Industrial Visit Gives An Eye-Opening Experience For APU Tech Students

For tech undergraduates interested in pursuing a career in cybersecurity, a visit to a provider of these services can be an eye-opening and invaluable learning experience.

In mid-February, under the leadership of Dr. Kamalakannan Machap, lecturer at Asia Pacific University of Technology & Innovation (APU)'s School of Computing & Technology, the school organized an industrial visit to Firmus Sdn. Bhd., a provider of cybersecurity solutions and penetration testing services.

This visit was specially arranged for BSc (Hons) in Information Technology with a specialism in Information System Security and BSc (Hons) in Computer Science with a specialism in Digital Forensics undergraduates.

To expose students to the mechanisms and techniques of mobile threat defence, integrated global threat intelligence, and behavioural analysis, this experiential learning provided students with an opportunity to see firsthand how the company operates and gain a deeper understanding of the industry, its challenges, and the various tools and techniques used to prevent, detect, and respond to cyber threats.

To gain more insights, the students were taken on a tour around the Security Operations Center (SOC).

During the visit, representatives from Firmus shared their knowledge of CREST in penetration testing. CREST stands for the Council of Registered Ethical Security Testers; it is an international accreditation and certification body for organizations and individuals within the technical information security market.

In addition, current issues such as the world's biggest data breaches were discussed. Overall, the visit was a beneficial complement to the courses offered at APU's Cyber Security Talent Zone. The lecturers were pleased that APU students had the opportunity to explore other SOC and witness the penetration testing applications of cybersecurity theories alongside practical concepts.