Rate My Professor Babak Akhgar

Professor Babak Akhgar is Professor of Informatics and founder and Director of the Centre of Excellence in Terrorism, Resilience, Intelligence and Organised Crime Research (CENTRIC) at Sheffield Hallam University, Department of Computing, Faculty of Science, Technology and Arts. A Fellow of the British Computer Society, he earned his degree in Software Engineering from Sheffield Hallam University, followed by a Master's degree with distinction in Information Systems in Management and a PhD in Information Systems. Before entering academia, he gained extensive commercial experience as a Strategy Analyst and Methodology Director for several companies, developing expertise in knowledge management projects and large-scale international security initiatives.

Akhgar's research focuses on knowledge management within security domains, including countering terrorism and organised crime, cyber security, public order management, and addressing cross-cultural ideology polarisation. He has over 187 peer-reviewed publications, accumulating more than 829 citations, and has edited key volumes such as Strategic Intelligence Management (2013), Cyber Crime and Cyber Terrorism Investigator's Handbook (2014), Combatting Cybercrime and Cyberterrorism: Challenges, Trends and Priorities (2016), Dark Web Investigation (2021), and Technology Development for Security Practitioners (2021). He edits the Security Informatics and Law Enforcement book series published by Springer, serves on the editorial boards of three international journals, and chairs programme committees for multiple international conferences. In recognition of his pioneering contributions to security research, including forging partnerships with Europol on cybercrime and cryptocurrency criminality and developing the world's first AI Accountability Framework for law enforcement agencies, he was awarded the OBE in June 2022. Under his leadership, CENTRIC has achieved international renown by bridging academic research with operational needs of law enforcement, policymakers, and the public.