Chhattisgarh’s Siddhant Dash to suggest ways to strengthen cyber security resiliency in India – Times of India

Raipur: Impressed with a presentation made by Bhilai lad Siddhant Dash, the union education, skill development and entrepreneurship ministry has asked him to prepare a recommendation in arenas where India’s cyber security resiliency can prosper. He also discussed with the ministry regarding the recent AIIMS Cyber Security Attack and the systems India needs to prevent such attacks in future.
“During my research days in Singapore in 2018-19, I saw that nation facing cyber-attacks. The immediate thought that came to mind was when a nation like Singapore is not safe from cyber-attacks, India will definitely come under such attacks with digitization taking place at a rapid pace. The more you digitize your establishments, the more you are exposed to cyber-attacks and we need to develop a foolproof measure to prevent our institutions from hackers. The hacking of the Delhi AIIMS server came as a wake-up call for the government of India. Powergrid, healthcare systems etc. are sensitive areas which can be hacked. I then wrote to several union cabinet ministers and cabinet secretaries in the government of India and finally got a response from the union minister Dharmendra Pradhan,” the 26-year-old Siddhant told TOI.
As Siddhant shared his vision on cyber security readiness with union education minister Dharmendra Pradhan during their meeting in Odisha capital Bhubaneswar on December 26, 2022, the minister got impressed with his ideas and vision. Siddhant discussed with the union minister his ideas on how India can prepare itself for the Digital Revolution and the resulting cyber security issues to ensure the resilience of its technological infrastructure.
This involved intriguing and comprehensive discussions on India’s cyber security readiness, data protection and building “Made in India” technical capabilities in cyberspace among others. Pradhan was extremely impressed and immediately shared his views on Twitter and Facebook. He also suggested Siddhant prepare a recommendation on arenas in which India’s cyber security resiliency can prosper.
“I have been asked to prepare a report on lapses that led to Delhi AIIMS server hacking and how the developed nations are equipped to protect their sensitive establishments. I would also suggest preventive measures. By this month’s end I would submit the report,” Siddhant said.
Siddhant is currently working as a Product Manager at Armorblox, a leading cyber Security Company in the United States. He is based out of San Francisco, USA.
An alumnus of DPS Bhilai, a graduate of the first batch of IIIT Naya Raipur and a Master from the prestigious Ivy League, Cornell University, USA, his current area of research includes email security and cyber security for the Internet of Things (IoT). Previously, he was associated with the prestigious National University of Singapore (NUS) where he developed cutting-edge and novel cybersecurity solutions. He has authored research papers in top-tier conferences and journals like IEEE and is also a holder of a pending Singapore patent.
Besides his corporate job, Siddhant is engaged in his independent research, he said. Siddhant is the son of Dr Trinath Dash, additional CMO of Respiratory Medicine and Dr Sambita Panda, additional CMO & HOD Paediatrics at JLN Hospital, Bhilai.