A teenager who made headlines for responsibly disclosing security vulnerabilities in the Central Board of Secondary Education’s examination portal has been appointed as an Open-Source Intelligence (OSINT) and Threat Intelligence Engineer at C3iHub, the cybersecurity research centre at IIT Kanpur.
Who Is Nisarga Adhikary
Nisarga Adhikary, 19, cleared his Class 12 exams this year and began coding when he was six or seven years old.
Cybersecurity, however, came later. “I started coding when I was six or seven years old, but I became seriously involved in cybersecurity and began participating in Capture the Flag (CTF) and other cybersecurity competitions when I was in Class 6,” he told Hindustan Times.
CTF competitions are gamified hacking challenges where participants test ethical hacking skills by discovering hidden strings of text concealed within purposefully vulnerable programs, websites or networks.
Neither of his parents works in the field — both are employed in the finance sector. His entry into cybersecurity was entirely self-driven.
Adhikary came into the spotlight after identifying significant security flaws in CBSE’s On-Screen Marking portal, a critical digital platform used by CBSE-affiliated schools across the country to upload and manage students’ examination marks.
The system plays a central role in the board examination process, enabling schools to submit marks online for result preparation.
What He Found
Adhikary discovered multiple security weaknesses in the portal, including flaws related to access controls and data security, which could have potentially exposed sensitive student and school-related information if exploited by malicious actors. His findings raised concerns about the protection of information handled through a platform used by thousands of schools nationwide.
What He Did With It
Rather than misusing the vulnerabilities, Adhikary followed the principles of responsible disclosure and reported the issues to the authorities concerned, a decision that drew widespread praise from cybersecurity experts and the education sector.
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His actions brought attention to cybersecurity gaps in educational technology systems and underscored the importance of proactive security audits for platforms handling large volumes of sensitive data.
IIT Kanpur’s Response
His work caught the attention of one of India’s leading cybersecurity institutions. IIT Kanpur Director Prof. Manindra Agrawal welcomed the appointment, saying: “He is a talented young engineer who has demonstrated noteworthy technical capabilities at a young age.”
“We believe he has significant potential, and working at IIT Kanpur will provide him with the opportunity to further develop his capabilities while contributing to cybersecurity and threat intelligence initiatives at C3iHub.” he added.
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What Will Be His Role At IIT Kanpur
At IIT Kanpur, he will analyse actionable intelligence from publicly available sources and identify vulnerabilities in websites and applications, helping organisations address and patch potential security flaws, officials told Hindustan Times. He has been appointed on a contractual basis under the institute’s cybersecurity team.
Adhikary had previously worked as a software engineer, making his C3iHub role his first in a dedicated security position. “I am excited about this opportunity because it is the first time I will be working in a security-focused role. In my earlier jobs, I primarily worked as a software engineer, while cybersecurity was more of a hobby,” he said.
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