TUT professor named among CYBER100 leaders to watch

Prof Topside Mathonsi has earned national recognition as one of the CYBER100 – 100 Cyber Leaders to Watch for his contribution to advancing cybersecurity in South Africa.

Prof TE Mathonsi Prof Mathonsi is Associate Professor and Head of the Department of Information Technology at the Tshwane University of Technology Faculty of ICT. Exito Media Concepts presents the CYBER100 recognition to professionals who make significant contributions to cybersecurity across academia industry and government.

The programme highlights leaders who demonstrate innovation, measurable impact and leadership in cyber defence digital security research, policy development and cybersecurity education.

Prof Mathonsi’s research focuses on cybersecurity artificial intelligence Internet of Things Software-Defined Networking and wireless communication systems. He places strong emphasis on protecting critical infrastructure including energy water and agriculture. His work supports national development priorities and global digital transformation goals.

He has secured and led several externally funded research projects in partnership with national agencies and industry. These include advanced cybersecurity and smart infrastructure initiatives such as SCADA 4.0 systems and IoT-based monitoring solutions funded by uMngeni–uThukela Water the Technology Innovation Agency and the National Research Foundation.

These projects strengthen infrastructure resilience intelligent monitoring and secure communication systems while supporting postgraduate training research outputs and industry collaboration.

Prof Mathonsi has supervised 23 Master’s students and two Doctoral candidates and currently supervises ten Master’s and seven Doctoral students. He has published 35 peer-reviewed journal articles 74 conference papers and ten book chapters on internationally recognised platforms.

Beyond research, he contributes through conference presentations, journal reviewing, academic leadership and community initiatives that promote cybersecurity awareness and digital skills among students and young professionals.

His current initiatives include an international training project funded through the Gilman Pioneering Institution Grants. The project trains students from Bluegrass Community and Technical College in cybersecurity and promotes international knowledge exchange.

At a national level he collaborates with the University of Johannesburg on a European Union funding proposal aimed at strengthening cybersecurity capacity among small and medium enterprises.

His inclusion in the CYBER100 list recognises his research excellence and leadership in developing future cybersecurity professionals while advancing solutions to modern cyber threats.