use when reasoning about how a USENIX Security Symposium cycle actually decides — early-reject notifications, multi-round reviewing, the retirement of Major Revision in favor of shepherd-approval acceptances, resubmission restrictions between cycles, and what each notification email means for planning.
How do I install it?
Run `npx skills add brycewang-stanford/Awesome-Journal-Skills --skill usenixsec-review-process --agent claude-code` — it drops the skill into your project so the agent can pick it up. Swap the --agent value for codex, cursor or copilot if you use one of those.
Where does this skill come from?
From brycewang-stanford/Awesome-Journal-Skills, a repository with 909 stars. We read it straight from the repository tree rather than a submitted listing, so what you see here is what is actually published.
Is a popular skill a good skill?
Not necessarily. Stars measure attention, not adoption — a repository can trend for a week and be abandoned. That is why we show the weekly change from our own snapshots next to the total, instead of a single flattering number.