- Farimah Farahmandi, Ph.D., has been named the director of the Florida Institute for Cybersecurity Research, known as FICS.
- She is known for pioneering research in hardware security verification, semiconductor security and AI-driven approaches that protect critical technologies.
- She plans to expand partnerships with industry, government and academia to strengthen cybersecurity research, workforce development and innovation.
The Herbert Wertheim College of Engineering announced today that Farimah Farahmandi, Ph.D., has been named the director of the Florida Institute for Cybersecurity Research, known as FICS.
Farahmandi, the Walden C. Rhines Endowed Professor for Hardware Security, has served as the associate director for FICS since 2022. She has made fundamental contributions in research, commercial and workforce development.
She replaces Kevin Butler, Ph.D. who served as the director for four years and was recently named chair for the University of Florida’s Department of Computer and Science Information and Engineering, known as CISE. During Butler’s tenure, FICS saw tremendous growth including the development of a cybersecurity operations center and research incubator to secure state assets and develop security-operations research in partnership with the state of Florida and UF Information Technology. Butler also oversaw $40 million in research expenditures, developed a small business security initiative and expanded the FICS membership to faculty throughout engineering and beyond.
Farahmandi’s research primarily focuses on hardware security verification and validation, applying artificial intelligence-based approaches to hardware security and ensuring the integrity of microelectronics in pre- and post- fabrication stages. She is well-known in the hardware security community for her pioneering research in the field of security verification, most notably for her work to establish the security, safety and reliability of system-on-chips (SoCs) and system-in-packages (SiPs) deployed to modern critical industrial and Department of War applications.
An author of eight books, Farahmandi serves an associate professor in the Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering, or ECE. She has won the IEEE/ACM Design Automation Conference Under-40 Innovator Award, Best Assistant Professor Award at UF, the Pramod Khargonekar Excellence Award, ECE’s Excellence in Research Award, Semiconductor Research Corp Young Faculty Award, a National Science Foundation CAREER Award, 11 best-paper nominations and an Office of Naval Research Young Investigator Award.
By bridging academia, industry and government, Farahmandi plans to cultivate a vibrant, multi-disciplinary ecosystem where faculty, engineers and students thrive through collaborative research, technical workshops and strategic networking.
Earlier this year, she was named one of UF’s 40 Under 40. In April, she also received the UF CISE Distinguished Young Alumni Award where she received her Ph.D. in 2018.
She plans to ensure FlCS is the premier statewide catalyst for cybersecurity innovation, research excellence and workforce development. By bridging academia, industry and government, FICS will cultivate a vibrant, multi-disciplinary ecosystem where faculty, engineers and students thrive through collaborative research, technical workshops and strategic networking.
Through expanded institutional memberships and deepened partnerships with industry and state agencies, she contends the institute will accelerate scientific breakthroughs, secure critical sponsorships and solidify Florida’s leadership in addressing the nation’s most urgent technology and national cybersecurity challenges.