Teaching Cyber Threat Intelligence & Dark Web at University of Rome Tor Vergata
As part of the Master in Cybersecurity and Privacy at the University of Rome Tor Vergata, I deliver advanced modules focusing on Cyber Threat Intelligence (CTI), the Dark Web ecosystem, and Ransomware operations.
Educational Scope
The lectures are tailored to a diverse audience of IT professionals, legal experts, and government employees, with the objective of bridging technical depth with applied intelligence methodologies. My teaching covers:
- CTI lifecycle and intelligence types
- Indicator taxonomy and actor profiling
- Underground economy and ransomware gangs
- OSINT and dark web investigation methods
- Live demonstrations with tools like Shodan, IntelX, HaveIBeenPwned, VirusTotal, and others
- Threat actor tracking and infrastructure mapping
The course is designed to provide actionable skills to monitor and analyze cybercriminal activities through real-world scenarios and offensive simulation insights.
Focus Topics
- Ransomware-as-a-Service (RaaS) model
- Initial Access Brokers and affiliate networks
- Data leak sites and cryptocurrency laundering
- Hands-on labs with dark web crawlers and intelligence platforms
Integration with Research
These teaching activities are enriched by my ongoing PhD research at the University of Sannio, which focuses on:
- Attacker-centric threat intelligence
- Tracking ransomware financial flows
- Machine learning applied to threat classification
- TIPs and OSINT microservice orchestration
Professional Engagement
Alongside my academic role, I serve as Chief Information Security Officer at Würth Italia and Director of the CTI group “DarkLab” at RedHotCyber. This allows me to translate field experience directly into classroom insights, creating a well-rounded and impactful learning experience.
The Master at Tor Vergata represents a fundamental academic initiative for the Italian cybersecurity landscape, and I am honored to contribute by equipping students with the tools to understand and counter modern cyber threats.