Capture The Flag (CTF) in cybersecurity is a competitive exercise where participants race to find hidden clues or vulnerabilities known as “flags” in intentionally vulnerable systems. These events blend education and competition, turning security challenges into a game inspired by the classic outdoor sport of the same name. CTF competitions present hands-on challenges that simulate real-world scenarios, testing and sharpening cybersecurity skills in a fun, controlled environment. Top hacking contests like the DEF CON CTF have even been called the “Olympics of hacking” due to their intensity and prestige. Whether online or in-person, CTFs engage beginners and experts alike in solving puzzles, exploiting systems, and learning new techniques under time pressure.
A Capture The Flag (CTF) is a cybersecurity competition designed to test and improve security skills by presenting participants with a series of hacking challenges. In a CTF, individuals or teams must find flags – secret strings of text (e.g. flag{congr4tz_y0u_found_1t}) – hidden within various targets like vulnerable programs, websites, or files. Finding a flag serves as proof that you successfully solved a challenge or exploited a vulnerability. These competitions can be purely educational or highly competitive, and often both at once. The name “Capture the Flag” is borrowed from the outdoor game, but instead of grabbing a physical flag, players hack into systems or analyze clues to retrieve digital flags. CTFs originated in the mid-1990s (the first known CTF was held at DEF CON in 1996) and have since become popular in both professional and academic settings as a way to develop cybersecurity expertise.
How CTF Challenges Work
At the start of a CTF event, participants are given one or more challenges across different categories (for example, cryptography, web exploitation, digital forensics, reverse engineering, etc.). Each challenge is typically independent and comes with a description or hint, and solving it requires hacking skills or problem-solving to uncover the hidden flag. When a participant finds a flag, they submit it to the competition’s scoring system to earn points. Harder challenges yield more points, and easier ones yield fewer. Throughout the contest, a live scoreboard usually tracks each team’s points. When time runs out, the team or player with the highest score (i.e. the most flags captured) wins. Some CTFs also include dynamic scoring where a challenge’s point value decreases the more teams solve it, adding an extra strategic element. Overall, CTFs create a gamified environment for ethical hacking – participants must think like attackers to solve puzzles, but within legal and safe boundaries.
Types of CTF Competitions
CTF competitions come in several formats, each with a different style of play. The three most common types are Jeopardy-style, Attack-Defense, and **King of the Hill (KoTH)**. Some events even combine multiple formats, but understanding these core types will illustrate how CTFs work:
Jeopardy-Style CTF
Jeopardy-style CTFs are the most common format. In a Jeopardy CTF, teams or individuals tackle a list of independent challenges in various categories such as Web, Crypto, Forensics, Binary Exploitation, Reverse Engineering, and more. Each challenge solved reveals a flag that you submit for points. The challenges are like puzzles or problems – for example, decrypting an encoded message (cryptography), exploiting a small web application (web hacking), or analyzing a packet capture file (forensics). Harder challenges are worth more points than easier ones. Players can typically solve challenges in any order, so a team might choose the categories that play to its strengths first.
Once the competition timer ends (Jeopardy CTFs often last 1-3 days for major events, though some can be just a few hours or even weeks long), the team with the highest total points wins. During the event, a scoreboard keeps everyone updated on rankings, adding to the excitement and competitive spirit. Notably, teams do not directly attack each other in Jeopardy-style events – it’s all about racing to solve the organizers’ challenges. Because of their flexibility and broad appeal, Jeopardy CTFs are very popular – there are usually at least a couple of Jeopardy-style CTFs happening on any given weekend around the world. A well-known example is picoCTF, an online Jeopardy CTF geared toward students that is available year-round for practice.
Attack-Defense CTF
Attack-Defense CTFs (also called “red vs. blue” style) simulate real-world cyber battles. In this format, each team is given control of a server or network with intentionally vulnerable services. The competition has two phases: first, a short setup period where teams can patch their own systems’ weaknesses and prepare defenses, and then a live phase where all teams’ systems are connected and the game begins. During the live phase, teams defend their own server while simultaneously attacking the other teams’ servers. The goal is twofold: keep your services running securely (to avoid losing points) and exploit opponents’ vulnerabilities to steal their flags (to gain points). Scoring usually awards defense points for maintaining your services and attack points for capturing flags from rivals.
