In March, we launched a new series of virtual, hands-on Capture-the-Flag (CTF) events and have since been delivering weekly cyber challenges to SANS students as well as the larger cybersecurity community for free.
We originally set out on a mission to offer these special interactive challenges through the end of May as a way to help individuals and organizations keep their cybersecurity skills honed during these unprecedented and difficult times. But with the overwhelmingly positive response we’ve received from our community (every event has sold out within 48 hours), we’re excited to expand the schedule with all-new weekly cyber challenges through the end of August; these include new cyber challenges for our student community in the Asia-Pacific region.
Upcoming Events
You’ll find our upcoming schedule of events below, organized into two tables – the first showcasing all the upcoming free community events and the second displaying all of the cyber challenges open to students enrolled in SANS training.
Please note: Registration will open on the Monday before each of these events. Bookmark this page and come back each week for updated information.
And check out the NetWars Hall of Fame to see who the winners were for the recent Mini-NetWars Challenges.
Free Community Events
These challenges are open to everyone at no cost. Each of the events in the below table is open to the first 1,000 registrants. You will need to have a free SANS Account to register and play.
Register to participate in the new Tomahawque SANS CTF challenge by visiting www.tomahawque.com to first create an account, and then to sign in and enter the event code: "sour-rose" to claim your free seat. The challenge begins at 1:00pm EDT August 13 and the winners will be decided when the event concludes 48 hours later.
For those participating in the SANS Community CTF events, here's a few tips on the basics and how to get started from SANS CTO James Lyne:
Dates |
Event |
Time |
Registration |
Aug. 13-14 |
SANS Community CTF (Student Self-Directed; No Instructor or TAs) |
Starts at 1pm EDT and runs for 48 hours |
Go to www.tomahawque.com and enter event code "sour-rose" to register |
Aug. 27-28 |
SANS Community CTF (Student Self-Directed; No Instructor or TAs) |
Starts at 1pm EDT and runs for 48 hours |
Come Back Soon – Open Aug. 24 |
Bonus Events for SANS Students
While we are thrilled to offer the events above to the entire community for free, we are also pleased to offer something special for students enrolled in a SANS course during the particular time frames listed below under “eligibility.”
Eligible students will receive an email the Monday before each event with an invitation to register, and registration will be made available from your SANS Account dashboard.
Dates |
Event |
Time |
Eligibility |
Aug. 20-21 |
Virtual Core NetWars Tournament |
1pm-9pm EDT (5pm-1am UTC) |
First 1,000 students that have taken a course from March 1, 2020 to the present |
Aug. 20-21 |
Virtual Core NetWars Tournament |
6:30am-10:30am EDT (10:30am-2:30pm UTC) |
First 1,000 students from the Asia-Pacific region that have taken a course from May-August, 2020 |
Past Cyber Range Events
- Virtual Cyber Defense NetWars Tournament (August 6-7)
- Best of Mini-NetWars (July 30-31)
- Virtual DFIR NetWars Tournament (July 23-24)
- SANS Community CTF (July 16-17)
- SANS Community CTF (July 9-10)
- Virtual Cyber Defense NetWars Tournament (July 3-4)
- Virtual Mini-NetWars Mission 4 (June 25-26)
- Virtual Core NetWars Tournament (June 18-19)
- SANS Community CTF (June 11-12)
- Virtual DFIR NetWars Tournament (June 4-5)
- Best of Mini-NetWars (May 28-29)
- Virtual DFIR NetWars Tournament (May 21-22)
- Virtual Core NetWars Tournament (May 21-22)
- Virtual Mini-NetWars Mission 3 (May 14-15)
- Virtual Cyber Defense NetWars Tournament (May 7-8)
- Virtual DISC – SANS ICS NetWars Challenge (April 30)
- Virtual DFIR NetWars Tournament (April 23-24)
- Virtual Mini-NetWars Mission 2 (April 16-17)
- Virtual Core NetWars Tournament (April 8-9)
- Virtual Mini-NetWars Mission 1 (April 2-3)
- Cyber FastTrack (March 26-27)
- Virtual Core NetWars Tournament (March 19-20)
Why Now Is the Time to Challenge Yourself
In this time of social distancing, we want to provide the opportunity for people to come together to interact in a virtual environment, while learning and improving cyber skills in the process.
“As you know, these are difficult times,” said Ed Skoudis, SANS Fellow and Director of SANS Cyber Ranges. “But also, the attackers have really stepped up their game, and they’re doing some really nasty stuff. I mean, you think ‘Wow, this is a time when people should kind of band together and we should help each other.’ And that’s all true and good, but bad people are really bad.”
Because these bad actors have upped their game, SANS is leveraging its battle-tested platforms and infrastructure that it’s been perfecting over the last 18 years to deliver programs that not only keep our community engaged, but challenge cybersecurity pros to up their skills at the same time.
If you haven’t participated in a NetWars CTF event, you’re missing out on a super fun way to hone your skills. “CTFs are a tremendous learning vehicle,” Ed said – and he should know, Ed’s been playing CTFs for about 25 years now. “The SANS CTFs are especially nice because we have an integrated hint system, so if you get stuck, you can get some nudges, and that way you’re learning and teaching yourself as you go.”
One last point for those who will be participating and joining us in these challenges over the next few months: If you want to crush these CTFs, we’ve got just the resource to help you on your mission. Pick up some hot tips for crushing CTFs from superstar Katie Knowles in the below video.
