The organisers behind the annual Cyber Security Challenge are inviting talented youngsters to attend a five-day training camp at Lancaster University so that they can learn from cyber defence professionals.
Up to 30 candidates will spend a week facing a series of security exercises developed in conjunction with supporters including the Metropolitan Police Service’s Central e-crime Unit (PCeU), Raytheon, QinetiQ, HP and KPMG.
The hope is that, if successful, the camp will lead to the formation of several more regional camps across the UK, helping young people train in the fast-growing area of cyber security.
Lancaster University recently established Security Lancaster, a new multi-disciplinary research centre in security and protection science tasked with exploring innovative ways to protect people, society and infrastructure.
Professor Awais Rashid, co-director of Security Lancaster and theme lead for Cyber Security, said: “I see the summer camp and our collaboration with the Cyber Security Challenge as a fantastic way for us to develop the cyber security professionals of the future. The camp is exciting as it combines approaches from multiple disciplines into a holistic programme that aims to broaden the delegates’ approach and thinking towards cyber security issues.”
Digital forensics and informed defence training
Running from 5 September, some of the activities candidates will take part in include:
- Digital forensics training – Candidates will enter a reconstructed crime scene where they will be taught about ‘bagging and tagging’ and the confiscation of technology. With training from the Police Central e-crime Unit, Lancaster University and Micro Systemation, they will learn how to analyse these devices to find out information on their owners and then be briefed on how to provide evidence in court as an expert witness.
- Informed defence training – Candidates will be briefed by cyber security experts at KPMG and Royal Holloway on patching and securing networks and the ‘informed’ part of cyber defence (eg threat analysis). They will then be split into teams and given half an hour to apply what they have learned to a real IT infrastructure. The teams will defend their newly-patched networks from each other and later compete against the professionals at KPMG.
- Cyber Security Careers Fair – Candidates will have the chance to meet representatives from HP, QinetiQ, Cassidian, Raytheon and Ultra Electronics. Others interested in attending can register at www.security-centre.lancs.ac.uk/careers-fair
- ICE Day (Innovation, creativity and entrepreneurship) – Lecturers at Lancaster will brief the candidates on cyber-related business topics that require creative security solutions. Following additional briefings with HP and Ultra Electronics, they will be asked to take an entrepreneurial approach and come up with a business proposition to solve the issue.
- Wider Concepts Day – Candidates will be briefed and challenged on risk analysis, politics and criminology by the team at Lancaster University.
Stephanie Daman, the CEO of Cyber Security Challenge UK, explained: “The cyber camp concept is something completely new for this year’s Challenge. It represents a great opportunity for our expert sponsors to work closely with a group of talented young amateurs to develop their skills and show them how exciting and varied the cyber security profession can be.”