The unique Praxis Cyber Security Program creates industry-ready ‘Cyber Warriors’ – designed by a hardened professional who understands the industry pain-points and knows what it takes to make a successful career in this area.
Analytics India Magazine caught up with Tathagata Datta, who is leading the Cyber Security program at Praxis.
Tathagata holds an experience of 20 years in the Cyber Security domain with expertise in information security audit, cyber risk assessment, cyber incident handling and digital forensics.
He was instrumental in establishing India’s first commercial “Cyber Range” – this is being used by national security agencies to enhance their cybersecurity competency. As a “Cyber Risk Analyst” he assists National Critical Infrastructures to identify their cyber threats and mitigate the risks appropriately. Tathagata has extensive experience in conducting information security audits in India, Europe, Singapore, and the UAE.
He is an empanelled information security Lead Auditor at BSI (National Compliance Body of Govt. Of UK) and a member of NASSCOM and Data Security Council of India. He is an Executive Member of IEEE Comsoc.
Prior to joining Praxis, Tathagata was the Vice President, Chief Information Security Officer and Head of IT Governance at one of the largest NBFCs of India.
Q: Tell us a bit about the Postgraduate Program in Cybersecurity
A: Praxis Business School is committed to playing a significant role in creating a strong pool of resources who understand the interplay among data, technology and business and can contribute significantly to the exciting Digital Future. This is the only program in the country that is designed to create industry-ready ‘Cyber Warriors’ by addressing the three aspects of the Cyber Security ecosystem – people, processes and technology – with special emphasis on governance and compliance.
The other feature that needs to be highlighted is that we have some of the top Global enterprises supporting us in this initiative – from designing courses, delivering lectures and helping us build a state-of-the-art lab with their tools and technology. Students will get hands-on experience that is unmatched in the education ecosystem.
Q: What is the scope for a career in Cybersecurity?
A: There is a serious shortage of adequately skilled professionals in the Cyber Security domain – unlike other domains, Cyber Security is not an option, it’s a mandate from governing institutions and firms have no choice but to recruit and build cybersecurity teams.
According to PWC reports, the cybersecurity market in India is expected to grow from USD 1.97 billion in 2019 to USD 3.05 billion by 2022, at a compound annual growth rate of 15.6%, 1.5 times the global rate but there is a huge dearth of trained professionals to cater to this market.
The popular job portal Indeed reported a spike of 150 per cent in cybersecurity roles between January 2017 and March 2018. As per reports of IBM, India needs a pool of 3 million cybersecurity professionals right now and according to Cybersecurity Ventures, there will be 3.5 million unfilled cybersecurity jobs globally by 2021.
Thus not only is there a massive scope for cybersecurity personnel in India, I think as an educational institute that leads in design and delivery of courses for the digital world, but it is also our responsibility to help India address the gap in resources – as this has implications for the country’s security.
Q: How is a Praxis qualification rated in today’s business environment?
A: Praxis is a pioneer when it comes to teaching next-generation tech skill oriented programs. We started the formal teaching of Data science in the country in 2011. Praxis programs have been well received by the industry and the Data Science program has been consistently ranked as one of the top 3 programs in India by prominent publications. The Post Graduate Program in Cyber security has been ranked 3rd amongst the top 10 cybersecurity programs in the country by Analytics India Magazine.
Q: How is the Postgraduate program in Cybersecurity at Praxis structured?
A: While there are several short-term certification courses addressing specific job roles, the 9-month full-time program serves the need for a comprehensive course that addresses all the aspects of a cybersecurity ecosystem with a blend of classroom and lab experiences. This will include 525 hours of lectures, lab work, case studies and projects – distributed over 3 trimesters with hands-on experience in state-of-the-art cybersecurity lab. If you are serious about a successful career in cybersecurity, this is the course for you:
| Trimester 1 (175 Hours) | Trimester 2 (175 Hours) | Trimester 3 (175 Hours) |
| ● Introduction to Cyber Security ● Network, OS and Database Security ● Security Architecture & VA & PT Mechanism | ● Emerging Technologies and Related Security ● Wireless Security ● Machine Learning and Deep Learning | ● Malware Analysis and Basics of Digital Forensic ● Incident Management, BCP and Process Approach |
Q: What specialisations are being offered to make the new PGP at Praxis stand out?
A: The new PGP in cybersecurity shall contain specializations in SOC Analysis, Digital Forensic, Security Incident Handling and Information & Cyber Audit. As we speak, India Inc. is struggling big time to find people with in-depth knowledge in these domains. I was a CISO myself a few months back – so I know how difficult it was to find people. I have designed the specializations keeping real industry pain-points in mind.
| SOC Analysis | Digital Forensics | Security Incident Handling | Information and Cyber Audit |
Q. You spoke about industry partnerships. I am sure readers would like to know in some detail.
A: As a discipline, Cyber Security cannot really be confined to the realms of classroom theoretical teaching – there is absolutely no substitute for hands-on, lab-driven learning.
Praxis has forged extensive industry partnerships with CISCO, Fortinet, ISACA (Kolkata Chapter), British Standards Institute (BSI) and Infosec Foundation to make the program relevant and effective. Praxis believes in imparting industry-relevant knowledge by working closely with the industry partners for successful program delivery and desired impact.