Attack-Defense CTFs are intense and require a balance of offensive and defensive skills. They are often shorter in duration (a few hours to a day) and less frequent than Jeopardy CTFs, since they require complex infrastructure and real-time head-to-head competition. Historically, this was the first style of CTF – the original DEF CON CTF in 1996 was an Attack-Defense game, and DEF CON’s CTF finals remain in this format today. In fact, DEF CON’s Attack-Defense CTF is often likened to the “World Cup” of hacking competitions, bringing together top teams from around the globe. This format gives participants a taste of what it’s like to be on a security team: you have to think like an attacker and a defender at the same time.
King of the Hill (KoTH)
King of the Hill is a fast-paced variant of Attack-Defense with an interesting twist: instead of each team having its own server, there is usually a single target system (or a small set of systems) that all teams try to compromise. The moment a team seizes control of the target, they must lock it down (patch the vulnerabilities, kick other competitors out) and hold onto that “hill” for as long as possible. Teams continuously contest control of the machine. The longer you maintain root access or ownership of the system, the more points your team accumulates. If another team manages to knock you off and take over, they start gaining points while you stop.
KoTH matches are typically very short – often an hour or two – and put a strong emphasis on quick penetration testing skills and on-the-fly system hardening. It’s a high-adrenaline format that can even be streamed live, since viewers can watch in real time as teams battle for dominance on the target machine. Platforms like TryHackMe have popularized King of the Hill by running automated KoTH games frequently (on TryHackMe, you can join a fresh KoTH game every 15 minutes!). This format is great for sharpening rapid attack and defense techniques in a very dynamic environment.
Why CTFs Are Important in Cybersecurity
CTF competitions play a significant role in cybersecurity training and culture. They aren’t just games – they are powerful educational tools and a way to foster innovation and skills development in the security community. Here are a few reasons CTFs are so important:
- Hands-on Learning and Skill Building: Traditional classroom training or lectures can only go so far. CTFs offer a hands-on approach to cybersecurity education, forcing participants to actually do the work – analyze code, exploit systems, decrypt data, etc. This gamified, learn-by-doing style has proven highly effective for building practical skills. In fact, CTF-style exercises have been integrated into university courses and even military academy curricula to enhance learning outcomes. By turning security concepts into challenges, CTFs make learning engaging and fun (a classic example of gamification in education).
- Realistic Simulation of Threats: CTF challenges often mirror real-world vulnerabilities and attack scenarios. For example, a challenge might involve a web application with an SQL injection flaw or a binary program with a buffer overflow – the same kinds of weaknesses hackers use against companies. Solving these in a CTF gives defenders firsthand experience in understanding and fixing those issues. Essentially, CTFs let you practice handling cyber threats in a safe, legal environment. This prepares participants for actual incidents and helps them learn to think like adversaries, which is invaluable for improving defensive strategies. As one study notes, CTF events *“simulate real-world security challenges, preparing participants for the realities of the industry.”*
- Fostering a Security Community and Culture: CTF competitions have a strong community aspect. They bring together students, hobbyists, and professionals who are passionate about cybersecurity. This creates a culture of knowledge-sharing and continuous improvement. Many CTF players publish write-ups explaining how they solved challenges, which in turn educates others. The events also encourage collaboration and teamwork (even rival teams often respect each other and exchange tips after competitions). Overall, CTFs promote innovation, problem-solving, and collaborative thinking in cybersecurity. They inspire participants to experiment with new techniques and “push the envelope” in a legal setting, driving the field forward.
- Driving Talent Development: With the global shortage of cybersecurity professionals, CTFs help identify and develop new talent. They spark interest in younger participants (high school CTF programs like picoCTF have drawn tens of thousands of students into cybersecurity). Government agencies and companies sponsor CTFs as a way to close the skills gap – for example, ENISA’s European Cybersecurity Challenge and other initiatives explicitly use competitions to find the next generation of cyber defenders. According to industry reports, there are millions of unfilled cybersecurity jobs worldwide, and CTF-style programs are a creative way to help fill that gap by motivating people to build skills in an exciting way.
