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– Private and State Grants Fund Research on Internet of Things Security –
Morgan State University (MSU) President David Wilson today announced the establishment of the University’s first endowed professorship, Dr. Kevin T. Kornegay, the Endowed Chair in Internet of Things (IoT) Security. The endowed chair is established with a $1-million grant from the Maryland Department of Commerce through the Maryland E-Nnovation Initiative (MEI), matched with another $1-million investment from a private donor. The MEI program offers a state match to private funds raised in support of endowed chairs at Maryland’s higher education institutions.
“Maryland should be applauded for setting aside funds to advance cutting edge research and innovation and we are proud to partner with the state in this effort,” says Morgan’s president, Dr. David Wilson. “We believe this program shows great promise for higher education’s ability to help the state find solutions to some of our most challenging issues and cyber security is certainly one of those issues. The Internet of Things, which is the focus of Morgan’s research with this endowed professorship, is the next major frontier on the cyber security horizon. It is one of the critical areas that will dominate our future.”
The Internet of Things (IoT) and its myriad of components are proliferating as they continue to permeate all areas of life and work, with unprecedented economic effect. The IoT is a network of dedicated physical objects (things) whose embedded system technology senses or interacts with their internal state or external environment. Examples of IoT devices include cell phones, personal digital assistants, gaming consoles, smart power meters, smart light bulbs, and water leakage sensors.
“As the IoT continues to evolve, the number of ‘things’ and the upstream of data associated with them presents new security challenges,” says Dr. Kornegay. “Our research will make the devices more secure and self-aware with the ability to thwart a physical cyber attack.”
Dr. Kornegay’s background and research interests include cyber security, reverse engineering, hardware assurance, secure embedded system design, millimeter wave integrated circuit design, and cyber-physical systems among others. He is a professor in the Electrical and Computer Engineering (ECE) Department in the Mitchell School of Engineering at Morgan State University.
The MEI is a state program that was created by the 2014 Maryland General Assembly. In its first year, the program provided more than $8-million in grants and leveraged over $10.5-million in private donations to spur research activity at Maryland colleges and universities. In addition to Morgan’s endowed chair, new professorships have been created at eight other institutions; three at the University of Maryland – College Park, two at UMAB, two at Johns Hopkins University, and one at Washington College.
Morgan State University, founded in 1867, is a Carnegie classified doctoral research institution offering more than 60 academic programs leading to bachelor’s degrees as well as programs at the master’s and doctoral levels. As Maryland’s public urban university, Morgan serves a multi-ethnic and multi-racial student body and seeks to ensure that the doors of higher education are opened as wide as possible to as many as possible. For more information on Morgan State University, visit www.morgan.edu.
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Clinton R. Coleman
or
Larry Jones
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