Teams from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology and the University of Cambridge will sweat it out in a game of cyber Capture the Flag, where each team will try to steal secrets from their opponent’s computer while keeping their foe out of their own system.
“This is a way for getting the kind of experience and training that when you walk into the practical world is absolutely necessary,” said Howard Shrobe, director of cybersecurity at MIT’s Computer Science and Artificial Intelligence Laboratory. “(I hope) a number of them get motivated to continue on as researchers and try to address the big questions.”
Shrobe said many students that go through MIT’s cybersecurity program go on to work in the industry.
“The aim is to enhance cybersecurity research at the highest academic level within both countries to bolster our cyber defenses,” the White House said in a press release.
The competition is part of a larger series of initiatives Obama and Cameron outlined, including cyber war games to boost both countries’ resistance to cyberattacks, beginning with simulated attacks on banks and the financial sector.
The two Western powers have also agreed to launch a joint “cyber cell” to share information on cyber threats. The FBI and the National Security Agency will be involved, along with Britain’s GCHQ and MI5 intelligence and security agencies.
Another program, the Fulbright Cyber Security Award, will train a new generation of “cyber agents,” officials said, providing funds for students from both countries to research cybersecurity for up to six months.
©2015 the Boston Herald
