"Cyberbit Launches First Hyper-Realistic Cyber Security Tournament for Higher Education"
Cyberbit, the world's leading cyber readiness and skills development platform provider, has announced the International Cyber League (ICL): Collegiate Cup, which will launch on October 18, 2022. The ICL: Collegiate Cup immerses students in real-world cyberattacks similar to those they will face in the workplace. Traditional Capture the Flag (CTF) tournaments and hacking competitions test offensive abilities that do not reflect the abilities that students will be expected to demonstrate throughout their cyber careers. The ICL: Collegiate Cup provides a hyper-realistic cyber range to simulate cyberattacks involving real threat vectors and malware, and then places students in a virtual Security Operations Senter (SOC) to respond to the threats using commercial security tools. Students are evaluated not only on technical skills but also on soft skills such as teamwork and communication, which are essential for next-generation cyber defenders. This cybersecurity tournament provides a reliable benchmark for cybersecurity education leaders to predict their students' future success and allows students to gain firsthand experience with real-world incident response. It is open to students enrolled in an undergraduate, B.Sc., or associate program at any college or university worldwide. Every participating institution is represented by a four-person team. The winning team will be given the title "Higher Education's Best Cyber Defense Team." Winners and runners-up will receive high-value prizes such as laptops, sports watches, tablets, and more. Networking, malware analysis, Windows and Linux OS skills, and incident response are some of the tournament's themes. During the challenges, participants will have access to commercial Security Information and Event Management (SIEM) tools, a firewall, network analysis tools, and endpoint security tools. This article continues to discuss the goals and structure of the ICL: Collegiate Cup, as well as the cybersecurity skills shortage.