SEOUL, KOREA - Korea has for a long time had a reputation as a technology nation, major companies are world renowned for their innovative products. In recent years, however small and medium sized companies have garnered more and more attention from outside the country.
This is especially true of the cyber security industry. Recent major conferences have highlighted recent growth and the new Pangyo Techno Valley being built just outside Seoul will only help foster growth among all technology companies.
Professor Han Myung-Mook of Gachon University has been at the forefront of training the experts working for these companies. Recently Professor Han sat down with Korea IT Times to talk about his employer and the state of cyber security in general.
For the past 16 years he has lectured on both cyber security and data mining in both the undergraduate and graduate programs in Gachon’s Computer Department. He has also had a guest stint at Georgia Tech. Information Security Center in America, worked for the Korean Broadcasting and Communication Commission as a part of the Corporate Investigation Unit, and served as Vice Chairman of the Korea Internet Information Society.
Cyber security is clearly his passion and he has made it a priority of his to pass it along to his students. “I created the ‘Defender Club’, a gathering for students to learn about cyber security outside of the regular classes,” he says, “The students in the club became very enthusiastic about cyber security.” In the university’s information security laboratory, Prof. Han has also worked on various government projects that have dealt with cyber security.
When asked about solutions for the current cyber security issues Korean faces, Han seems aware of the risks but confident, “The more common security threats that are known to us are very easy for us to deal with, the real challenge comes for real-time security threats.” He goes on to say, “In the era of Big Data it is important to recognize threats and be able to mount counter attack measures regardless if the type of data involved is regular or not.”
Loyalty to Gachon University is clearly important to the professor and he goes out of his way to praise the work the school for the nation and technology community. “Because of its location, Gachon University has played an essential role for IT companies based in Pangyo, Yangjae, and the Tehran Street areas.” He states, “The companies and the university have contributed greatly to both the community and the nation as a whole.”
It is clear that Prof. Han sees Gachon University as a part of his legacy. “I would like Gachon University to become one of the top 10 private universities in Korea. The President of the university, current professors, and other influential former students have been working together to make this a reality.“
“On a personal level I would like to leave a positive mark on human society. I feel I can contribute by educating my students and continuing my research on cyber security and big data to have a real world impact.”
