The Cybersecurity market size is projected to reach USD 248.26 billion by 2023, growing at a Compound Annual Growth Rate (CAGR) of 10.2% during the forecast period. To cater to this growing demand for cybersecurity as an industry that is still having less manpower and a plethora of opportunities to explore, Computer Science & Engineering Department, ASET and Amity ACM Student Chapter, ASET organized a Distinguish Lecture Series on "Getting Started with Cybersecurity Science" on the theme Cybersecurity and Privacy at Amity University, Noida, Uttar Pradesh.
Dr Josiah Dykstra, Deputy Technical Director for Cybersecurity Operations at the National Security Agency (NSA), Department of Defense, United States of America, the guest speaker for the occasion, gave the students an introduction to the application of the scientific method to cybersecurity tools and systems. Dr Dykstra has held a variety of technical and leadership positions at the NSA. Calling himself a passionate advocate of science in cyber security, Dr Dykstra has also authored a book for cybersecurity professionals ‘Essential Cybersecurity Science’. “Cybersecurity is a growing segment with lot of job opportunities as technology is forever changing and also the nature of cyber-attacks,” shared Dr Dykstra with the students.
The talk offered insights on how creating, using, and evaluating cybersecurity tools and systems are complex tasks. Many cybersecurity professionals are attracted to the challenges of building these tools and systems and are motivated to use their expertise to provide solutions to real-world problems. The addition of scientific thinking aids in dealing with uncertainty, unknowns, choices, and crises. The talk focused on practical, real-world applications of science to the practice of Cybersecurity.
Dr Dykstra also shared with the gathering the growing interest in the field of Augmented Reality (AR) and his experiment to find out its usefulness for cybersecurity. “When I bought a headset used for augmented reality, the research question I had was whether it would help a cyber-analyst understand a hack or an intrusion easier than if they were only using a computer. I thought maybe AR could help them. So, I set up an experiment where I asked some people to learn AR as compared to others using a normal computer programme to solve a similar problem. I timed them and looked at how accurate they were to find the answer to the question, using data analysis. It turned out that AR didn’t help and it made me understand that this technology is very new and is difficult for people to learn it. So, I was probably too early to use this technology of AR before it can be useful for cybersecurity,” shared Dr Dykstra.
Dr. Josiah kept the audience engrossed by including his real time examples for a better understanding towards the theme of the session. He explained the concept of pseudoscience using the exemplification of the Bermuda triangle, and reminded us of the human cognitive biases that we commit on a daily basis. The speaker said “Cyber Security science is not a button, rather it is a way of thinking”. He emphasized on the scientific methods in cyber security wherein he explained five essential elements like questioning, hypothesis, predicting, experimentation and analysis.
The informative session was followed by questions and answers from the students. Dr. J Dykstra also shared how NSA helped Sony, when their system was hacked by North Korea. The cyber security attack made Sony incur heavy data losses, subsequently the company had to approach the United States government for help.
Welcoming Dr Dykstra, Prof. (Dr.) Abhay Bansal, Director, International Collaboration for Engineering & Technology, Head, Department of Computer Science & Engineering, Amity School of Engineering & Technology urged the students to prepare themselves to make most of this growing field of cybersecurity that is full of opportunities. He also apprised how students of Amity University, Noida have been getting associated with various international institutions of repute. “We encourage and motivate students at Amity to take up activities that are outcome-based,” shared Prof. (Dr.) Bansal.
The session concluded with a felicitation ceremony wherein Prof. (Dr.) Abhay Bansal, Joint Head-ASET & HoD-CSE, & Director DICET, Dr. Nitasha Hasteer, Dy Director, Academics, ASET and Dr. Abhishek Singhal, Dy. HoD, CSE Dept., ASET facilitated Dr. Josiah Dykstra who was bestowed upon with the title of Honorary Professor of Amity School of Engineering And Technology (ASET).