CYBER SCIENCE EXPANDS ITS GLOBAL FOOTPRINT
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n June 29th, members of our Cyber Science program departed for Bangkok, Thailand, to represent U.S. Cyber Command at the Royal Thai Armed Forces (RTARF) Warrior Contest. The Cyber Warrior Contest, held on July 4th at the National Defense Studies Institute, is an exercise created by the RTARF to evaluate the skills and readiness of their forces. In addition to participating in the competition, the Loyola contingent also served as diplomats to military leadership, education administrators, and the various teams representing military forces from several nations. This provided an opportunity to showcase the knowledge and expertise that a youth cyber program is capable of achieving and will help model the way for educational institutions across the globe. Among the highlights of the trip was a meeting with U.S. Ambassador to Thailand, Robert F. Godec. Our cyber students met with Ambassador Godec on the eve of the competition and discussed America’s partnership with Thailand and how cybersecurity is a growing global issue.
The Warrior Contest was an eight-hour competition that included a variety of red and blue team cyber challenges. We are proud to report that our two teams placed 3rd and 6th out of 77 participating teams. Our 3rd place team was recognized on stage with awards presented by General Somchai Malinant, Deputy Chief of Staff of the Armed Forces. The team received a trophy, medal, certificate, and a monetary prize of 10,000 THB.