The Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology (MeitY), together with the Data Security Council of India (DSCI) and C-DAC Hyderabad, has launched the Cyber Security Innovation Challenge (CSIC) 1.0 under the Information Security Education and Awareness (ISEA) initiative. The launch event, held on 24 November 2025 at Electronics Niketan, New Delhi, brought together senior government officials, academic leaders and industry experts.
The initiative was introduced by S Krishnan, Secretary, MeitY, who released the concept video, website, registration portal and rule book for CSIC 1.0. He highlighted the need for a two-pronged national strategy that strengthens both awareness of emerging threats and India’s technological capabilities. He emphasised that the challenge aims to nurture skilled cybersecurity professionals and accelerate the creation of homegrown, product-driven solutions, while reinforcing a ‘whole-of-nation’ approach to cyber resilience.
Vinayak Godse, CEO of DSCI, provided an overview of the challenge’s five-stage structure and domain-specific problem statements developed jointly by DSCI, C-DAC and the ISEA team. He noted that CSIC 1.0 will help students and researchers build entrepreneurial thinking and deliver practical cybersecurity solutions for sectors such as BFSI, telecom and healthcare.
Prof V Kamakoti, Director of IIT Madras, underlined the importance of fresh thinking in addressing India’s cybersecurity needs, while Prof Sukumar Nandi, Senior Professor at IIT Guwahati, highlighted the collaborative effort of MeitY, C-DAC, DSCI and the 50 institutions under ISEA in curating problem statements that reflect national priorities.
Narendra Nath, Joint Secretary at the National Security Council Secretariat (NSCS), stressed the significance of technological sovereignty for an Atmanirbhar Bharat and commended ISEA’s efforts in advancing indigenous capabilities.
Sanjay Bahl, Director General of CERT-In, emphasised the need to shift from reactive defence to proactive security and highlighted how CSIC 1.0 creates a bridge between academia, research and industry for developing deployable cybersecurity products.
CSIC 1.0 focuses on ten domains including Computer & Network Security, Mobile Device Security, Systems & Software Security, Hardware Security, Future Technologies, Cryptography, Distributed Wireless Networks, Cyber Forensics, Governance & Operations, and Fintech Security. Through structured mentorship, expert-led sessions and hands-on guidance, the initiative will support selected teams as they progress from concept to Minimum Viable Product (MVP).
The challenge is open to students and researchers across India, with full details available on the official portal.