Indian IT major Infosys and Queen’s University, Belfast, Northern Ireland have entered into a partnership to combat the global cyber security threat.
The collaboration brings together Infosys with Queen’s University Centre for Secure Information Technologies (CSIT), a cyber security research lab, and Invest Northern Ireland, the government’s regional business development agency.
The three-year agreement will lead to the establishment of a CSIT-Infosys Cyber Lab that will become part of a global network of companies and institutions developing security technologies.
The two will work jointly on a range of topics including combating malware, security of mobile and cloud infrastructures, and privacy issues for financial markets.
Research projects
As part of the CSIT advisory and governing board, Infosys will play a key role in developing the centre’s research roadmap and gain access to its research and technologies for commercial usage.
Infosys and CSIT will also promote joint research projects and sponsor PhD scholarships, internships, faculty sabbatical and exchange programmes.
Subu Raju, Senior Vice-President, Infosys Labs and Products R&D, said: “The rise of cloud and mobility solutions has only increased the need for greater cyber security. This is a top concern we hear from executives around the globe. Our partnership with Queen’s University will provide Infosys insights into cyber crimes and access to the important work being done at CSIT. We believe the outcome of this partnership will not only result in stronger products for our clients, but in a safer digital world.”
Signing the partnership, Vice-Chancellor of Queen’s University Belfast, Professor Sir Peter Gregson, said: “Cyber security affects us all. Be it via smartphones and their apps, online banking or through developments in cloud based services, we are all at risk of cyber security attacks.
“Queen’s agreement sees Infosys join with over 20 other industrial partners, including many global players who have committed to supporting CSIT in its quest to solve some of the real world security challenges of the future. It is intended that through this partnership society will be the real winner,” he added.
Today’s announcement comes on the heels of Prime Minister David Cameron’s recent visit to India when he signed the UK-India cooperation deal that will see the creation of a joint task force to exchange and share information to identify and counter cyber security threats.