Pratham Hegde

Pratham Hegde is a computer science undergraduate at Arizona State University’s Barrett Honors College and a recognized Grand Challenges Scholar, where he focuses on cybersecurity, systems research, and user-centric design.

His work spans multiple domains, from trusted hardware security to large-scale web application analysis, with a consistent emphasis on building secure, scalable systems that produce measurable impact.

Pratham’s research contributions began under Professor Hokeun Kim, where he investigated critical vulnerabilities in Trusted Execution Environments (TEEs), proposing countermeasures to strengthen system integrity. He also developed a strong foundation in reverse engineering, analyzing real-world x86 and MIPS binaries and constructing exploit chains involving ASLR/PIE bypasses, return-oriented programming (ROP), and shellcode injection, alongside proof-of-concept attacks leveraging ECB oracle weaknesses and SQL injection.

As part of his Barrett Honors Thesis conducted with the ASU SEFCOM research lab under Professor Yan Shoshitaishvili, Pratham expanded his focus to automated security analysis of modern web applications. His work involved large-scale stress testing and vulnerability discovery using no-box testing methodologies and Model Context Protocol (MCP)-driven analysis, identifying issues such as race conditions, missing rate limits, and input validation flaws across dynamically generated systems.

Outside of research, Pratham has contributed in applied engineering roles. As a Web Experience Designer for ASU’s University College, he led a full-stack modernization of their digital presence, developing responsive web interfaces aligned with ASU’s design system and improving backend workflows, which enhanced mobile usability and reduced bounce rates.

He has also been involved in leadership and academic communities as a Fulton Ambassador, and will be pursuing a Master’s degree in Cybersecurity at Arizona State University. In recognition of his impact, he was named a Spring 2026 Fulton Impact Awardee. He has additionally held executive roles within student organizations, including the Indian Students’ Association and CS+Social Good at ASU.