US colleges competitively defend energy infrastructure in DOE CyberForce challenge

Teams from 14 colleges and universities throughout the United States competed this week as part of the Department of Energy CyberForce Competition held at the Pacific Northwest National Laboratory (PNNL) campus.

The competition marks the second held at the PNNL campus. Students had to build and defend a simulated oil transportation network, power delivery system and high-performance computing system from hackers. The “hackers” were cybersecurity professionals and government representatives.

In the simulated cyberattacks, teams competed against one another, as well as 55 other institutions competing from six additional DOE national laboratories throughout the country. Challenging teams had to continuously work to stay ahead of the changing threat while maintaining a balance between security and availability.

Cyberthreats to the nation’s energy infrastructure represent both a critical challenge and an opportunity for students entering the workforce. In an industry survey released last month by the consulting firm KPMG, nearly half of power and utility industry CEOs surveyed said cyberattacks on the power grid were not a matter of “if” but “when,” and a majority of those CEOs identified cybersecurity specialists as “the most important new role” in their companies.

“The threats we face today are unprecedented in number, scope, and complexity,” PNNL Director Steve Ashby told attendees at the CyberForce Competition. “Tackling threats of this magnitude requires that we grow a highly skilled and dedicated cybersecurity workforce, particularly at a time when our nation is facing an alarming shortage of cyber practitioners.”

Oregon State University was the competition’s regional winner. Western Washington University received the 256th Intelligence Squadron Award from the Washington Air National Guard. Top national honors went to the University of Central Florida.

“The CyberForce Competition is one of many ways DOE promotes the development of a workforce of cyber professionals with competencies relevant to the energy sector while raising awareness of cutting-edge cybersecurity and critical infrastructure innovation happening in the department and across the national laboratories,” Ann Wright-Mockler, PNNL organizer, said. “Events like this aim to encourage students to consider careers in this high-demand field and help drive growth of the workforce. The competition also aims to help students develop the teamwork and technical skills needed to succeed in future cyber roles.”