IIT Kanpur starts MTech, MS, dual-degree courses in cybersecurity

NEW DELHI: The Indian Institute of Technology (IIT) Kanpur has introduced three new master’s programs in cybersecurity in addition to a dedicated centre for cybersecurity to address this need and to meet the shortfall in trained and skilled cybersecurity personnel in the country.

The department of computer science and engineering (CSE) would offer the three courses, M.Tech, MS by Research, and BT-MT dual degree in cybersecurity from August 2021. These programs are designed to address this need by ensuring the training of dedicated and highly skilled manpower furthering and accelerating the nations march towards a Digital India.

The programs would start with a limited number of seats with plans to gradually scale up in size and scope. The initial intake to the M.Tech program in cybersecurity will be limited to 15 students through GATE/industry sponsorship and 10 students from Defence and other strategic government bodies to address the need in beefing up the cybersecurity and cyber-defence workforce in the government.

IIT Kanpur: MS in cybersecurity

The MS by Research in Cybersecurity program will accept 10 students through GATE and industry sponsorship and 5 students from Defence and other Government agencies. The BT-MT dual program is only open to the IIT-Kanpur Computer Science and Engineering BTech students who want to opt for a BTech-MTech dual degree by completing additional credits to earn a master’s degree. These numbers include the necessary percentage of reserved seats from various reserved categories as per the extant laws.

As per the institute, “The MTech program in cybersecurity will equip students with skills necessary to be successful in roles such as VAPT (Vulnerability Assessment and Penetration Testing) engineers, Security centre analysts, CERT (Computer Emergency Response Team) engineers, cybersecurity tool developers and other roles that involve protecting systems against the threat of attacks by malicious actors.”

The MS by research program is designed to train cybersecurity researchers, technology developers, cybersecurity strategists, and top-level cybersecurity policy designers. An option for BT-MT dual degree students is proposed that will enable them to specialize in cybersecurity.

Abhay Krandikar, director of the institute said: “In the world of Digital Nomads (especially after Covid19) and Gig Economy, there has been a significant shift to the cloud as almost everyone who is involved in a productive activity has had to go online and use digital devices. This shift means there are millions of new netizens and organizations that are potentially vulnerable to sophisticated cybercrime. We have timed these Masters programs to ensure that we start producing cyber warriors of the future who can defend not only national boundaries but also make a mark internationally.”

The courses will also meet the demand from the Defence sector for a specialized Masters program in Cybersecurity for defence personnel. Upon completion of the course, these trained personnel could take up responsibilities at various defence establishments such as CERT, WESEE (Weapons and Electronics Engineering Centre, Indian Navy), Defence Intelligence Agency (DIA), Defence Cyber Agency (DCyA) and others where there is an urgent requirement for trained cybersecurity professionals.

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