Nisarga Adhikary, a 19-year-old cybersecurity researcher, has been appointed as an Open-Source Intelligence (OSINT) and Threat Intelligence Engineer at IIT Kanpur’s C3iHub. Adhikary gained national attention after identifying and publicly disclosing multiple vulnerabilities in the Central Board of Secondary Education’s (CBSE) On-Screen Marking (OSM) system. His appointment follows the widespread debate over digital security and evaluation transparency in India’s examination systems.
According to The Indian Express, Adhikary’s role at IIT Kanpur involves contributing to cybersecurity and threat intelligence initiatives at C3iHub, the institute’s cybersecurity technology innovation hub. The institute’s director, Manindra Agrawal, confirmed that Adhikary was selected for his technical capabilities and potential to contribute to national cyber-defence efforts.
As highlighted by Deccan Herald, Adhikary’s responsibilities include analysing publicly available information, identifying cybersecurity threats, and assisting organisations in detecting and addressing vulnerabilities in digital systems. His appointment is on a contractual basis, and he is among the youngest engineers to join the institute’s cybersecurity team.
As reported by Hindustan Times, Adhikary’s recruitment was initiated after he published a blog post on 22 May 2026, detailing the vulnerabilities he discovered in the CBSE OSM portal. IIT Kanpur’s director reached out to him directly after reviewing his findings. Adhikary will focus on identifying actionable intelligence from open sources and helping organisations patch security flaws in their systems.
“Nisarga Adhikary has been appointed as an engineer in our cybersecurity team. A few years ago, we had similarly recruited a couple of young engineers for the same team. I am not sure whether he is the youngest recruit at IIT Kanpur, but he is certainly among the youngest engineers to have been hired by the institute,” said Director Manindra Agrawal.
Further coverage revealed that Adhikary’s exposure of the OSM system’s flaws included vulnerabilities that could allow unauthorised access to examiner accounts, student data, and password-reset functions. His disclosures led to increased scrutiny of the OSM ecosystem, with experts from IIT Kanpur and IIT Madras later auditing and strengthening the system.
In addition, analysis showed that Adhikary reported the vulnerabilities to CERT-In in February 2026 before making his findings public. The CBSE OSM system had already faced criticism from teachers and students over technical issues and evaluation inconsistencies, which amplified the impact of Adhikary’s revelations.
At IIT Kanpur, Adhikary will not be enrolling in a degree programme at present, instead focusing on practical cybersecurity work and product development. He has previously worked with several start-ups and has participated in cybersecurity competitions since his early school years as details emerged.
“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,” Adhikary stated.
Clarification was provided following reports that only Adhikary, and not other students who raised concerns about the CBSE OSM system, was hired by IIT Kanpur. Sarthak Sidhant, another student who had highlighted issues with the OSM tendering process, publicly denied receiving a job offer from the institute.
At C3iHub, Adhikary’s work will include open-source intelligence gathering, threat analysis, and vulnerability identification, supporting organisations in strengthening their cybersecurity posture according to officials.
“IIT Kanpur offers him that opportunity. I believe he will do very well if he continues to work hard,” said Director Agrawal.
Note: This article is produced using AI-assisted tools and is based on publicly available information. It has been reviewed by The Quint's editorial team before publishing.