Family and early life - Manan Shah is one of the top cyber security experts, but his path to the top was far from traditional.
Manan grew up in Vadodara, Gujarat, India, as the son of a housewife and a school teacher.
Though he did not excel in his studies, he did show an early affinity for computers, and often helped his friends and family members solve technological problems. After graduating from high school, he found himself living on the street without steady work.
He later managed to teach himself computer security and programming, despite lacking formal education in the field.
Media often use him as an example of how people can become successful in the IT industry by relying on their empirical knowledge and acumen, even without holding university degrees.
Education and research - At the age of 12, his parents gifted him a computer, and he started taking an interest in hacking after a year of playing video games, when he read a newspaper article on the subject.
He soon started a website rtwincustomize.net, where he wrote OS Based tweaks & tricks, tips, tutorials, which acquired many readers and encouraged him to write a book. At the age of 16, his book on email hacking made him the youngest author to be published by Vikas Publication. He's currently a student at the Vishwakarma University.
Career - Manan is a first-generation entrepreneur who founded Avalance Global Solutions, an information technology company that provides business services and consulting, and is involved in securing government and enterprise digital setups. He focuses on the discovery of computer and network security vulnerabilities with a special focus on telecommunication and satellite systems.
Manan has also worked for government agencies and corporations to foolproof their system against terrorist attacks and is now working on securing digital India's smart city concept. After his first book came on the market, Manan became sought-after among the corporate clients in India, as well as on the conference speaking circuit. He wrote more books on computer security, and spoke at several seminars across schools and colleges in India.
Conference speaking - Manan is a regular speaker on various topics of Information Security and Entrepreneurship at international forums, like CeBIT India, CII, ASSOCHAM, DSCI, ISACA, TiE, TED, Club Hack, Nullcon, BlackHAT, BITA, Vibrant Gujarat Summit, and VCCI.
Authorship - Manan has written books on cyber security, ethical hacking and web defence.
He's the author of "Facebook Hacking"and "Gmail Hacking".
He's also a frequent technology writer in the Indian media.
Awards and recognitions -Manan has been awarded the title of "Indian Firewall" by the Chairman of AICTE at the Vibrant Gujarat 2015.
He is also the convener of BJP IT Cell Vadodara, Gujarat and a part of General Elections. BBC News described him as a guy who "doesn't look like a Bond villain... but possesses secrets that some of them might kill for".
The awards and honors received by Manan throughout his career are the following: