Skip to content 
Search

Latest Stories

Cyber security ‘hottest subject’ with British Asian students

With businesses, government departments and defence installations needing to protect themselves increasingly against hacking and industrial espionage, the study of cyber security has become the “hottest” subject among British-Asian students at Wolverhampton University.

This was revealed on Friday (September 23) when British-Indian industrialist Lord Swraj Paul presided on graduation day for mathematics and computer science students at Wolverhampton where he has been chancellor since 1999.


The university, which has 23,000 students, a highly proportion of them of Indian or Pakistani origin or directly from the subcontinent, is setting up a “cyber security centre”, said to be the first of its kind in Britain.

At the ceremony, student after student graduated in cyber security, many with firsts. They will apparently have no problem getting well-paid jobs.

The university points out: “For all businesses, there are many potential threats to their cyber security.

“Although some sound like they are lifted from the latest movie blockbuster – cyber-activists defacing websites, hackers breaking into IT systems, foreign governments searching for intellectual property in your files – the fact remains that many businesses are unaware of simple security measures that can help protect their technology.”

Afterwards, Lord Paul, 85, told Eastern Eye that “if I were returning to university today as a student, I would choose IT. Digital is the future.”

He recalled as a young man who left Jalandhar in the Punjab for the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT), “I did mechanical engineering and metallurgy for my degree and Master’s. But those are subjects of the past as Britain has very little heavy industry left.”

Lord Paul was joined by Prof Nazira Karodia, dean of the Faculty of Science and Engineering, and two dons who are closely involved in teaching cyber security – Dr Kevan Buckley, head of computer science, and Steve Garner, head of business engagement and principal lecturer in computer science.

Buckley stressed how important it was to safeguard data. While for the ordinary computer user this meant “not leaving your pen drive on the train and having passwords with punctuation marks and upper and lower case letters”, banks often adopted the “set a thief to catch a thief” principle and employed expert hackers to advise on security.

But the academic study of cyber security, in which Wolverhampton hopes to lead the field, involves much more.

The university sets out why a BSc (Hons) in Cyber Security is a course worth following. It states: “BSc Cyber Security aims to give students a fundamental understanding of how to protect organisations, networks, IT systems and individuals against cyber attacks and cyber threats.

“This course covers all the main topic areas required by the British Computing Society for an accredited Cyber Security degree, and includes understanding of cyber threats and attacks, and the criminal sub-culture which is increasingly profiting from those attacks, how to manage information and the risks to that information, practical approaches to implementing physical and process controls to reduce information threats, and the design of secure systems and products which will enable businesses to withstand attacks.

“Employment in the area of cyber security is predicted to increase five fold in the next two years, and there is already a severe shortage of trained graduates who are able to work in this area. Therefore, the likelihood of gaining well-paid employment at the end of your degree is extremely high.”

In his speech to some of the 7,000 students who graduated this year, Lord Paul announced “the university’s involvement in the development of a Caparo Innovation Centre Investment Fund”.

“This is a £400,000 technology investment fund, which will be a great opportunity for university researchers and positive for the economic development of the region, through the support it will provide to new companies specialising in the science and technology sectors,” he said.

“My company Caparo and the university have a long-standing tradition of collaboration. I am delighted and proud this will continue to flourish and provide benefits for the local economy.”

In the new Business School Building opened in November 2015, named after Lord Paul, there is now a “Caparo Executive Education Centre”, where “people from industry can exchange ideas with students and teachers – it is the only one of its kind in the country”, Lord Paul said.

More For You

Bangladesh seeks US deal to shield garment industry from tariffs

Workers are engaged at their sewing stations in a garment factory in Savar, on the outskirts of Dhaka, on April 9, 2025. (Photo by MUNIR UZ ZAMAN/AFP via Getty Images)

Bangladesh seeks US deal to shield garment industry from tariffs

BANGLADESH, the world's second-biggest garment manufacturer, aims to strike a trade deal with the US before Donald Trump's punishing tariffs kick in next week, said the country's top commerce official.

Dhaka is proposing to buy Boeing planes and boost imports of US wheat, cotton and oil in a bid to reduce the trade deficit, which Trump used as the reason for imposing painful levies in his "Liberation Day" announcement.

Keep ReadingShow less
UK business district
The Canary Wharf business district including global financial institutions in London.
Getty Images

Bond yields ease following Starmer’s support for Reeves

THE COST of UK government borrowing fell on Thursday, partially reversing the rise seen after Chancellor Rachel Reeves became emotional during Prime Minister’s Questions.

The yield on 10-year government bonds dropped to 4.55 per cent, down from 4.61 per cent the previous day. The pound also recovered slightly to $1.3668 (around £1.00), though it did not regain all its earlier losses.

Keep ReadingShow less
modi-trump-getty
Modi shakes hands with Trump before a meeting at Hyderabad House in New Delhi on February 25, 2020. (Photo: Getty Images)
Getty Images

Indian exporters watch closely as Trump says trade deal with India likely

THE US could reach a trade deal with India that would help American companies compete more easily in the Indian market and reduce tariff rates, President Donald Trump said on Tuesday. However, he cast doubt on a similar deal with Japan.

Speaking to reporters on Air Force One, Trump said he believed India was ready to lower trade barriers, potentially paving the way for an agreement that would avoid the 26 per cent tariff rate he had announced on April 2 and paused until July 9.

Keep ReadingShow less
Kolhapuri sandal sales surge in India post Prada controversy

Customers shop for 'Kolhapuri' sandals, an Indian ethnic footwear, at a store in New Delhi, India, June 27, 2025. REUTERS/Adnan Abidi

Kolhapuri sandal sales surge in India post Prada controversy

INDIAN footwear sellers and artisans are tapping into nationalist pride stoked by the Prada 'sandal scandal' in a bid to boost sales of ethnic slippers with history dating back to the 12th century, raising hopes of reviving a struggling craft.

Sales are surging over the past week for the 'Kolhapuri' sandals that have garnered global attention after Prada sparked a controversy by showcasing similar designs in Milan, without initially crediting the footwear's origins.

Keep ReadingShow less
UK business district
The Canary Wharf business district including global financial institutions in London.
Getty Images

Economy grew 0.7 per cent in Q1 2025, fastest in a year

THE UK economy expanded at its fastest pace in a year during the first quarter of 2025, driven by a rise in home purchases ahead of a tax deadline and higher manufacturing output before the introduction of new US import tariffs.

Gross domestic product rose by 0.7 per cent in the January-to-March period, the Office for National Statistics (ONS) said, confirming its earlier estimate. This was the strongest quarterly growth since the first quarter of 2024.

Keep ReadingShow less