“Attackers solely should be proper as soon as. You, as a defender, should be proper 100% of the time.”
—Cybersecurity Knowledgeable Jim Risler
It’s a widely known trendy trope in motion pictures and TV reveals. A lone determine, head coated, hunches over a keyboard within the darkness. Instantly you’re taking a look at a hacker doing nefarious issues.
However hacking isn’t all the time fictional. Knowledge breaches are on the rise, costing companies tens of millions. From 2021 to 2023, there was a 72% enhance in information breaches, with electronic mail being the commonest vector for malware. A knowledge breach is projected to price a mean of $4.88 million in 2024. It’s extra vital than ever for firms to upskill their networking groups—and it’s an open job marketplace for these seeking to study cybersecurity.
I spoke with the content material creators of the brand new Seize the Flag challenges inside Cisco U.—Jim Risler, Cisco Studying Product Supervisor, overseeing safety course growth, and Paul Ostrowski, Cisco Technical Training Content material Developer—to get perception into the competitors and why it’s so vital for anybody excited about a cybersecurity profession.
What’s a Seize the Flag cybersecurity problem?
First, what does Seize the Flag (CTF) imply? Mainly, it’s a sport through which there’s a defensive and an offensive workforce competing to win a flag or flags. It may very well be a sporting occasion, for kids or adults. On this context, Seize the Flag is a cybersecurity problem.
Seize the Flag has lengthy been used within the tech neighborhood for individuals to follow their cybersecurity expertise. The world’s largest occasion is Def Con CTF, going down in Las Vegas yearly. Seize the Flag challenges are additionally utilized by large companies and universities to coach individuals in cybersecurity.
It’s often a contest between groups: the offense (pink workforce) and the protection (blue workforce); or, if either side are labored concurrently, a purple workforce. It may very well be in individual, on-line, on a multi-person workforce, or with particular person opponents.
How can I take part in a Cisco U. Seize the Flag problem?
You may be wherever on the earth to take part within the Cisco U. Seize the Flag on-line challenges. Participation is particular person. Right here’s the best way to get began.
Passing one CTF problem plus the Cisco Networking Academy course will earn you the Cisco Certificates in Moral Hacking.
How does a Cisco U. Seize the Flag problem work?
Each problem will work somewhat otherwise. The primary challenges (operating by way of 2/11/2025) don’t separate you into blue or pink groups. “In Cisco U. the 2 CTFs we’ve now are extra blue workforce since you’re doing investigation response, and testing your talents to detect assaults,” notes Ostrowski. “You’re functioning as an investigator in each missions.”
Now that Cisco U. has a Challenges characteristic contained in the platform, there shall be new Seize the Flag on-line cybersecurity challenges each quarter. Count on a wide range of CTFs, together with pink team-focused ones, the place you infiltrate a community and expose its vulnerabilities.
Every problem consists of plenty of steps- presently 11 steps– you could full one after the other to go. Step one guides you thru organising your lab setting, which you’ll want for the rest of the problem.
What rating do it’s essential go a Cisco U. CTF problem?
Is there a minimal rating it’s essential go? Under no circumstances.
“The unique concept was to make this rating out of 100, however now it’s simply go or fail,” notes Ostrowski. “So for those who get to Step 11 and appropriately reply it, you’ve handed.”
Hints can be found all through. You’ll get factors taken away for those who use a touch, but it surely’s structured so that you’ll go no matter whether or not you reply all the pieces appropriately.
“There’s an previous expertise factor geeks like myself say,” says Risler. “RTFM. Learn the Pleasant guide. It’s all in there for you.” His hints will inform you the place to look for those who missed a clue.
Do you want extra coaching previous to taking the Cisco Networking Academy course?
“Technically you don’t want extra coaching, however you must perceive networking,” Risler advises. “Cisco Networking Academy has some fundamentals of networking programs to offer you a great basis.”
Constructing a robust basis in networking is a crucialHe notes that as an teacher at a college, he sees faculty college students who lack this basis leaping into extra complicated cybersecurity coaching anyway after which struggling to catch up. “Their professors aren’t geeks like me, they…simply inform the children to check stuff of their e-book and the subsequent factor …the college students are like, ‘Why is IP addressing vital?’ If you don’t perceive that, you don’t perceive networking.” And you gained’t achieve success in cybersecurity.
Who ought to do Cisco U. Seize the Flag on-line?
Anybody excited about cybersecurity ought to hop onto the CTF problem to each study and take a look at expertise. “The target of CTF is to bridge the hole between entry-level and professionals in cybersecurity, offering hands-on studying with real-world data, expertise, and skills,” says Risler. “A number of firms say they’ve this hole. They could have booked cybersecurity schooling, however the packages don’t do labs or hands-on, or it’s all on a Home windows machine. In our CTF, they undergo the moral hacker course, they usually’re taught on a DNS (area title system)/lab setting, after which that data and expertise are utilized in a close to real-world setting.”
What Cisco U. coaching ought to I take after Seize the Flag?
So that you’ve carried out each CTF challenges in Cisco U. Congratulations! What do you do subsequent, moreover await our subsequent problem to do extra?
There are solely two paths to pursue in safety, in response to Risler. “I actually suppose we overcomplicate it,” he says. “There’s an engineering mindset: constructing the structure and securing the community. Or there’s defending the community, which is any individual who appears to be like for threats on the community.”
Should you’re into defending the community, the subsequent areas you may examine are:
Between Cisco U. and Cisco Networking Academy, you will get all of the schooling you want for any security-related profession. Cisco is a cybersecurity chief, with protecting merchandise like Cisco Umbrella and the intelligence middle, Talos, which analyzes 4 TB of risk information each day. “At Cisco we’re educating you ways cyberattacks are profitable,” says Risler. “You’re studying how they’re capable of get a foothold in someplace after which why did the goal assault work? Why did the malware assault on the British healthcare system work? How may you defend towards that?” Cisco is uniquely positioned to take a look at cyberattacks from a purple perspective, seeing what’s coming subsequent and stopping what’s coming now—and go all that data onto learners.
Risler recommends:
The Sandworm by Andy Greenberg. The true story of probably the most devastating act of cyberwarfare in historical past and the determined hunt to establish and observe the elite Russian brokers behind it. It’s a fantastic learn for anybody excited about cybersecurity and in addition a implausible e-book membership selection.
Inform us what’s thrilling to you about Seize the Flag within the feedback under. Thanks for studying!
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