The Cyber Security Challenge has named 19-year-old Edinburgh Napier University student Charlie Hosier as its 2018 champion.
The winner was announced at a dinner event held in central London at the culmination of Cyber Security Challenge's 2018 masterclass, which saw 42 contestants participate in the three-day event at Barclays HQ. This year’s cryptofactor challenge saw teams tasked with dealing with a cybersecurity attack in the role of a security team that works with a number of fintech and cryptocurrency clients, and presented their findings afterwards at a mock press conference.
The challenge began upon the discovery that cryptomining malware had been installed and data had been stolen from the organization’s sales portal, which then saw cyber-criminals demand a ransom to decrypt the data. Following this news, the contestants worked in teams to investigate, mitigate and control the cyber-attack and worked on an effective and secure network design for future protection.
Prior to the three-day Masterclass, contestants had already completed an exciting and rigorous process to qualify for the grand final competition. This included successfully competing in and winning previous face-to-face competitions that have been held throughout the year. The winning team at the end of the three-day challenge was My Doom.
Hosier said: “It has been an amazing experience to take part in the Cyber Security Challenge UK Masterclass. The challenges and tasks really pushed us, but throughout we have had fun and I’ve met some great people.
“I still can’t believe I won! It’s an amazing feeling and has given me a great opportunity to get my dream job in cybersecurity.”
Colin Lobley, CEO of Cyber Security Challenge UK, added: “This latest Masterclass really highlights the multifaceted role that cybersecurity professionals now need to take on. Having great coding and computer literacy skills is still very useful, however other skills such as psychology and communication are equally important.
“Knowing how to communicate the actions, steps and procedures that a business or organization has taken to mitigate an attack are now business critical. We are really pleased that Barclays sees this too and is helping develop these skills in the UK.”