The Department of Broadband, Communications and the Digital Economy (DBCDE) along with Telstra and Microsoft, announced today Australia's next national cyber security competition, Cyber Security Challenge Australia 2013 (CySCA 2013).

CySCA 2013 follows the success of the 2012 Cyber Defence University Challenge and is eagerly awaited by universities and businesses interested in promoting the value of an ICT security qualification.

"Similar to the 2012 Challenge, CySCA 2013 will test the cyber problem-solving skills of teams of Australian undergraduates in a virtual computer network scenario," DBCDE Deputy Secretary, Abul Rizvi said.

"CySCA 2013 reinforces the Government’s commitment to ensuring that Australia builds the ICT and cyber security skills base that it needs in order to grow both Australia’s burgeoning digital economy and protect our online interests.

"There is a growing demand for ICT security skills and expertise in Australia and internationally so efforts must be made to increase that pool of ICT and cyber security professionals.

"Developing a foundation of skilled ICT workers is essential to both securing Australia's online assets and providing the innovation needed to harness the opportunities of the digital age," Mr Rizvi said.

"The first prize of CySCA 2013, sponsored by Telstra, is travel and entry to the Black Hat 2013 Conference in Las Vegas, USA, a much sought-after technical information security forum for trainers and speakers from the corporate, government and research sectors worldwide," Mr Rizvi said.

"Students involved in the inaugural Challenge agreed it was a fun and educational event, and also a useful vehicle to raise the profile of cyber-related university courses. I encourage university undergraduates across Australia to take part in this exciting competition."

CySCA 2013 will be conducted over 24 hours from 7–8 May 2013. University undergraduates across Australia are encouraged to form teams and register their interest through their relevant university faculties.

Further information can be found at http://cyberchallenge.com.au/cysca-2013.html

26 October 2012