BENGALURU: Canara Bank has successfully concluded Canara Suraksha 2.0 – Cyber Hackathon 2026, one of India’s largest cybersecurity innovation competitions for students, with a grand valedictory ceremony held at the prestigious Indian Institute of Science (IISc), Bengaluru.
Launched in May 2026, the nationwide hackathon brought together engineering students from across India to develop cutting-edge cybersecurity solutions addressing some of the banking sector’s most pressing challenges, including gold loan fraud, real-time financial fraud detection, and document forgery detection.
The event highlighted Canara Bank’s commitment to strengthening digital banking security, encouraging academic innovation, and fostering collaboration between industry, academia, and the financial sector.
Hackathon Attracted Over 1,500 Student Teams Nationwide
The response to Canara Suraksha 2.0 was overwhelming, with 1,560 student teams participating during the Idea Phase.
Participants proposed innovative solutions for three major banking security challenges:
- Detection of Spurious Gold
- Real-Time Anomaly Detection
- Document Forgery Detection
After an extensive evaluation process:
- 1,560 teams entered the Idea Phase
- 130 teams qualified for the Demo Phase
- Teams received nearly one month of mentorship from Canara Bank’s technical experts
- Nine finalist teams advanced to the Grand Finale in Bengaluru
- Five top teams presented their solutions during the valedictory ceremony at IISc Bengaluru
The finalists were evaluated on innovation, technical excellence, scalability, and real-world applicability.
Distinguished Guests and Industry Participation
The closing ceremony was attended by several prominent leaders from India’s banking and cybersecurity sectors.
The event was graced by:
- Shri A. K. Goel, Chief Executive, Indian Banks’ Association (IBA) – Chief Guest
- Smt. Sailaja Rani, General Manager, Reserve Bank of India (RBI) – Honorary Guest
- Shri Brajesh Kumar Singh, Managing Director & CEO, Canara Bank
- Shri Hardeep Singh Ahluwalia, Executive Director, Canara Bank
- Shri Sunil Kumar Chugh, Executive Director, Canara Bank
The event also witnessed participation from leading cybersecurity organizations, including:
- Deloitte
- KPMG
- EY
- Palo Alto Networks
- Check Point Software
- HP
- OpenText
Their presence reflected the growing importance of collaboration between financial institutions and cybersecurity experts.
Expert Jury Evaluated Innovative Banking Solutions
The finalist teams were judged by an eminent panel comprising:
- Prof. Govindarajan
- Prof. Vinod Ganapathy
- Senior cybersecurity and technical experts from Canara Bank
The jury assessed each solution based on:
- Innovation
- Technical Depth
- Scalability
- Practical Implementation
- Industry Relevance
- Cybersecurity Effectiveness
Hackathon Conducted Under Strong Cybersecurity Leadership
The entire initiative—from planning and execution to mentoring and evaluation—was conducted under the leadership of Shri A. Ramesh Babu, Chief Information Security Officer (CISO), Canara Bank.
The Cyber Security Wing of the Bank coordinated the event in collaboration with mentors, academic institutions, industry experts, and technical stakeholders.
Winners of Canara Suraksha 2.0
🥇 First Prize – ₹5 Lakh
Team: High on Code
Institution: Indian Institute of Information Technology (IIIT), Kottayam, Kerala
Problem Statement: Detection of Spurious Gold
🥈 Second Prize – ₹3 Lakh
Team: Sentinels
Institution: National Institute of Technology (NIT), Surat, Gujarat
Problem Statement: Real-Time Anomaly Detection
🥉 Third Prize – ₹2 Lakh
Team: DumbleDorks
Institution: GGSF Nashik & PICT Pune, Maharashtra
Problem Statement: Real-Time Anomaly Detection
Fourth Prize – ₹50,000
Team: Mythos
Institution: VIT Bhopal, Madhya Pradesh
Problem Statement: Detection of Spurious Gold
Fifth Prize – ₹50,000
Team: Quantra
Institution: K. J. Somaiya College of Engineering, Mumbai
Problem Statement: Detection of Spurious Gold
Winning Innovation Addresses Gold Loan Fraud
The overall winner, Team High on Code, impressed the judges with an advanced solution for detecting spurious gold.
The issue is particularly important for banks offering gold loans, where fraudulent practices involving:
- Gold-plated ornaments
- Adulterated gold
- Amalgamated jewellery
- Counterfeit gold items
can result in significant financial losses.
The proposed solution demonstrated the potential to improve fraud detection and strengthen risk management in gold-backed lending.
Real-Time Fraud Detection Solutions
Teams competing in the Real-Time Anomaly Detection category developed intelligent systems capable of identifying:
- Suspicious banking transactions
- Fraudulent payment activities
- Abnormal customer behavior
- Potential cyber threats
Such technologies can help banks respond instantly to financial fraud while improving customer security.
Focus on Document Security
The hackathon also encouraged innovative solutions for Document Forgery Detection, enabling banks to verify customer documents more efficiently during:
- Loan processing
- Account opening
- Know Your Customer (KYC) verification
- Identity authentication
These technologies can reduce fraud while improving operational efficiency.
American Experts React
Dr. Michael Carter, Cybersecurity Researcher (United States)
Dr. Michael Carter praised the initiative for connecting students with real-world banking challenges.
“Hackathons like this accelerate innovation by allowing young engineers to solve practical cybersecurity problems. Financial institutions benefit from fresh ideas while students gain valuable experience developing solutions that can be deployed in real banking environments.”
He added that collaboration between universities and banks is becoming increasingly important as cyber threats continue to evolve.
Jennifer Thompson, Digital Banking Security Consultant (United States)
Jennifer Thompson described Canara Suraksha 2.0 as an excellent example of innovation-driven cybersecurity.
“Artificial intelligence, fraud analytics, and digital identity verification are becoming central to modern banking security. Competitions that encourage students to tackle these challenges help create the next generation of cybersecurity professionals while strengthening the financial ecosystem.”
She noted that fraud prevention technologies developed through such initiatives could significantly improve customer trust and digital banking resilience.
Future Outlook
With the successful completion of Canara Suraksha 2.0, Canara Bank has reinforced its commitment to promoting cybersecurity innovation, digital transformation, and academic collaboration.
The Bank is expected to continue leveraging innovative technologies developed through such initiatives to enhance:
- Fraud detection
- Digital banking security
- Gold loan risk management
- Artificial Intelligence-based monitoring
- Customer protection
- Secure digital financial services
The hackathon also strengthens India’s growing ecosystem of cybersecurity talent, helping prepare the next generation of professionals for the rapidly evolving digital banking landscape.
Key Highlights
- Canara Bank concluded Canara Suraksha 2.0 – Cyber Hackathon 2026 at IISc Bengaluru.
- 1,560 student teams participated in the Idea Phase, with 130 teams reaching the Demo Phase.
- Nine teams competed in the Grand Finale, and five finalists presented their solutions during the valedictory ceremony.
- The competition focused on Detection of Spurious Gold, Real-Time Anomaly Detection, and Document Forgery Detection.
- Team High on Code from IIIT Kottayam won the ₹5 lakh first prize for its solution on spurious gold detection.
- The event featured senior leaders from the Indian Banks’ Association, Reserve Bank of India, Canara Bank, and global cybersecurity firms including Deloitte, KPMG, EY, Palo Alto Networks, Check Point, HP, and OpenText.
- The hackathon was led by Shri A. Ramesh Babu, Chief Information Security Officer (CISO), Canara Bank.
- American experts believe initiatives like Canara Suraksha 2.0 will strengthen banking cybersecurity, encourage student innovation, and help build a more secure digital financial ecosystem in India.
