Major cybersecurity competition starts tomorrow

Young cyber professionals will battle for a place in the WorldSkills Ireland National Final for Skill 54 – Cyber Security on Friday 28 January in ‘capture the flag’ style cybersecurity challenges and real-world scenarios.

For 2022, the competition is open to anyone studying, or working, on the island of Ireland who is aged between 18 and 26 this year.

The top competitors in the preliminary competition events will compete in the national final in the RDS later this year.

A team of two cybersecurity competitors may be selected from the national final to join the WorldSkills Ireland team who will compete in Shanghai, China.

The World Skills competition includes over 55 skills from a range of industries, including culinary arts, electrical engineering and construction. The aim of the global event is to showcase skills and inspire others to consider pursuing careers in these areas.

Michael Hourihan, World Skills Ireland Official Delegate and Head of Craft Studies at Munster Technological University (MTU) described the history of the competition in Ireland. “Since 1956, Ireland has organized national competitions for over 12,000 competitors and over 700 of those competitors have represented Ireland at all World Skills Competitions over the years.

“Ireland has been very successful at the World Skills Competitions with 196 competitors returning with medals. Many of those competitors were students in MTU and a high number of Irish competitors were trained by MTU lecturers.”

The World Skills movement aims to:

· Inspire young people to develop a passion for skills through competitions and promotion.

· Showcase skills so that young people would consider pursuing careers in these areas.

· Develop skills through global training standards.

· Influence industry, governments, and educators through cooperation and research.

Dr George O’Mahony, WorldSkills Ireland Expert for cybersecurity and Dylan Smyth, both lecturers in the Department of Computer Science at MTU, will lead the cybersecurity team selection and preparation.

As part of the preparation, the lecturers will leverage a highly sophisticated cybersecurity infrastructure, called a cyber-range, to hone the skills of the team in time for the national final and world skills competition.

The competition focuses on the critical requirements for a successful career in cybersecurity and provides an opportunity to highlight the importance of cybersecurity skills and professionals in our everyday lives, who protect our businesses, government and citizens from cyber-attacks.

More information on how to participate in the event is available via the news section of cyberskills.ie.