Twenty young IT specialists from Poland and the Czech Republic competed in cybersecurity games. Students had to complete computer puzzles and tasks in order to get digital flags. All this was part of the team game "Cybertron", which took place at Wrocław University of Science and Technology.

 “Cybertron" is a team game that tests IT skills and the ability to creatively solve problems in the field of cybersecurity and critical infrastructure. Its aim is to build awareness of the threats that may be lurking in the Internet, to learn how to deal with them and to possibly eliminate them without doing any harm to the user. The competition was jointly organized by: Wrocław University of Science and Technology, our Faculty, Wrocław Centre for Networking and Supercomputing and the Marshal's Office of the Lower Silesian Voivodeship.

 – The event enables us to develop regional cooperation, and also increases the awareness of cybersecurity-related issues. They have always been extremely important, but are now taking on a special significance. We want to promote these issues and give students a chance to develop their skills in the environment of the best specialists and experts. Perhaps in the future it is you who will protect our regions and institutions from digital threats – said Marcin Krzyżanowski, vice-marshal of the Lower Silesian Voivodeship during the ceremonial opening of the competition.

The competition was divided into two parts. First, the participants took part in a field game, during which they had to find passwords and instructions hidden on the premises of the Wrocław University of Science and Technology campus. The tips proved useful in the next stage, i.e. in the IT part related to cybersecurity.

The IT stage consisted of several CTF (Capture the flag) tasks in the field of, among others, networking, cryptography or website security. The goal of the players was to overcome digital obstacles and find a specific string of characters that helped identify the perpetrators of the hacking attack.

– Two weeks ago we had a crisis situation beyond our western border, when the German railways stopped due to a communication failure. This situation shows that cybersecurity issues are extremely important today. What you will be dealing with during the "Cybertron" affects us all – emphasized Dr. Piotr Górski, vice-rector for student affairs at Wrocław University of Science and Technology.

The competition was organized for ten students from Lower Silesian schools and ten students from the Kralovohradecki Krai. The participants needed to take part in qualifications.

– In these competitions, it's the students that are most important. Our students are young people from many different high schools and from all over the country. I suspect it's the same in the Czech Republic. At good universities, we choose the best among them. Only such people get admitted, because normally several people compete for one place. This time it is the opposite. You are students that we must persuade to study with us. I hope that we will succeed and I’m encouraging you – study with us – said Prof. Andrzej Kucharski, dean of the Faculty of Information and Communication Technology at WUST.

The game scenario and some tasks have been prepared, among others, by students from the White Hats research club and by students from our Academic High School – Jakub Żojdzik, Rafał Włodarczyk, Grzegorz Jagielski and Maciej Opaliński, who won the previous edition of the competition in the Czech Republic. 

– The previous finals were very interesting, because we were dealing with an IT simulation of a nuclear power plant and we could see how hacking industrial devices works. However, back then it was a workshop, and this time it's about competition – says Rafał Włodarczyk. – The very idea of promoting IT competitions and bringing us closer to what is happening in the industry is a great idea and we miss it in everyday education – he adds.

Students of the Academic High School prepared three tasks, helped to find mistakes in the remaining challenges, and during the competition they will act as mentors for other participants.

– The competition will be a simulation and will allow participants to play the role of employees in a security company. One of the key elements will be assigning the right tasks to people who have the skills to handle them. Such a task gives an insight into the actual working conditions – emphasizes Jakub Żojdzik before starting.

The winners of the game were announced on Sunday. They are Danylo Kharchenko and Wojciech Szydło from the Electronic Research Institutes of Technical High School No. 10 and from High School No. 6 in Wrocław, who worked with the Czech couple Mykola Bondar and Lukáš Hájek.

The next stage of the competition is planned in two weeks time in the Czech Republic, and next year again in Poland. See you there.