Amala Nikitha George

Amala Nikitha George is an Assistant Professor in the Division of Data Science and Cyber Security, School of Computer Science and Technology, Karunya Institute of Technology and Sciences, Coimbatore. She holds an MS in Cybersecurity from Northeastern University, Boston, USA, and a B.Tech in Computer Science and Engineering from Karunya Institute of Technology and Sciences. At Karunya, she teaches Quantum Computing and Cryptography, Fundamentals of Artificial Intelligence, and the Deep Learning Laboratory, while actively contributing to research, student mentorship, and academic development within the division.

Her academic and research interests focus on Cybersecurity, Applied Cryptography, Post-Quantum Cryptography, Quantum Computing, Network Security, Threat Intelligence, Offensive Security, Digital Forensics, and Artificial Intelligence. She has published research in international IEEE conferences on hybrid cryptographic algorithms for securing the Internet of Things and deep learning-based malware analysis, prediction, and prevention. She has also completed a graduate project on Post-Quantum Cryptography, implementing the Baby Kyber key encapsulation mechanism in Python, and an undergraduate project on Quantum Key Distribution using the E91 protocol with IBM Qiskit.

Amala has gained valuable industry and research experience through internships at Mobile Heartbeat, where she conducted threat modeling and cybersecurity risk assessment using the MITRE ATT&CK framework, and at HP, where she worked on network packet capture and security analysis using tools such as Wireshark, Tcpdump, Git, and REST Client. She also completed the Cisco Networking Academy Cyber Security Virtual Internship, strengthening her knowledge of cybersecurity fundamentals, secure network design, and Packet Tracer. Her project portfolio further includes machine learning-based handwritten character recognition using CNNs and an embedded systems project for automated dust detection and cleaning in solar power panels.

Her technical expertise includes Post-Quantum Cryptography, Applied Cryptography, Quantum Computing, Network Security, Threat Intelligence, Ethical Hacking, Penetration Testing, Digital Forensics, Cloud Security, Security Automation, and Cryptanalysis. She is proficient in Python, C++, Go, Java, JavaScript, Bash, Git, GitHub, Docker, AWS, Wireshark, Nmap, Burp Suite, Metasploit, Nessus, Cisco Packet Tracer, Jupyter Notebook, and related security and networking tools. She has earned several professional certifications, including CompTIA Security+, IBM Quantum Computing, QBronze, AWS Quantum Computing, Linux Foundation, Google, IBM, and Coursera certifications. She has also participated in prestigious quantum computing programmes and hackathons, including Womanium & WISER Quantum Program, MIT iQuHack, and Yale YQuantum Hackathon, and has received the Institutional Merit Scholarship and Academic Incentive Award. Her strengths include research and technical writing, analytical problem solving, leadership, teamwork, effective communication, and continuous learning, with proficiency in Tamil, English, Spanish, Korean, and Malayalam.