FACULTY DEVELOPMENT PROGRAM - REPORT
A highly informative faculty development program on “Mathematical Challenges in Cyber Security” was conducted by the departments of MCA and Mathematics from 04-01-2016 to 09-
01-2016. The event sponsored by TEQIP-II was held in the APJ hall. Valuable talks on various topics by eminent Professors from reputed institutions and industries marked the content of
this one week program.
04-01-2016 (MONDAY)
Followed by the inauguration on 04-01-2016 at 9:30 AM , a speech on “Crypto Systems and
their Security” was made by Professor Vijaya Govindan of NSS College, Ottappaalam. He had
given a complete picture about the concerned topic with clear explanations about its definition,
objectives, origin with a detailed description of the RSA algorithm.
The afternoon session of the day was devoted to a talk by Professor Binu VP, College of
Engineering, Karunagapally. The topic was “Tools in Cryptography” and it was very much
interesting as it had a spontaneous interactive mode placed on. The basic tools of
Cryptography, Encryption, Crypto Analysis, and Cipher methods were put forward in all their
dimensions thereby leading to a better understanding. SAGE (System for Algebra and Geometry
experimentation), a mathematical tool based on the UNIX system which uses the Python
language was well defined.
05-01-2016 (TUESDAY)
The second day’s (05-01-2016) morning session had the turn being given to Professor Frahad
Muzadeeq, Adjunct Professor, Department of Computer Science, College of Engineering,
Trivandrum , who presented a topic on “Number Theory”. He meticulously explained various
concepts on Division theories, Primes, GCD, Euclidean algorithm, Warshall algorithm, and
Modular arithmetics.
The afternoon session began with a talk on “Provable Security” by Dr. Beena Mathew. K,
Associate Professor of Cochin University College of Engineering, Kuttanad. She made the
session really productive by clearly discussing the various features of Provable Security and its
purposes.
06-01-2016 (WEDNESDAY)
The third day (06-01-2016) had a fresh start with a session on “Cyber Forensics” put forward by
the Associate Director of CDAC, Mr.Bhadran. The goal of cyber forensics, which is to examine
digital media in a forensically sound manner with the aim of identifying, preserving, recovering,
analyzing and presenting facts and opinions about digital information, was well mentioned by
Mr.Bhadran as he presented the entire session gaining complete attention from the audience.
Another session that focused on “Cell Phone Forensics” was held on the same day by Mr. Satheesh Kumar (CDAC). A wider understanding on the main purpose of the same was provided. It is primarily used in gathering criminal evidences from a trail of digital data and so
on. Taped conversations, digital phone pictures, mobile phone texts or e-mails are the types of cell phone forensics.
07-01-2016 (THURSDAY)
Dr. Sudeep K.S, Assistant professor of NIT Calicut, lectured on “Cayley Graphs and Hash
Functions in Cyber Security” during the morning session of the fourth day (07-01-2016). He
simplified what exactly Cayley hashes are, by adding to it, their properties and also their role in
helping future researches in Cryptology.
Professor Binu V.P, who previously gave a talk on “Tools in Cryptography” during the first day
was in charge for a session on “Secret Sharing and Application” on that day afternoon. The talk
was indeed a wonderful one and it really did its part in gifting a deeper knowledge on the
subject. The role of Cryptography and how mathematics was related to them was well
delivered.
08-01-2016 (FRIDAY)
Mr. Suresh Sankar, Information Security Manager from TCS Kochi, discussed the “Challenges in
Cyber Security” during the first session of 08-01-2016, which marked the fifth day of the event.
It was with extreme interest that the listeners looked forward to hear about the different
elements in such challenges faced in cyber security. He also made sure that the audience
understood each and every point by frequently interacting with them.
Mr. Christy Jacob, lead architect of TCS Digital enterprise, filled the latter part of the day by
giving a presentation on the topic- “Internet of Things-Privacy and Security in a Connected
World”. A general overview of its possible applications was clarified. The entire session was worth the time. The future possibilities of ‘Internet of things’, and what drastic changes it can
make in the future were clearly explained.
09-01-2016 (SATURDAY)
The final day (09-01-2016) of the one - week program was clinched down with two topics,
“Biometrics for Security” by Ms. Arya Krishnan, IITMK and “Design of Digital Signature
Schemes” by Dr. Sangeetha Jose, Assistant professor, Government College of Engineering,
Idukki, respectively. The former discussed professional hacking and various know-hows
concerning biometrics for the purpose of security, while the latter concentrated on various
kinds of information regarding the design of signatures which is purely based on Blind key
Cryptography.
CONCLUSION The whole week of the information-packed Faculty Development Program was undoubtedly a
space for gaining better understanding of the concerned subjects. It has promoted professional
development in every aspect, in addition to improving various skills that resonates with the
faculty's individual goals, strategic priorities as well as departmental and institutional missions.
