For the third successive year, Deloitte are running their annual Cyber ‘Capture the Flag’ competition for a selection of targeted universities across the UK.
The competition is a fantastic opportunity for students to develop and demonstrate their technical cyber-skills. For all finalists, prize money is on offer alongside the chance to be fast tracked for positions within our Cyber Risk team.
We are building on the success of last years’ event, which included:
• 36 students from 8 universities made it to competition, hosted in our London offices.
• £5,000 prize money was distributed.
• Over 200 slices of pizza were eaten.
• A number of the finalists are now working in our technical teams within Cyber Risk, having joined on the graduate scheme in September.
What is the competition?
This competition tests students’ penetration testing, forensics, malware and intrusion analysis skills in a fun and competitive environment. The competition is split into two phases: initial qualifying will be hosted remotely followed by the top-scoring universities invited to compete in the all-day final held at the Deloitte offices in Central London at a later date.
Some key points:
• Qualification will be held in the last week of January, with the final scheduled for the 26th February.
• As well as cash prizes for the top 3 teams, finalists, if they request it, can interview for summer internships or places on our technical graduate scheme (we’ve included information on what job opportunities are on offer below).
• This event is free to enter and travel costs for finalists will be covered by Deloitte.
• This is predominately a recruitment event, and although any students (from first year to PHD student) are eligible to enter, preference will be given to teams with participants actively looking for jobs (e.g. final year students).
• Only one team can enter from each university, with a team being made up of a minimum of 4 people and a maximum of 5 students.
We hope the qualifying and final dates will work for you, but please let us know if there are any issues and we will do what we can to accommodate.
Why are Deloitte holding this competition?
We have one of the largest Cyber practices in industry and are always interested in recruiting the brightest minds and top talents from across the UK. Aside from this, we also see this as a fun challenge and a new opportunity for students to learn more about how their skills can be more widely applied beyond university and in the wider world.
How can students enter this competition?
If you are interested in participating in the competition or would like more information then please let us know by getting in touch with the Capture the Flag team at capturetheflag@deloitte.co.uk. All you need to enter the qualifying round is:
• Student name
• Student email
• University
For the qualifier we will regard all participants from the same university as a single team, so we recommend you band together to make it through to the finals!
The deadline for applications is Monday 29 January
Opportunities within Deloitte Cyber
Technical Stream
With technology changing by the second, and security breaches ever-more common, cyber security is critical to business. We provide clients with deep technical knowledge and expertise to secure their organisation, from implementing advanced defensive technologies to trying to compromise a client’s network to identify critical vulnerabilities. Technical graduates will also have the opportunity, if desired, to work on the non-technical cyber projects, developing their skillset throughout their careers.
Location: London, although some of your time may be spent in Reading at our Cyber Intelligence Centre, and Belfast.
Your professional experience on the technical stream
• Penetration testing – take on the role of an attacker; trying to exploit system vulnerabilities, scanning for service and application flaws, improper configurations, and risky user behaviour, to help clients identify gaps in their network defences.
• Cyber incident response – provide clients with technical analysis, containment and post-incident recovery when an incident occurs.
• Advanced threat intelligence – monitor and assess the threats that may impact on a client, enabling them to swiftly and effectively respond, mitigate risk, and strengthen their cyber resilience.
• Security architecture – help clients implement security defence in depth across their architecture, delivering unified security designs that address potential risks and align with their cyber strategy.
• Identity and access management – help clients implement and configure solutions to control and manage how employees, customers and third parties access their information and systems.
Your training & development
You’ll get to work with and learn from some of the most talented and experienced professionals in the industry. You’ll also benefit from an extensive training programme that’s unique to Deloitte, including our Cyber Security Bootcamp, which will be tailored to each stream so that you can hit the ground running in your cyber career.
You’ll also be able to study for a range of professional qualifications. These include: CREST Registered Penetration Tester, Offensive Security Certified Professional (OSCP) and Crest Certified Threat Intel Manager. There is also a range of more specialised training based on which capability or career path you specialise in.