The ULE cybersecurity chair offers 100% employability

María Fernández León

It is likely that when talking about cybersecurity, it sounds like a technicalism that only worries large companies or governments, but nothing farther from reality.When you ask Google Maps to take a certain address, enter your bank application or tell how many steps you walk in one day, you are providing a series of data that it is necessary to protect;reason why cybersecurity is important.

For this reason, the University of León has created the Cybersecurity Chair directed by the Astorgana Adriana Suárez Corona.A chair that has already received a subsidy for 60.000 euros destined to finance the development of different actions, among which is the elaboration of the Cybersecurity strategy of Castilla y León that, according to the Board, "will make the community a reference in this area".

In those same words, Corona is pronounced who stressed that the study will begin imminently and the first step will be the interest groups."During this course we will advance with this issue but since it is something that takes time, I do not venture to give a specific date for its completion," admitted the doctor who also regretted that León has not been chosen as the headquarters of the European Cybersecurity Agency.

Leon as a cybersecurity pole

And as she explained in the act of signing the agreement, her desire is none other than "continuing to contribute to the ULE being a reference, and thereby that the Castilla y León region remains a pole of knowledge in cybersecurity".

He also underlined the effort to be made from the chair so that the results of research, reports and work "reach companies and public administrations, and that this expert knowledge contributes to decision making in terms of cybersecurity".

Along these lines, Suárez Corona confirms that there is 100% employability among students."They are very demanded profiles and we have many students, but not as many as to meet the demand," he admits, highlighting that on many occasions, before finishing their studies they are already working, "or they are working but they need to expand knowledge," he says.

Transverse character

The professor maintains that the demand is increasing but also the offer of the institutions.«The ULE, due to the environment we have with the National Institute of Cybersecurity, Incibe, located in León and the industry that arises related to it both in León and in the rest of the community had to work in this area because there are many interested people», Nuances.

The reality is that the University of León has tried, at all times, to meet the existing demand between companies and students.«We were the first to have our own title taught together with the Inbibe (Cybersecurity Institute).This title became an official master's degree, both of a technical nature, which right now is the Master of Cybersecurity Research, ”says Suárez Corona who adds that the ULE has also been the first to have a master's degree in law in the digital environment ofCybersecurity.

The chair, in addition, is formed by various disciplines and that is that cybersecurity has a transverse character."In the ULE we are lucky that there are experts in many disciplines, from law to data protection which is beneficial for the study of cybersecurity that is very wide and is everywhere," he says.

Cryptography

Precisely, Suarez Corona herself specializes in cryptography.«I am a doctor in mathematics and my specialty is the cryptography that are the set of mathematical tools that protect the information.All the safety of cryptographic schemes or key exchanges are based on a mathematical problem.It actually reaches many parts since the whole issue of artificial intelligence also has a mathematical basis as well as data analysis, etc..

Without a doubt, as Corona acknowledges, this is one of the ways that the little ones are interested in this matter, seeing their practical application.And is that one of the objectives of the chair is the dissemination and dissemination of reaching all audiences."We want to motivate people to study this type of degrees or approach these concepts," maintains mathematics who claims that the usefulness of the areas must be made known, in this particular case in the world of cybersecurity.«For example, in mathematics when you see the application you have in this world you think you are a much more attractive area.The truth is that the situation is changing and also the role of mathematics, ”he highlights.

Divulgation

But the Cybersecurity Chair is not only regulated training but also involves dissemination and training initiatives to reach a broader audience.«We are considering actions for the general public and for young high school students but also for older people.We must all take into account where you publish your data, be careful and protect the information.It affects us we are the age we are, ”says Corona who points out that for this reason it is necessary to have training in this field even in a superficial way.

«We all need basic knowledge.As it is necessary today to use a computer, at the time we use certain applications we have to have minimal knowledge in cybersecurity.There are phishing campaigns in which they try to capture information, for example, bank.That is why this information, dissemination and dissemination is important, ”clarifies the professor who remembers that there are also attacks on companies, so they must be protected, they are of the type and size that are."If we see the cyber attack data in Spain but we would also be surprised by the amount of them that occur and the variety of companies and institutions," he says.

For this reason, the University of León works with the aim of training experts and not so expert in such a fundamental and unknown matter, today, as is cybersecurity.