Rising Cybersecurity Talent to be Recognized by Former CIO of the Department of Homeland Security, Luke McCormack
Cedar City, UT, July 11, 2017 – U.S. Cyber Challenge kicked off its 2017 boot camp season at Southern Utah University in Cedar City, Utah this week for the Western Regional Cyber Camp. Camp participants qualified for the camp based on their scores from the Cyber Quest competition in April and will spend five days consumed by intensive instruction by some of the nation’s leading cybersecurity experts.
The camp began Monday, July 10th and ends this Friday, July 14th with a Capture-the-Flag (CTF) competition and Award Ceremony recognizing the winners of the competition and the camp participants. Friday’s competition will test each camper’s individual skills as well as how well they perform in a team environment and the winners will receive recognition directly from former CIO of the Department of Homeland Security, Luke McCormack, at the Award Ceremony immediately following the CTF.
“At the heart of protecting our nation from cybersecurity threats is identifying and employing highly skilled cybersecurity professionals,” stated National Director Karen S. Evans. “The mission of US Cyber Challenge, to identify and train our future leaders in cybersecurity, is an essential step of reducing our nation’s shortage in the cybersecurity workforce.”
This week’s intensive classwork programming will include penetration testing, packet crafting, program analysis and memory forensics.
The Western Regional camp is supported in part through partnerships with Amazon Web Services, the Association for Federal Information Resources Management (AFFIRM), Adaptive Cyber, Cambridge Global, Center for Cyber Safety & Education, CenturyLink, Cyber Ninjas, Cyber Vista, Defense Point Security LLC, the Department of Homeland Security, the Federal CIO Council, (ISC)2, Monster Government Solutions, NIC, PCMG, Procession Systems, Queen Associates, SANS Institute, and Sherman Consulting. Local sponsors include Imperva, Nuix, Net Force and Reliaquest.
The 2017 Cyber Summer Camp Series features three week-long camps located in Delaware, Illinois and Utah. The camps are an integral part of the USCC mission to identify and develop cybersecurity talent in order to reduce the nation’s cybersecurity workforce gap. Participants are encouraged to continue developing their skills and network with like-minded individuals by becoming active members in CyberCompEx.org, an online community specifically geared toward cybersecurity enthusiasts.
For more information about the Cyber Camp program and each of the specific camps, visit U.S. Cyber Challenge online at www.uscyberchallenge.org
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About U.S. Cyber Challenge:
U.S. Cyber Challenge (USCC) is a program supported by the Department of Homeland Security Science and Technology Directorate through a contract with the Center for Internet Security, a 501(c)3 organization, and has the mission to significantly reduce the shortage in the cyber workforce by serving as the premier program to identify, attract, recruit and place the next generation of cybersecurity professionals. USCC’s goal is to find 10,000 of America’s best and brightest to fill the ranks of cybersecurity professionals where their skills can be of the greatest value to the nation.
Visit Us Online: www.uscyberchallenge.org
