SMU is among the local universities that are recognising the growing importance of the cybersecurity industry and is stepping up education efforts in this area. The SMU School of Information Systems (SIS) set up its Information Security and Assurance track last year. SMU Dean of SIS Professor Steven Miller said that the rising demand for professionals skilled in mitigating cyberattacks was what led to the creation of the new track. SIS has also been introducing cybersecurity-related courses every year over the past three years, with the new Data Security and Privacy course to be launched this August. It also plans to introduce a new course, the Internet of Things, which will expose students to a new wave of technology and extend the boundaries of the Internet into the realm of the physical world.