Recently 3 cadets and 4 EECS faculty attended SANSFIRE education opportunities in Washington D.C. as part of the Dean’s ‘Margin of Excellence’ and in support of preparing for the upcoming semester, the 2017 Cyber Defense Exercise (CDX), and the 2017 Cadet Competitive Cyber Team (C3T). One 5-person team placed fifth among 25 teams in the culminating 2-day ‘hack-a-thon.’ A two-person team placed 2d of 15 teams in their capture-the-flag event. Attendees took a wide variety of computer security courses, to include: Network Penetration Testing and Ethical Hacking, Hacker Tools, Techniques, Exploits and Incident Handling, Advanced Penetration Testing, Exploit Writing, and Ethical Hacking, and Reverse-Engineering Malware: Malware Analysis Tools and Techniques.
During the intense week-long training, cadets and faculty gained knowledge, learned how to use cyber tools, and gained experience related to cyber security. They also participated in a two day “hack-a-thon” competition against over 200 personnel attending SANSFIRE. Using their new found knowledge and tools, a five-man team from USMA tied for third, and tie breaking procedures led to their placing fifth out of over 25 teams. The final day of education and training included course specific capture-the-flag style competitions. The two-man team that finished 2nd place earned coveted SANSFIRE coins from the SANS Institute. Ultimately, SANSFIRE was an outstanding ‘Margin of Excellence’ opportunity. The USMA cadets and faculty returned better equipped to incorporate security into USMA’s curriculum, prepare for the 2017 CDX, and prepare for and win events the C3T will attend in AY2017. The faculty and cadets are now better prepared to fight and win in the challenging and ever changing cyber realm.