CMU To Host Nationwide High School Computer Security Contest, Oct. 27-Nov. 7

Pittsburgh — Carnegie Mellon University Professor David Brumley and two student teams will host the second annual PicoCTF competition, a nationwide online computer security contest aimed to help high school students learn the basics of hacking in the context of a story-driven game.

The competition, which drew nearly 2,000 teams from 1,000 schools last year, will be held Oct. 27-Nov. 7 at http://picoctf.com.

"The main goal of this competition is to excite young minds about computer security and inspire the next generation of computer scientists in our country," said Brumley, a professor of electrical and computer engineering and the technical director of Carnegie Mellon CyLab, a world leader in research and education in information assurance, security technology, business and policy, and security awareness. Building on more than two decades of Carnegie Mellon leadership in information technology, CyLab is a university-wide initiative that involves over 50 faculty and 100 graduate students from more than six different departments and schools.

Brumley will co-host the event with Carnegie Mellon student hacking teams Plaid Parliament of Pwning of CyLab and Team Daedalus of CMU's Entertainment Technology Center.

PicoCTF challenges both novices and experts through a "Capture the Flag" (CTF) interactive game, in which participants capture virtual "flags" by reverse engineering, breaking, hacking or decrypting challenges. Unlike traditional exams or courses, the contest offers open-ended problems that can be solved in many ways, usually requiring independent research and encouraging student exploration.

There will be over $30,000 in prizes for this year's event, as well as new tools designed to help teachers participate in PicoCTF as a classroom activity. Winners of the competition will be flown to Carnegie Mellon for an immersion day and award presentation.

Participation in the competition is free and open to students in grades 6-12. Interested participants can register on the competition website at http://picoctf.com.

The event is partially supported by funds from Trend Micro, The Boeing Company, Qualcomm Incorporated, the National Science Foundation, and the National Security Agency.

Featured

  • Lewis C. Cassidy Elementary School

    Established in 1999, the Education Design Showcase is a vehicle for showing off innovative — yet practical — solutions in planning, design, architecture, and construction. Lewis C. Cassidy Elementary School has been recognized with an EDS 2025 Grand Prize award in the category of New Construction.

  • Image courtesy of MiEN Company

    6 Ways to Pull Off a Major District Construction Project

    Designing and building a large-scale project on a K–12 campus is a monumental undertaking that requires the right blend of ideas, funding, design and execution to get it right. The process also relies on multiple partners, each of which has to handle its respective aspect of the project while also keeping the district’s broader mission and goals in mind.

  • Allegion US Partners with Two Colleges for Mobile Credential Technology

    Allegion US recently announced a partnership with Florida Institute of Technology (FIT) and Denison College, in conjunction with Transact + CBORD, to install mobile credential technologies campus-wide, according to a news release. Implementing Mobile Student ID into Apple Wallet and Google Wallet will allow students access to campus facilities, amenities, and residence halls using just their phones.

  • ECM Technologies Wins ‘Most Innovative Business of the Year’ Award

    HVAC preventative maintenance and efficiency solutions provider ECM Technologies was recently named the “Most Innovative Business of the Year” at the 2025 Champions of Change Awards, according to a news release. The program recognizes Arizona business leaders and organizations taking steps to make a positive impact on the state through innovative thinking and philanthropy.

Digital Edition