Since 2018, scientists in Purdue Polytechnic’s strategic research impact areas have been working to solve challenges in cybersecurity and critical infrastructure that affect global economics, security and health. Faculty members in the Holistic Safety and Security team are building on research that has received national attention and funding.

Because of inhospitable living conditions in outer space, some of the galaxy’s next explorers will be robots. To ascertain the caliber of the world’s robotics experts, the Centennial Challenges Program at the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) teamed with the Space Center Houston, the official visitor center of NASA’s Johnson Space Center, for the Space Robotics Challenge. A team led by Byung-Cheol “B.C.” Min, associate professor in Purdue Polytechnic’s Department of Computer and Information Technology, is a finalist in NASA’s robotics challenge.

Inspired by the successful partnership between Purdue Polytechnic’s Department of Computer and Information Technology and the Tippecanoe County Prosecutor’s office, Governor Eric Holcomb signed the High Tech Crime Unit Bill, which will lead to the creation of 10 civilian-based high-tech crime units around Indiana.

Tatiana Ringenberg, a Purdue Polytechnic doctoral student, researches how online predators communicate with their victims, including children, through language, and how those communications may be different when the victim is actually a law enforcement officer posing as a child. She’s working to improve law enforcement training and effectiveness by identifying differences in communication between decoys, victims and law enforcement in online grooming conversations.

Purdue Polytechnic’s Marcus Rogers, Umit Karabiyik and Fahad Salamh earned a patent for their method of automating the collection of cloud-based digital forensic evidence.

Purdue Polytechnic’s Byung-Cheol “B.C.” Min is leading a team designing SMARTBoat 5, an unmanned surface vehicle that removes harmful algae blooms from shorelines and waterways. The vehicle’s lightweight frame was built from 3D-printed parts and can be used in a variety of environments, from small, shallow ponds to large lakes.

Kathryn Seigfried-Spellar, associate professor of computer and information technology, fights crime using cyberforensics, a branch of digital forensic science pertaining to evidence found in computers and digital storage media.

Eric Dietz, professor of computer and information technology, was working to provide new opportunities for graduate students when he hosted Hyun Gun Song, the superintendent of South Korean police, in Greater Lafayette. This evolved into a partnership that has helped agencies in South Korea improve how they handle domestic violence calls.

Purdue Polytechnic’s Sabine Brunswicker, Soowon Chang, Dominic Kao and Alejandra Magana participated in short-term research projects related to how universities adapted to the pandemic.

Fahad Salamh, Marcus Rogers and Umit Karabiyik have developed a cloud forensic model using machine learning to collect digital evidence related to illegal activities on cloud storage applications like Dropbox and Google Drive.