In short, CTFs are more than just games: they’re a training ground for cybersecurity professionals. They provide an environment to practice real techniques, encourage the community to stay sharp on the latest threats, and make the hard work of learning security enjoyable. This combination of education, practice, and culture-building is why CTFs have become central in the information security world.
Learning, Practice, and Skill Development through CTFs
One of the greatest benefits of participating in CTFs is how much you learn by doing. Each CTF challenge solved represents a new skill gained or a lesson learned. Here’s how CTF competitions help individuals build and demonstrate hacking and defensive skills:
- Wide Range of Technical Skills: CTFs expose players to many domains of cybersecurity. A single event might have challenges in cryptography, web application security, binary exploitation, reverse engineering, digital forensics, steganography, open-source intelligence, and more. This means participants must develop a well-rounded skill set. You might be decoding ciphers in one moment and dissecting malware the next. Over time, regularly playing CTFs forces you to pick up knowledge across all these areas. Good CTF teams cultivate expertise in all major cybersecurity topics, which directly translates to real-world versatility. For beginners, CTFs are a fantastic way to discover which areas of security you enjoy most (maybe you find out you love reverse engineering binaries or that you have a knack for forensic analysis).
- Problem-Solving and “Hacker” Mindset: CTF puzzles teach you how to think like a hacker – creatively and persistently. Unlike textbook problems, CTF challenges often don’t come with step-by-step instructions. You have to figure out what the problem even is, then research, experiment, and iterate to crack it. This process builds strong problem-solving abilities and research skills. Top CTF players learn to learn on the fly. As one cybersecurity expert put it, *“CTF teaches you to learn on the fly and work with technologies and systems you might not have used before… You need that hacker spirit, that creativity, that way of figuring out how to get around constraints.”* In other words, playing CTFs trains you to approach obstacles with curiosity and tenacity – a critical mindset in both offense and defense roles. Even if you’ve never seen a particular encryption algorithm or unfamiliar programming language, a CTF might challenge you to dig in and overcome that ignorance quickly. This ability to adapt and self-teach under pressure is one of the most valuable skills in cybersecurity (since attackers are always coming up with new tricks).
- Teamwork and Communication: While you can play CTFs solo, many competitions are team-based. Working on a CTF team is an exercise in collaboration and communication. Team members must divide tasks according to their strengths (maybe one person tackles a web hack while another debugs a binary), share findings, and sometimes merge partial solutions to solve a complex challenge. In an intense live competition, teams that communicate well and support each other clearly have an edge. CTFs thus help develop teamwork skills commonly needed in security operations groups or development teams. The collaborative environment also means you learn from peers – for instance, by watching how a teammate exploits a service, you pick up new techniques. This reflects real cybersecurity work, where no one person knows everything, and working together is often the key to success. It’s telling that many CTF veterans point out how much they improved by playing on a team with people of diverse expertise.
- Safe Environment to Fail and Experiment: CTFs provide a sandbox where it’s okay to fail repeatedly while attempting to solve a problem – there are no real-world consequences to breaking something in a CTF challenge. This encourages participants to try bold, creative approaches. You can test out scripts, exploit code, or unfamiliar tools without fear, accelerating your learning. If your approach doesn’t work, you learn from it and adjust. This kind of trial-and-error hands-on practice is invaluable for building practical skills. Over time, CTF players also build up a personal toolkit – scripts, techniques, and experience – that they can apply outside the competition. Many challenges are designed to teach a specific concept or tool, so by completing the challenge you’ve effectively taught yourself a new technique. For example, a CTF might quietly teach you how SQL injection works, how to use Wireshark for packet analysis, or how to bypass common security mechanisms, all via puzzles that feel like a game rather than a formal lesson.
- Showcasing and Documenting Skills: Solving CTF challenges is not only about learning – it’s also a way to demonstrate your skills. When you complete tough challenges, it’s concrete evidence of your ability to analyze and exploit complex systems. Many participants create write-ups or blog posts after competitions to explain their solutions; these write-ups not only reinforce their own learning but also serve as a public portfolio of their hacking skills. Consistently doing well in CTFs (for example, achieving a high rank on a site like CTFtime or winning local competitions) can signal to others – including potential employers – that you have strong technical capabilities and persistence. In fact, employers value CTF experience for that reason, as it showcases initiative and real technical problem-solving beyond what any certificate or classroom might indicate. We’ll talk more about career benefits in the next section, but it’s worth noting here: participating in CTFs helps you prove your skills to yourself and to others.
