{"id":2030,"date":"2026-03-23T20:26:02","date_gmt":"2026-03-23T16:26:02","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/dharmictimes.mu\/?p=2030"},"modified":"2026-03-24T08:18:49","modified_gmt":"2026-03-24T04:18:49","slug":"mauritius-tech-stars-shine-on-global-stage-uom-students-cyberstorm-mu-tackle-internet-security-in-taiwan","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/dharmictimes.mu\/index.php\/2026\/03\/23\/mauritius-tech-stars-shine-on-global-stage-uom-students-cyberstorm-mu-tackle-internet-security-in-taiwan\/","title":{"rendered":"Mauritius Tech Stars Shine on Global Stage: UoM Students & Cyberstorm.mu Tackle Internet Security in Taiwan"},"content":{"rendered":"

While most African university students are focused on upcoming exams,
\nfour brilliant minds from the University of Mauritius (UoM) have been
\nbusy solving one of the internet\u2019s most complex puzzles, the middleman problem.<\/p>\n

This month, Atish Joottun, Kevin Yerkiah, and Ritesh Gomind
\nrepresented the island nation at the prestigious Real World Crypto
\n(RWC) 2026 conference in Taipei, Taiwan. The event is widely
\nconsidered the “World Cup” of digital security, attracting the world\u2019s
\ntop engineers from tech giants like Google, Apple, and Cloudflare.
\nPoshan Peeroo, one of the co-authors, could not be present despite his
\nimmense contribution.<\/p>\n

The “Middleman” Problem<\/h2>\n

Under the guidance of their supervisor, Anwar Chutoo, the team
\npresented groundbreaking research on a technical challenge known as
\nthe “TLS Middlebox.”<\/p>\n

To understand their work, think of the internet as a private
\nconversation between you and your bank. Usually, this conversation is
\n“end-to-end encrypted,” meaning it’s locked in a digital vault that
\nonly you two can open. However, in large offices or schools, there is
\noften a “middlebox”\u2014a digital middleman\u2014that needs to peek at the data
\nto check for viruses or speed up the connection.<\/p>\n

The problem? These middlemen often accidentally “break” the lock,
\nmaking the connection less secure or causing websites to crash.<\/p>\n

A World-Class Solution<\/h2>\n
\n

The UoM quartet developed a more refined way to detect middleboxes
\nthat prevent deployment of new security advancements.<\/p>\n

“It\u2019s not just about writing code,” said one attendee. “It’s about
\nmaking the entire internet more secure for everyone one step at a
\ntime”<\/p>\n

The students worked on Open Standards such as IETF (Internet
\nEngineering Task Force) RFCs and made their work public for review.
\nThey are also part of the cyberstorm.mu which has been working hard to
\nincrease African contributions to open standards such as the IETF and
\nW3c.<\/p>\n

Atish, Kevin, Poshan, and Ritesh marks a significant milestone for
\nthe University of Mauritius. By holding their own against researchers
\nfrom the world’s leading tech hubs, they have proven that Mauritian
\ntalent is ready to compete on the global stage.<\/p>\n

As the team returns home, they carry with them more than just a
\nsuccessful presentation\u2014they carry the proof that with the right
\nmentorship and a lot of hard work, the next big R&D in global
\ntechnology could come from right here in Mauritius, a tiny African
\nisland.<\/p>\n