In the era of connected embedded systems, devices are often targeted by sophisticated cyber-attacks. The entry point for these attacks is more often through firmware and hence analysing its security is vital. This research presents an innovative method for evaluating the security posture of firmware by examining its binary constituents. The approach combines static binary mining techniques with exploratory data analysis to visually depict the security posture of firmware. This aids in providing a comprehensive perspective of its weaknesses and strengths. To validate the effectiveness of the proposed approach and methodology, an in-depth security analysis is carried out on five real world firmware samples. The selection of these firmware samples encompasses a wide range of devices and applications, thereby assuring the broad relevance of the findings. The results demonstrate the efficacy of this technique in revealing and visually representing different firmware security characteristics, such as the firmware attack surface, the effectiveness of binary protection mechanisms, and the overall security resilience. The methodology is implemented as an open source tool named fw2ai, which automates the security analysis serving the needs of both security researchers and practitioners.

Short term training programs are relevant in Indian context as an effective teacher professional development program as it addresses the ever present problem of paucity of time among engineering faculty members and the need to keep abreast with latest technological offerings. Most of the training programs studied so far, deal with techniques to incorporate Technology, Content and Pedagogy in classroom teaching. However, they do not adequately represent the techniques required when technology and content are inter-related as seen in circuit simulations for instance. We propose training with immersivity in Technology, Content and Pedagogy as an effective format for TDP when the technology aspect is closely connected to the content. We specifically look into the integration of SEQUEL - a circuit simulation and analysis tool, in the context of teaching analog electronic circuit design. In this paper, we present findings from an implementation of short term training program, merging recommendations from TPACK framework and immersivity in the three dimensions of Technology, Content and Pedagogy, as the underlying design principle. Our study shows promising results and indicates a clear shift towards adopting technology and pedagogy principles to augment content in lesson plans by the participating faculty members.