CyberAlberta Cyber Youth Games

Event Description

This event seeks to ignite interest in cybersecurity, sharpen problem-solving abilities, and provide an engaging, hands-on learning experience that will inspire the next generation of cybersecurity professionals.

The event will showcase a variety of cybersecurity challenges, including cryptography, forensics, web security, and reverse engineering. Teams will earn point by capturing “flags”, which are hidden solutions embedded in the challenges, all within a designated time limit. The team with the highest score will emerge as the winner.. The level of challenges is going to be tailored to age, skill and knowledge level of participants.

• Date: April 15 and 16, 2025.
• Time: 4:00PM to 6:30 PM both days.
• Virtual Access (Information will be sent to registered teams)
• Capped at 50 teams (with up to 5 players per team)
• Registration Deadline is March 28, 2025

This event is FREE for participants.

Who may participate?

The event is open to junior and senior high school students (grades 7-12) only.

Format

The event will showcase a variety of cybersecurity challenges, including cryptography, forensics, web security, and reverse engineering, inside the Cyber Range environment. The Cyber Range environment is a virtual environment tailored for cybersecurity training, testing and research that simulates real-world networks and cyber-attacks. Enfocom’s Cyber Range has been successfully used to run similar CTF events and by the University of Calgary for learning and teaching purposes. Teams can earn points by capturing “flags”, which are hidden solutions embedded in the challenges, all within a designated time limit. A real-time leaderboard will be displayed, allowing participants to track their progress throughout the competition.

Objectives

• Introduce junior and senior high school students to the field of cybersecurity.
• Develop technical, critical thinking and problem-solving skills.
• Encourage Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics (STEM) education.
• Promote teamwork and collaboration.
• Provide a platform for students to showcase and build confidence in their skills and knowledge.
• Identify and nurture emerging talent in cybersecurity.

Challenge Design

Challenges will be created in collaboration with CyberAlberta and tailored to the participants' age and technical skill levels. Topics may include, but are not limited to:

• Cryptography
• Web Security
• Forensics
• Reverse Engineering
• Network Security

Pre-Event Session

In April 2025, teacher-sponsors will receive training on foundational cybersecurity concepts to help them understand the challenges students may encounter. The training will be supported by detailed instructions and documentation on using the Cyber Range, providing clear guidance for effectively mentoring students.

Contact Us

If you have any questions about this event, please contact [email protected], with CyberAlberta Cyber Youth Games in the subject line.