Overall, CTFs accelerate the development of both technical know-how and soft skills. They compress the experience of debugging, exploiting, and securing software into fun challenges. By facing a wide array of problems under time pressure, you become a sharper, more adaptable security practitioner. It’s no surprise that many top security researchers and penetration testers cite CTFs as a key part of their training. As a Department of Defense cyber team member quipped: *“It’s a cyber war game… Secrets are hidden in technical puzzles and we have to crack them.”* – through that process, you learn warfare tactics that translate directly to real cybersecurity scenarios.
Real-World Applications and CTF Competitions
Participating in CTFs can provide tangible career and real-world benefits. Here are some ways that CTF experience can translate into professional growth and opportunities:
- Job-Relevant Experience: The challenges in CTFs often align with the tasks cybersecurity professionals handle in their jobs. By practicing in CTFs, you gain experience in activities like penetration testing, vulnerability assessment, malware analysis, cryptanalysis, and incident response techniques. This is practical experience that goes beyond theory, giving you stories and skills to draw on in job interviews or on the job itself. For example, if you’ve solved several web security challenges in CTFs, you’ll be better prepared to find and fix web vulnerabilities in a real web application. CTFs essentially simulate the work of security analysts and ethical hackers, so time spent playing is time spent honing job skills.
- Resume Booster and Skill Validation: CTF achievements can set you apart in the job market. In a field where hands-on ability is highly valued, showing that you have completed CTF challenges or won competitions is a strong signal. Employers often view CTF participation as evidence of passion and proactiveness – you’re practicing your craft on your own time because you enjoy it and want to improve. Some companies explicitly mention CTFs when recruiting, or even host their own CTFs to spot talent. As one source notes, *“Employers value CTF experiences when hiring cybersecurity students, as it demonstrates initiative and technical skills.”* If you’ve ranked well in a known event or on a platform, listing that on a resume can catch a recruiter’s eye. It effectively says: “I can solve real security problems.”
- Networking and Community Connections: CTF events (especially in-person competitions at conferences or community meetups) are excellent for networking. You’ll meet fellow competitors who share your interests, as well as event organizers, speakers, and industry experts who often attend or sponsor these contests. This can lead to mentorship opportunities, collaborations, or even job offers. For students, CTFs can be a pathway to internships or research positions – many academic teams have ties to cybersecurity research groups. Even online, the CTF community on platforms like Discord, forums, or CTFtime is very active. Engaging with it can put you on the radar of top teams and companies. In short, CTFs plug you into the broader cybersecurity community, which can significantly benefit your career development.
- Recruitment and Hiring Opportunities: It’s not uncommon for exceptional CTF players to be recruited directly from competitions. High-profile contests sometimes have sponsors or observers looking for talent. For instance, winners of collegiate CTFs might get internship offers, or top DEF CON CTF teams might find themselves courted by security firms and tech companies. Some governments and military units also track CTF results as a way to find skilled individuals for cyber operations roles. According to one overview, CTF events are known worldwide and *“let participants show off their skills, meet others in the field, and sometimes even get job offers.”* In other words, performing well in a CTF can lead to direct career opportunities. Even if you don’t win, simply participating demonstrates your interest and can be discussed during interviews (“Let me tell you about a hacking challenge I solved recently…” is a great way to prove your problem-solving mettle).
- Awards and Recognition: Many CTF competitions offer prizes – from cash rewards and gadgets to training vouchers and conference tickets – for top performers. Beyond material prizes, there’s also significant prestige attached to winning well-known CTFs. Capturing first place in a major event (or even qualifying for the finals of something like DEF CON CTF) earns you recognition in the security community as an elite hacker. This recognition can indirectly boost your career; for example, being known as a member of a famous CTF team can open doors to speaking opportunities at conferences or invitations to special projects. Even at smaller scale, winning local or regional CTFs can make you a respected figure in that circle. The confidence and reputation you build by competing can propel you to take on bigger challenges professionally.
