1 hr ago
From PwC to IIT Hyderabad, Engineer Builds Cybersecurity Platform
Vikram left home when he was 12 to study in other towns.
He learned about computers and made a video game while studying engineering.
Later, he worked at PwC, but he still wanted to learn more and build things.
He planned to study in another country, but those plans did not work out.
Instead, he joined a special entrepreneurship programme at IIT Hyderabad.
There, he created Defen.do, a website that helps people practise cybersecurity skills through activities.
The platform is now used at IIT Hyderabad.
After graduating, he got a job at DENSO in Japan and moved to Tokyo.
Vikram, 28, grew up in Maharashtra and has lived away from home since age 12.
After studying IT at Government College of Engineering, Karad, he worked in game development and spent nearly three years at PwC.
Plans to study abroad fell through, and he joined IIT Hyderabad’s MTech in Techno-Entrepreneurship in July 2024.
For his thesis, he built Defen.do, a gamified cybersecurity learning platform, and led four interns in developing it further.
After graduating, he joined Japan’s DENSO Corporation through campus placement and moved to Tokyo.
- Who
- Vikram, an engineer from Maharashtra who studied at IIT Hyderabad.
- What
- He developed Defen.do, a gamified cybersecurity platform, during his IIT Hyderabad studies and later joined DENSO Corporation.
- Where
- IIT Hyderabad in India and Tokyo, Japan.
- When
- He joined IIT Hyderabad in July 2024; after graduating, he moved to Tokyo for work.
- Why
- He chose IIT Hyderabad’s MTech in Techno-Entrepreneurship after personal reasons prevented him from pursuing planned studies abroad.
Study abroad
Study in India
Vikram’s postgraduate choice
Study abroad
He had wanted to study abroad since his second year of BTech, took the IELTS and GRE, received university offers, and arranged finances.
Study in India
After personal reasons made studying abroad impossible, he enrolled in IIT Hyderabad’s MTech in Techno-Entrepreneurship, a programme aligned with his interests in technology and entrepreneurship.
Key facts
- Age
- 28
- Home state
- Maharashtra
- IIT Hyderabad programme
- MTech in Techno-Entrepreneurship
- IIT Hyderabad start
- July 2024
- Thesis project
- Defen.do, a gamified cybersecurity platform
- Development team
- Vikram led four interns
- Current employer
- DENSO Corporation
- Current location
- Tokyo, Japan
Quotes
Dr Nakul Parameswar
The narrator’s thesis guide at IIT Hyderabad.
“Vikram, do you know how a slingshot works? The more you pull it back, the farther and faster the stone travels. This phase isn’t a setback. It’s the pullback for a bigger leap.”
indianexpress.com
Sources
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