"GTRI 'Hacks' Solutions for Pressing Cybersecurity Challenges"

Since spring 2021, the Georgia Tech Research Institute's (GTRI) Cybersecurity, Information Protection, and Hardware Evaluation Research (CIPHER) Laboratory has competed in Capture-The-Flags (CTFs) and hackathon events, winning monetary awards and prestige. For example, GTRI won $10,000 and placed second in the US Navy's HACKtheMACHINE event in March 2021, where participants attempted to hack commercial maritime electronics meant for laboratory use to assess their vulnerabilities. Although the terms "hackathons" and "CTFs" are frequently used interchangeably, CTFs are team-based competitions where participants apply cybersecurity tools and techniques to locate clues or flags. The team that finds the most hints or flags hidden in purposely vulnerable programs or websites wins. Meanwhile, hackathons are events in which developers, designers, and even non-technical individuals work together to develop new programs and technologies, and they do not always entail vulnerability identification. The majority of hackathons and CTFs are available to all students, researchers, and professionals worldwide. This article continues to discuss GTRI's participation in CTFs and hackathon events, as well as how such events help strengthen the cybersecurity field.

GTRI reports "GTRI 'Hacks' Solutions for Pressing Cybersecurity Challenges"