- Better Security Perspective: From a broader career development standpoint, CTFs teach you how attackers operate, which in turn makes you a better defender (even if your job is mainly on the defensive side). Understanding offensive techniques at a deep level is key to excelling in roles like security engineer, SOC analyst, or incident responder. CTFs essentially provide ethical hacking practice that can improve your overall security mindset. Many organizations encourage their cybersecurity staff to play CTFs as ongoing training. Some even run internal CTFs as part of their security education programs. The result is employees who are more adept at finding weaknesses in their own company’s systems before the bad guys do. In summary, the skills and mindset from CTF carry over directly to protecting real systems and can accelerate your growth into senior technical roles.
To sum up, CTF participation can significantly enhance your career prospects in information security. It’s a way to prove your skills, meet the community, and even catch the attention of employers. As one commentary noted, *“CTF competitions are a big help for moving up in cybersecurity. They help you get better at your job, make important connections, and can lead to new job chances.”* Many hiring managers know that a person who has dedicated the time to play in CTFs is likely to be passionate, curious, and battle-tested on practical challenges – all qualities that are hugely beneficial in the cybersecurity workforce.
Popular CTF Platforms and Practice Resources
One great thing about CTFs is that you don’t have to wait for a big competition to start learning – there are many online platforms and resources where you can practice CTF challenges year-round, at your own pace. Here are some notable CTF platforms and wargame sites:
- Hack The Box (HTB) – An online platform that offers a vast array of virtual machines and labs to hack into. Hack The Box provides challenges ranging from beginner-friendly to extremely advanced, covering web hacking, reverse engineering, cryptography, and more. Users gain points and rank up by rooting machines or solving weekly challenges. It’s a go-to platform for those practicing for penetration testing and CTFs, with an active community. (Hack The Box also hosts live CTF events and tournaments for its community and universities.)
- TryHackMe – Another very popular platform for interactive cybersecurity learning. TryHackMe provides guided tutorial “rooms” on various security topics, and also independent challenge rooms to find flags. It’s great for beginners due to its step-by-step learning paths, but also has plenty of harder challenges. Notably, TryHackMe runs King of the Hill games where users compete to control a target machine (as mentioned earlier). Both TryHackMe and Hack The Box are excellent places to learn and prepare for CTFs or real-world security work.
- picoCTF – A free, beginner-oriented CTF platform and annual competition created by Carnegie Mellon University. picoCTF is targeted at middle and high school students, but anyone can play. It presents a wide range of challenges through a story-based game interface. The problems start very easy (teaching the basics of binary, cryptography, web, etc.) and gradually increase in difficulty, making it perfect for newcomers. The picoCTF competition runs once a year, but the platform is open year-round so you can practice the archived challenges anytime. It’s credited with introducing thousands of young people to cybersecurity.
- CTFtime – Rather than a practice platform, CTFtime is a community hub and calendar for CTFs worldwide. If you want to find upcoming CTF competitions, CTFtime.org is the place to go. It lists events virtually every week, including links to registration, and it maintains global rankings for CTF teams based on their performance. CTFtime also aggregates write-ups and past challenge archives. In short, it’s an indispensable resource for serious CTF players to keep track of competitions and measure progress over time.
- OverTheWire – A classic set of wargames for security learning. OverTheWire offers a series of progressively harder challenges (Bandit, Natas, Leviathan, etc.) that you play by connecting via SSH or web. Each level gives you a task (like crack a password or exploit a loophole) to find the next level’s credentials – essentially a continuous string of mini-CTFs. It’s all self-paced and great for building foundational Linux, programming, and exploitation skills in a relatively guided manner.
(Other platforms and resources worth exploring include*: HackThisSite, Root-Me, Hacker101 CTF (by HackerOne), VulnHub (downloadable VM challenges), and Cyber Skyline (often used in university Cyber Cup competitions). With so many options, you can always find challenges to sharpen your skills, even outside of official events.)*
Notable CTF Events and Competitions
CTF competitions range from small local contests to large international battles. Here are a few famous CTF events that highlight the significance of CTFs in the cybersecurity community:
- DEF CON CTF: The DEF CON Capture The Flag is often considered the pinnacle of CTF competitions. Held each year at the DEF CON security conference in Las Vegas, it’s one of the oldest and most prestigious CTFs in existence. DEF CON CTF is an attack-defense style game and has been referred to as the “World Series” or “Superbowl” of hacking. Top teams from around the world must first pass a qualifier event to earn a spot in the Vegas finals. Winning DEF CON CTF virtually crowns the team as the world champions of hacking. This contest, running since 1996, has pushed the boundaries of CTF difficulty – challenges often involve cutting-edge vulnerabilities and imaginative scenarios that require elite skill to solve.
