www.unitbv.ro

17 January 2025

Transilvania University of Brașov was selected by Virtual Routes to represent Romania within Google.org Cybersecurity Seminars programme, a global initiative project dedicated to education and skill development in the field of cybersecurity. Through this programme, one hundred students at Transilvania University of Brașov (project coordinator) and West University of Timișoara (project partner) will be trained to provide cybersecurity services for 125 local community organizations.

Within Google.org Cybersecurity Seminars programme launched by Google in collaboration with Virtual Routes (formerly the European Cyber Conflict Research Incubator), Transilvania University of Brașov will receive 500,000 dollars.

“For our students, the programme is an exceptional opportunity to access cutting-edge cybersecurity tools, to work on real-world projects, and to gain hands-on experience. The grant not only reinforces our commitment to tackling today's pressing cybersecurity challenges, but also initiates a promising collaboration with Google. We want the working method and the services that we are now creating within the Cybersecurity Seminars project to continue after the two years of this Google.org-financed project” said Assoc. Prof. Eng. Titus Bălan, PhD, Dean of the Faculty of Electrical Engineering and Computer Science, Transilvania University of Brașov. 

With a rich tradition in the field of technology and with an academic framework fostering research and innovation, Transilvania University of Brașov will actively contribute to training professionals capable of coping with the security challenges faced both by the academic environment and by the private and public sectors.

“We are honoured to represent Romania in this international programme and help develop a cybersecurity culture. This project is an important opportunity for us to provide our students with direct access to the most recent innovations in digital security“ said Prof. Eng. Ioan Vasile Abrudan, PhD, Rector of Transilvania University of Brașov.

The first phase of the project focuses on the education in the field of cybersecurity, covering topics such as awareness, threat detection, network security, ethical hacking, SOC operations and security audits. Subsequently, in the second phase of the project, the content of the course, the practical labs and the organised hackathons will make up a portfolio of cybersecurity services that the students will implement during the internships in various local organizations. In this phase, the students will receive scholarships in order to get involved in real-world cybersecurity projects, under the guidance of mentors. In addition to acquiring hands-on experience, the students will actively contribute to the security and well-being of their communities.

Along with Transilvania University of Brașov, the Faculty of Automation and Computers under the Technical University of Cluj-Napoca was selected within the same programme and will benefit from the same amount to develop the programme.

The conditions that the students must meet to register for and be enrolled in the programme will be soon communicated. At the same time, in the upcoming period, the platform via which the local organizations of Brașov and Timișoara can request the cybersecurity services supplied through the Cybersecurity Seminars programme will also be made available.