Let’s be fair, the previous couple of years had been tough on all folks. Transferring our day by day routines to compare these days’s hybrid-work setting has been somewhat a problem. A few of us are nonetheless adapting to our new strategy to paintings – whether or not hybrid or absolutely faraway.
This problem isn’t new to us at Cisco. Sooner than the pandemic, we had globally dispersed groups. However discovering a stability between paintings and private lifestyles post-pandemic has turn into much more of a need. A lot of our groups operating throughout a couple of areas and time zones face further stumbling blocks. How are we able to permit our colleagues to return in combination and problem-solve essential problems in a a laugh and thought-provoking setting?
Since 2021, the Cisco Product Safety Incident Reaction Staff (PSIRT) has been organizing the respectable Seize-the-Flag (CTF) workout for Cisco’s Safety Analysis & Operations group. Members have loved the problem and cooperation of the CTF, elevating their consciousness about cybersecurity and studying about evolving assaults and methods to shield towards them.
Yearly since then, now we have strived to create larger, higher, and extra a laugh CTF occasions. In 2023, our targets had been to:
- Reach our same old pleasure and nurture our need for collaboration
- Prolong the development to early-in-career and non-technical workers to show the significance of cybersecurity consciousness and training for organizations and folks alike
This 12 months, we selected CyberStart, the leading edge instructional platform inspiring the following technology of cybersecurity pros. CyberStart is a fascinating platform backed by means of SANS that gives loads of technical demanding situations starting from Offensive Safety to Programming to Forensics via a formidable, but a laugh, gamified narrative. This program additionally features a sturdy infrastructure and dependable fortify crew to verify the CTF workout runs easily.
We had greater than 60 avid gamers from world wide, talking greater than 10 languages, with some technical gurus and a few informal CTF avid gamers at their first actual CTF revel in. However this wasn’t the primary time Cisco and SANS partnered for a CTF tournament. Additionally they hosted the Cisco Girls in Cybersecurity CyberStart Problem in 2020.
Our members beloved it! However don’t take my phrase for it. Right here’s what we heard from the members after we requested them “How a lot did you experience this tournament?”
“The CTF is superb, however I feel demanding situations apart, the social facets of it, getting to understand other folks and paintings with them, is in point of fact treasured.” (Nick Leali – Technical)
“I in point of fact loved it. I wasn’t specifically fascinated by doing it simply because I’m really not in a technical function and don’t have a lot revel in with inspecting such things as pcap, mem, or having a look at information too intensive, however after I were given going, I used to be having numerous a laugh. There have been a couple of equipment that had been in point of fact onerous to stand up and working at the Kali VM, so I finished up performing some demanding situations on my private laptop working ubuntu. I in truth would really like for it to be longer.” (Claire Griffin – Non-Technical)
“I’m really not in an uber-technical function, so I like that I will be able to nonetheless resolve some demanding situations and usually have maximum equipment within the UI wanted to achieve success at the extra modest demanding situations.” (Travis Kober – Technical/Non-Technical)
“Nice tournament, and for me getting a crew in combination for some crew bonding used to be the most efficient and meant price to enroll vs. what number of demanding situations finished.” (Greg Taam – Technical/Non-Technical)
Thank You SANS!
This used to be such an incredible revel in, and we accomplished all our targets to assist cybersecurity professionals, non-technical, and early-in-career members be informed new equipment and procedures, have interaction collaboratively, and admire methods to resolve cybersecurity demanding situations in combination.
We extremely suggest CyberStart as a platform to be informed about commonplace cybersecurity threats and methods to find out about them in a a laugh and collaborative approach. Achieve out to SANS for more info.
Thanks, SANS, for this superior platform and for sponsoring our annual tournament. We stay up for subsequent 12 months and the larger demanding situations to return.
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