City University London spoke to Professor Rajarajan about his mission to protect us all from the threat of international cyber criminality. Professor Raj Rajarajan is an academic at City St George’s, University of London whose research focuses on cybersecurity and security engineering.
With a distinguished career spanning over two decades in cybersecurity, Raj has played a pivotal role in mentoring students and professionals while bridging the industry-academia gap.
His expertise in ethical hacking, cyber risk management, and education has made him a highly influential figure in the field.
Professor Rajarajan recently sat down with our Research Spotlight team to talk about his research and wider work to protect us all from cyber criminality.
In 2024, Raj co-founded Cyber London, one of a number of regional “Cyber Clusters” which are playing a vital role in supporting the growth of the cybersecurity ecosystem in the UK and beyond, and which is recognized by government as the Cyber Cluster for London.
Cyber Clusters are uniquely positioned with regional focus and presence, and actively engage with their communities, fostering relationships on the ground.
As co-director, Raj also established the Centre for Online Safety, Safeguarding, Privacy and Identity (COSPI) at City, St George’s with Professor Carrie-Ann Myers of the School of Policy & Global Affairs, which develops world-class research and insights on issues affecting the cyber security industry and society more widely.
Raj is a leading voice in the call for corporations to increase their investment in cybersecurity to mitigate the risk of attack from a growing global network of organized cybercriminals.
He reminds us that cybercriminals are not the lone wolves of twenty years ago, but can lurk deep within the dark web, making tools for others to commit cyberattacks. To this point, Raj predicts that cybercrime will cost the global economy £1 trillion over the next five years, and that 80% of small to medium sized businesses (SMEs) will fall victim to cyberattacks.
He says, “The biggest vulnerabilities that happen are from small-to-medium-sized enterprises, because they may not have the resources, have the funding, or take cybersecurity seriously. Which means most of the cyberattacks now happen through these suppliers to the larger organizations.”
One way Raj is helping address this risk is through Armorex, a new, innovative cyber security solution startup company, spun out from
City St George’s, of which he is co-founder, alongside Veniamin Boiarkin, its Project Lead and Doctoral Researcher at the School of Science & Technology.
Armorex aims to address the urgent issue by equipping SMEs with tools to clearly understand and significantly improve their “cyber posture.”
Through intelligent assessments and AI-driven analytics, ARMOREX aims to empower SMEs to proactively manage risks, thereby ensuring they meet cyber insurance eligibility requirements with confidence.
The platform not only aims to simplify the cybersecurity landscape for SMEs but also significantly streamline underwriting processes for insurers.
Its mission directly supports critical UK government cybersecurity and AI initiatives, aligning closely with government recommendations such as CyberEssentials certification and the proposed Cyber Security and Resilience Bill.
By empowering SMEs to adopt stronger cybersecurity controls, Armorex aims to enhance national resilience in line with the UK National Cyber Strategy.
Its contribution to SMEs and the broader economy could be significant, targeting businesses across critical sectors such as Healthcare, IT and Telecoms, Hospitality, Manufacturing, and Finance.
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