- Praxis and BSI have agreed to jointly run specialized courses on cyber security. Praxis is currently the official delivery partner for BSI in India.
“There is a huge skill set gap presently existing in India and the demand for skilled professionals would go up in the years to come. Praxis Business School has introduced this course on Cyber Security, which is industry-relevant and covers all the tools, processes and systems related to cybersecurity. With the course being delivered by industry professionals, the students would gain immense value from insights on the best practices of cybersecurity used in the present industry.”
– Mr. Nirupam Sen, Business Head-East Region, BSI
- Praxis is the authorized training partner for CISCO Networking Academy and will train and certify advanced network & security-related courses.
- Fortinet has partnered Praxis and students get the opportunity to access Fortinet’s technology in the Praxis Lab.
- ISACA (Kolkata Chapter) is supporting Praxis Business School’s cybersecurity program as a knowledge partner.
- Praxis’ cybersecurity programs are supported by Infosec Foundation in the capacity of Industry Interface Partner for campus connect activity, placement support, incubation and mentoring, cross-collaboration and developing cybersecurity products.
Q: Who will be in charge of delivering the new Postgraduate program in Cybersecurity at Praxis?
A: The program will be delivered by well-recognized industry leaders and senior practitioners who have rich experience in this space in addition to the renowned Praxis faculty team.. Some of these educators and industry professionals are:
● Dr. Prithwis Mukerjee, Director, Praxis Business School | B.Tech (IIT Kharagpur), M.S., Ph.D. (The University of Texas at Dallas)
● Dr. Subhasis Dasgupta – Faculty – Machine Learning, B.Tech(NIT Surat), MBA (IBS), Research Scholar (IIM Ahmedabad), PhD (RK University)
● Charanpreet Singh, Co-founder & Director, Praxis Business School Foundation | B.Tech (IIT Kanpur), MBA (University of Iowa), Chevening Scholar (British Government)
● Tathagata Datta – Director of Cyber Security, Praxis Business School | B.Sc (CU), MCA (WBUT), Executive Member IEEE ComSoc, Former CISO with India’s largest NBFC, Ex-Director National Cyber Range
● A.B. Sengupta – Designated CISO for ERLDC / POSOCO, a Govt. of India Enterprise
● Deb Kumar Roy – Enterprise Security Architect at a Global consulting firm
● Joydeep Bhattacharya – COO at TCG – Digital,
● Koushik Nath – Security Architect, Cisco Systems
Q: What are placement opportunities going to be like at Praxis?
To start with, the sheer demand for Cyber Security professionals will ensure massive placement opportunities to candidates who have taken the wise decision to invest 9 months in this domain. To add to this, Praxis Business School has had a successful track record of placing candidates in top-notch organizations through their placement program. Till now Praxis has placed 29 batches of students with a consistent 95% + placement record.
The Praxis Placement Program will manage the participant’s transition to a promising career in the exciting Cyber Security world. The program is a structured process committed to creating quality placement opportunities for all enrolled students of full-time programs in PGDM, Data Sciences and Cyber Security.
You can read about the last 2 day zero placements at Praxis here:
Q: In summary, give me three things that make the Praxis Program the best in this field.
I would say:
- The course design and delivery, with its emphasis on all three aspects that define this domain – people, process and technology, and the 4 specializations, and the high-quality faculty team we have in place.
- The lab, created with top-of-the-line equipment and significant industry support – we will have a full-stack lab with red team capability – this will add immense value to the learning outcomes.
- The Praxis Placement Program with its impeccable record of finding excellent opportunities for its students across all programs.
Q: What is your advice to youngsters unsure of making a decision about their careers in these uncertain and rapidly changing times?
I have been a Cyber Security professional for as long as I can remember. There are a few things that make this domain incredibly exciting:
- The challenge: As a Cyber Security professional, you are always under the threat of a malfunction, a hack, an attack – and the high of meeting and overcoming these challenges to secure your company’s or country’s data and keep the business going is something you will not find in any other profession.
- The learning – by its very nature the Cyber Security field offers a life-long journey of learning. Technologies and the nature of threats will evolve – and you have to evolve in tandem to ensure that you don’t get left behind.
- The rewards – India and the world are struggling to find well-trained Cyber Security all-rounders who go far beyond hacking and are able to architect an ecosystem capable of handling cyber threats. If you are one such resource, your growth, in terms of both money and respect, is going to be phenomenal.
Thus, my advice is – if you like solving problems, if you understand that cybersecurity is a hyper-essential part of this whole digital world, and if you are passionate about making a contribution, you are welcome to Praxis and to this wonderful world of Cyber Security. You don’t need to be a mathematician or a tech geek – you need to be a structured thinker, a problem solver and a team-player to succeed.
“Praxis has this capability to segregate individual’s needs, interests and business model and convert them to effective training suggestions. As a result, professionals get very much involved and get fruitful information and enlighten themselves through this training course. I definitely recommend Praxis.”
– Mr. A.B. Sengupta, CISO of ERLDC / POSOCO (A Govt. of India Enterprise)
