Cybersecurity Professor Brings Decades of Experience to Role as Interim School Chair

The College of Computing at Georgia Tech announced on Friday that Regents’ Entrepreneur Mustaque Ahamad will lead the School of Cybersecurity and Privacy as interim chair, effective August 16.

“As a long-time member of the cybersecurity and privacy community at Georgia Tech,” said Ahamad. “I have been deeply impressed with our accomplishments in research, education, and our leadership in this vital field. I am honored to serve the SCP family in this new role while we search for the school’s next permanent chair.”

Ahamad, who joined the Georgia Tech faculty in 1985, will take over from Michael Bailey, the school’s inaugural chair. Bailey will return to the school’s faculty to teach and advise students.

Ahamad’s leadership accomplishments include serving as director of the Tech’s Information Security Center (GTISC) and as associate director of the Institute for Information Security and Privacy (IISP) before the formation of SCP.

He is also widely recognized for his entrepreneurial achievements, including his roles as co-founder and chief scientist of Pindrop Security and Codoxo.

Ahamad has played an active role in the evolution of the Institute’s cybersecurity education. During his tenure as director of GTISC, he helped develop several major research thrusts in areas that include the security of converged communication networks, identity and access management, and the security of healthcare information technology.  

“Mustaque has shaped cybersecurity at Georgia Tech for nearly four decades, long before there was a College of Computing or a School of Cybersecurity and Privacy,” said Bailey. 

“His leadership helped lay the foundation for the school’s creation, for the interdisciplinary research that supports it, and for the education programs that continue to grow under his care.

“Above all, he brings a deep integrity and commitment to our mission — to create security for everyone and everything, every day — and I am grateful to have such a thoughtful and principled leader guiding SCP through this transition.”

In 2002, Ahamad helped establish the Master of Science in Information Technology, which evolved into the Master of Science in Cybersecurity (MS Cybersecurity). As associate director of IISP, Ahamad continued to lead cybersecurity educational programs, which then became the basis for the School of Cybersecurity and Privacy. 

He joined the new interdisciplinary school’s core group of faculty members under the leadership of Professor and Charlotte B. and Roger C. Warren Chair of Computing, Rich DeMillo. He chaired the faculty committee that worked with DeMillo to launch the new school.

Together with Regents’ Professor Seymour Goodman, Ahamad brought a new thread to the College of Computing’s undergraduate program. This new cybersecurity education initiative brought the curriculum and faculty from Georgia Tech’s now long-established MS Cybersecurity degree closer to undergraduate students.

During his 40 years at Georgia Tech, Ahamad has played a significant role in helping his students launch various start-ups. The products developed by these startups help secure top companies in the financial, health, and retail sectors.

In April 2024, Ahamad was honored for his longstanding dedication and received the title Regents’ Entrepreneur. Regents’ designations are the highest honor a faculty member can earn from the University System of Georgia.

Ahamad will assume leadership on August 16 from Bailey, who was appointed as the school's first chair in 2022. Bailey will stay with the College and continue his role as a professor, similar to DeMillo, who served as founding chair for two years and rejoined the faculty when Bailey started.

A search committee will be formed later this year to choose the next SCP chair.