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COMPETITION.

Four-person teams move through Harden, Hack, and Hunt. Each track tests a different skill set, and all three contribute to the final ranking.

17–20 SEP 2026Four competition days
TEAMS OF 4One overall ranking
3 TRACKSNormalized and weighted
01 / THE JOURNEY

THREE DIFFERENT SECURITY PERSPECTIVES

DEFEND.
ATTACK.
INVESTIGATE.

CyberShield is one connected team competition made up of three distinct environments. Teams harden a defensive environment, attack a target network, and investigate evidence from a simulated incident.

The environments are designed around related professional skills.

View the preliminary schedule ↗
02 / FOUR COMPETITION DAYS

EVERY TRACK
COUNTS.

17 SEP · DAY 1

HARDEN

Reduce verified security exposure in a vulnerable or misconfigured environment while keeping required services operational.

Explore Harden ↗
18–19 SEP · DAYS 2–3

HACK

Discover attack paths, exploit weaknesses, pivot through a target environment, and capture validated objectives.

Explore Hack ↗
20 SEP · DAY 4

HUNT

Analyze evidence, reconstruct activity, identify indicators, and determine what happened during a simulated incident.

Explore Hunt ↗
03 / WEIGHTED SCORING

ONE RANKING.
THREE RESULTS.

Each track may use a different number of available points. To make the results comparable, every track score is first normalized to 100. The confirmed track weights are then applied.

Hack contributes 50% of the final score. Harden and Hunt each contribute 25%.

DAY 125%

HARDEN

Verified improvement after the post-hardening assessment.

DAYS 2–350%

HACK

Validated flags and required evidence submitted through CTFd.

DAY 425%

HUNT

Correct investigative findings submitted through CTFd.

01

EARN TRACK POINTS

Complete validated hardening checks, flags, and investigative objectives.

02

NORMALIZE TO 100

Track points earned ÷ track points available × 100.

03

APPLY THE WEIGHT

Multiply each normalized result by 25%, 50%, or 25%.

04

COMBINE RESULTS

Add the three weighted results to determine the overall ranking.

FINAL SCORE

(Harden × 0.25) + (Hack × 0.50) + (Hunt × 0.25)

WORKED EXAMPLES

HOW THREE DIFFERENT RESULTS BECOME ONE SCORE

All figures below are examples only. The same calculation will be applied to every team.

EXAMPLE 01 · BALANCED

80.0 FINAL SCORE

  • Harden: 80 × 25% = 20
  • Hack: 80 × 50% = 40
  • Hunt: 80 × 25% = 20

20 + 40 + 20 = 80.0

EXAMPLE 02 · STRONG HACK

80.0 FINAL SCORE

  • Harden: 60 × 25% = 15
  • Hack: 95 × 50% = 47.5
  • Hunt: 70 × 25% = 17.5

15 + 47.5 + 17.5 = 80.0

EXAMPLE 03 · NORMALIZING RAW POINTS

82.5 FINAL SCORE

  • Harden: 42/60 = 70 → 17.5
  • Hack: 1,800/2,000 = 90 → 45
  • Hunt: 72/90 = 80 → 20

17.5 + 45 + 20 = 82.5

04 / HOW POINTS ARE EARNED

MEASURE WHAT
THE TEAM ACHIEVES.

HARDEN

Measured improvement

Organizers assess the template environment before the challenge. After time expires, each team environment is scanned. Points reflect verified reduction in weighted security weaknesses while required services remain available.

HACK

Validated objectives

Teams earn points through CTFd for valid flags and required evidence obtained inside the authorized target environment. Higher-value objectives may require deeper access or several connected steps.

HUNT

Evidence-based findings

Teams earn points through CTFd for correct investigative findings, validated artifacts, and accurate conclusions drawn from the provided incident evidence.

HARDEN SCORE TIMING

THE HARDEN SCORE WILL NOT BE LIVE.

Unlike Hack and Hunt, Harden is not scored by submitting flags to CTFd. Teams will not see their verified Harden score change in real time while they work.

After the Harden challenge ends, organizers will assess each team environment, verify that required services remain operational, compare the result with the pre-event baseline, and then calculate the normalized Harden score.

  1. 01
    BASELINE

    Organizers assess the template environment before the event.

  2. 02
    HARDEN

    Teams make security improvements during the challenge.

  3. 03
    POST-ASSESSMENT

    Organizers scan and validate each team environment after time expires.

  4. 04
    25% RESULT

    The verified score is normalized to 100 and added to the final ranking.

05 / FINAL RULES

CLEAR BEFORE
THE CLOCK STARTS.

BEFORE COMPETITION

The 25% / 50% / 25% weights are confirmed. Organizers will publish the final service checks, evidence requirements, penalties, leaderboard behavior, score-lock process, and tie-break order before competition begins.

  • Only authorized environments may be tested
  • Teams submit only work and evidence they obtained
  • Competition and scoring infrastructure may not be attacked
  • Final organizer decisions protect fairness and platform stability
06 / TEAM PRIZES

FOUR IDENTICAL BUNDLES · SIXTEEN ITEMS

PRIZES FOR THE
TOP FOUR TEAMS.

Each of the four highest-ranked teams will receive a CyberShield Team Prize Bundle. Every bundle contains four practical technology items for the team.

The top three teams will also receive training and certification opportunities. Training providers, certification exams, and award conditions will be announced when confirmed.

Four items in the CyberShield Team Prize Bundle: a 65W GaN charger, adjustable laptop stand, sling bag, and USB-C hub
  1. 01

    65W GAN CHARGER

    Compact USB-C charger with cable.

  2. 02

    6-IN-1 USB-C HUB

    Ethernet, HDMI, power delivery, and USB connectivity.

  3. 03

    ADJUSTABLE LAPTOP STAND

    Rotating aluminum desktop riser.

  4. 04

    SLING BAG

    Compact crossbody bag with secure storage.

1 BUNDLE PER TOP-FOUR TEAM1 charger · 1 hub · 1 stand · 1 sling bag

17–20 SEPTEMBER · ADDIS ABABA

BUILD YOUR TEAM.
ENTER THE NETWORK.

Questions and rule updates will be shared on Telegram.

View bootcamp links ↗Ask in Telegram ↗