11/7/16 · Research

The UOC and IBM are launching a new online Chair in Cybersecurity

The unstoppable march of technology brings with it increasing technological risk and the cyber threats faced by organizations are evolving and becoming ever more sophisticated. It is therefore vitally important that we have pioneering cybersecurity tools and that we bring business and academic research together. This forms the backdrop to the creation of the Chair in Cybersecurity, a result of the collaboration agreement between the UOC and IBM that came into operation this week.
Foto: Ilya Pavlov

Foto: Ilya Pavlov

Its aim is to foster teaching, research, dissemination, innovation and technology transfer in the field of cybersecurity. The UOC, a public service university, enjoys an alliance with IBM, a hugely prestigious company in the information technology industry with an extensive technology infrastructure, particularly software.


The UOC contributes research into cybersecurity

The UOC, through the K-ryptography and Information Security for Open Networks (KISON) group, will bring to the chair the following lines of research by academic experts from the Faculty of Computer Science, Multimedia and Telecommunications:

  • Security and privacy on open networks: This line of research looks at the development of mechanisms that are better suited to improving security and privacy in different areas, such as P2P networks, ad hoc networks, RFID and sensor networks and online social networks.
  • Security and privacy of multimedia content: This research consists of designing suitable techniques to protect multimedia information that is transmitted on open networks regarding the privacy of the users of this content. A large part of this work carried out within this line of research is based on steganography, digital watermarks, fingerprint-taking protocols and steganography analysis for a series of applications, such as monitoring dissemination, secret communications, copyright protection and content authentication.


IBM: experts in computer security

As well as making an annual contribution of €15,000, IBM will also be participating in the chair with technical security experts. It will also offer free access to the IBM Academic Initiative for the development of research projects relating to the chair.

IBM is the world's largest business security solutions provider.  IBM Security has the most advanced range of security products and services, equipped with advanced analytical intelligence and skills that detect and stop more sophisticated threats and protect companies' critical assets. Through IBM X-Force, one of the oldest cybersecurity research teams, it manages on average 35,000 million security incidents a day.


University-business cooperation

This chair is the result of the collaboration agreement signed by the President of the UOC, Josep A. Planell, and the Vice-president for Industries and Business Development with IBM Spain, Portugal, Greece and Israel, Alfred Escala.

The Chair in Cybersecurity is added to the six chairs offered by the UOC, which are: UNESCO Chair in Education and Technology for Social Change, UNESCO Chair on Food, Culture and Development, UNESCO Chair on Sport for Social Coexistence and Conflict Resolution, Miró Chair, Telefónica-UOC Chair for Design and Multimedia Creation and the UOC-BSA Chair on Applied Research and Analysis in Health Data.

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