Run by the University of Waikato’s CROW lab, the 2019 Cyber Security Challenge has started this week.
From cars, drones and home security, to everyday appliances like your fridge, smart lights and toothbrushes everything is connected. The Challenge this year is to hack some of those devices. Competitors get to rub shoulders with other hackers, solve cyber puzzles, make teams and defend their servers against a Red Team.
The initial rounds are carried out online, with competitors coming together in person for the final rounds 13-14 July, 2019 on the University of Waikato’s Hamilton Campus. So far nearly 300 people from around the country have signed up. The top prize is a total of $5,000, which is a big incentive for players, but many have been coming back year after for the challenge itself.
The new Head of the CROW Lab is Dr Vimal Kumar. He says the NZ cyber security challenge is an opportunity for everyone at every skill level to get some cyber security street cred, work in teams or alone to crack some cyber security puzzles, impress your peers and have plenty of fun along the way. “There is a definite shortage of cyber security professionals in the industry and through the cyber security challenge, we hope to create a more aware and cyber-ready generation in the face of the growing cyber security threats. "
Established in 2012, CROW is a research group located in the Department of Computer Science at The University of Waikato.
