Students from our research club White Hats won the CTF tournament organised during the IN.SE.CON 2026 congress. The team completed their tasks in a record-breaking time of 1 hour and 20 minutes. Congratulations!

Cyber attacks, artificial intelligence, dual-use technologies, and critical infrastructure security – these are just some of the topics addressed at the International Congress on Cybersecurity and Disruptive Technologies IN.SE.CON 2026. On 15-16 April, Poznań hosted representatives of the government, military, business, and cybersecurity experts gathered to discuss the most important challenges of digital security for countries and organisations.

One of the events during the congress was a CTF (Capture The Flag) tournament, where participants faced practical tasks in the field of cybersecurity. The tasks included attacks on web applications, reverse software engineering and computer forensics. This demanding competition was dominated by our students from White Hats.

The team was represented by:

• Michał Bernacki (Cybersecurity)
• Adam Cal (Cybersecurity)
• Tomasz Łakomy (Cybersecurity)
• Mikołaj Pisula (Technical Computer Science)
• Jakub Rolak (Cybersecurity)
• Jan Tokarczyk (Electronic and Computer Engineering W12)

The victory was not only spectacular, but also impressively quick. They completed the tasks in just 1 hour and 20 minutes. The result was a surprise for them.

“I must admit that when we decided to take part in the competition, we didn't expect to solve the tasks in just over an hour. CTF competitions organised at conferences often differ in form from those we participate in on a daily basis. We didn't know what to expect. After the start of the competition, it turned out that the tasks aligned well with our interests – and the result shows it clearly,” says Michał Bernacki.

The team members point out that years of experience played a crucial role, but AI tools also proved helpful.

“For several years now, we have been regularly participating in this type of competitions, and some of us started already when in high school. Experience is one of the main factors. In CTFs, types of tasks are often similar, allowing us to quickly find ideas for solutions. Recently, AI is also of much help – even if it doesn't think for us, it allows rapid tests of solutions,” adds Michał.

The event was co-organised by the Ministry of National Defence and the MTP Group.