Cyber Forensics Intelligence Center at SHSU

Robert Greenberg, Director of the Cyber Forensics Intelligence Center and Assistant Professor of Practice, was recently featured on a podcast discussing SHSU’s cybersecurity and digital forensics programs. Mr. Greenberg highlighted the differences among computer science, cybersecurity, information assurance, and digital forensics offerings, while outlining SHSU’s academic pathways from undergraduate to Ph.D., emphasizing the importance of hands-on learning, internships, certifications, and extracurricular engagement in preparing students for success. Listen to the podcast below.

An interview with Robert Greenberg | Sam Houston State University Robert Greenberg, Director of the Cyber Forensics Intelligence Center and Assistant Professor of Practice at Sam Houston State University.

Two of our PhD students, Osayomore Aigbogun and Erasmus Mfodwo traveled to Boston, Massachusetts to attend the ISDFS (International Symposium on Digital Forensics and Security) 2026 with Dr. Cihan Varol to present their research papers.

Erasmus presented: Forensic Investigation of SDRSharp and RTL-SDR Dongle in Eavesdropping Radio Communications co-authored with his advisor, Dr. Cihan Varol.

Osayomore presented BICIR: A Blockchain-Based Interoperability Model for Cross-National Cyber Incident Response, co-authored with his advisor, Dr. Cihan Varol.

Earlier this month staff, faculty, and students from the computer science department attended the COSET career fair. We talked to students about our programs and degree plans, important skills to refine, how they could improve their resumes, and made contacts with regional companies wanting to expand their workforce.

SHSU'S Cyber Forensics and Intelligence Center (CFIC), Kirk Burns and Cisco hosted a hands-on training event on February 26th that helped teach students, faculty and industry professionals how to proactively search for and neutralize hidden threats within a network. This event included hands-on labs and real world scenarios to help teach skills like investigating and stopping attacks. The event was very popular with approximately 65 people participating during the afternoon event. Below you can see Bruce Mikel, the winner of the competition standing with the Cisco team that hosted the event.

Meet Our Computer Science PhD Candidates

This week we would like to introduce Tosin Akinsowon. Tosin Akinsowon is a PhD candidate in Digital and Cyber Forensic Science at Sam Houston State University. His academic and professional background spans cybercrime investigations, digital forensics, and applied cybersecurity research, with emphasis on Operational Technology (OT) security and the protection of critical infrastructure systems.

His current research explores behavior-based intrusion and anomaly detection using machine learning, with applications in industrial control systems (ICS), SCADA environments, and cyber-physical infrastructure. Outside academia, he enjoys sports and music, which provide balance and inspiration alongside his research pursuits.

The Bearkat Association for Security & Hacking (BASH) is hosting their November Keynote Speaker this Thursday as part of their ongoing Keynote Speaker Series.

They'll be welcoming Oren Niskin, Senior Cybersecurity Consultant at GuidePoint Security, for a session on Operational Technology (OT) Security — exploring how industrial systems are secured, tested, and defended in real-world environments.

Oren will also be bringing a live PLC demo to walk students through how physical systems operate and how they can be attacked and protected.

Thursday, November 20th

5:00 PM

AB1 206

This is their final keynote of the semester — all students are welcome, regardless of background or experience.

Some of our students recently traveled to Cookeville, Tennessee, accompanied by Professor Kirk Burns, to compete in the CPTC (Collegiate Pe*******on Testing Competition) training and competition. This competition sets itself apart from other cybersecurity competitions by instead of defending networks, searching for flags, or claiming ownership of systems, CPTC focuses on mimicking the activities performed during a real-world pe*******on testing engagement conducted by companies, professional services firms, and internal security departments around the world.

Congratulations to Valentin Gazeau for winning the Student Excellence in Teaching Award! We're proud to celebrate his success and congratulate this achievement. (Below: Valentin being presented the award by Dean Holt)