- CSAW CTF (NYU): CSAW (Cybersecurity Awareness Worldwide) is a large annual student-focused CTF organized by NYU Tandon School of Engineering. Aimed at college and high school students, CSAW CTF is one of the biggest educational CTFs – in 2021, for example, over 1,200 teams participated in the qualifying round. It’s a Jeopardy-style competition covering standard topics and is known for being beginner-friendly in the early rounds, with more advanced challenges for finalists. CSAW helps identify and nurture young talent globally, and many up-and-coming hackers get their start here.
- ENISA European Cybersecurity Challenge (ECSC): The ECSC is a major regional competition in which European countries field teams of young talent (typically age 16–25) to compete in cybersecurity challenges. Supported by ENISA (the European Union Agency for Cybersecurity), this event has a format somewhat like a cyber Olympics between nations. Challenges include jeopardy tasks and practical drills. It emphasizes collaboration, learning, and cultural exchange in addition to competition. National teams earn their way through local trials and then meet for the European finals each year.
- Hack-A-Sat: An exciting new CTF event initiated by the U.S. Space Force and Air Force. Hack-A-Sat brings cybersecurity to space – literally. In 2020 it started as a virtual challenge to test satellite security, and by 2023, Hack-A-Sat included a live on-orbit satellite for finalists to attempt to exploit. This competition merges traditional CTF hacking skills with aerospace engineering, asking participants to do things like maneuver small satellites or exploit satellite control systems (all within a controlled environment). It demonstrates how CTFs are being used to crowdsource solutions to real-world security problems (in this case, finding vulnerabilities in space assets).
- Google CTF: A yearly online CTF competition hosted by Google, open to teams globally. Google CTF typically has a Jeopardy-style qualification round with challenges created by Google’s security teams (which means very high quality and often Google-themed puzzles), followed by an attack-defense final for the top teams. It offers cash prizes and the allure of being recognized by Google. Many view it as one of the top-tier CTFs on the calendar. Google’s involvement also highlights how big tech companies use CTFs to engage and educate the community.
- Other Major Events: There are many more notable CTFs – for instance, HITB CTF (held at Hack In The Box conferences in Asia and Europe), Zero CTF/DEF CON China, TJCTF (high school competition), PlaidCTF (run by CMU’s Plaid Parliament of Pwning team), TokyoWesterns CTF, and so on. There are also defense-oriented competitions like the collegiate National Cyber League (NCL) and Cyber Patriot for high schools, which are somewhat CTF-like in teaching defensive skills. The CTF circuit is truly global: virtually every week, CTFtime lists events from different countries and in multiple languages. Some contests cater to beginners, while others are invite-only events for top teams. This thriving ecosystem of competitions keeps the spirit of continuous learning alive in cybersecurity.
Each of these events has its own flavor and focus, but all share the core idea of challenging participants to out-think security problems under time pressure. Participating in any well-known CTF event – even if you don’t win – is a fantastic learning experience and a credential in the community. It’s also worth noting that many of these competitions release their challenge materials or write-ups afterward, so even if you miss the live event, you can attempt the problems and learn from them later.
Conclusion
Capture The Flag competitions have evolved from a niche hacker game into a cornerstone of cybersecurity education and culture. They offer an addictive mix of challenge and camaraderie: you’re learning and breaking things in a controlled setting, often with a team of friends, and the clock ticking down. For beginners, CTFs demystify cybersecurity by providing a fun, interactive way to build skills – you might start by solving a simple puzzle on an online platform and suddenly find yourself hooked on the thrill of hacking something legally. For seasoned professionals, CTFs are a way to continuously sharpen your saw and stay up-to-date with emerging threats (there’s always a new trick or technology to tackle). And for organizations, CTFs are a proven method to train teams and scout talent in an engaging, cost-effective manner.
In the end, the appeal of CTFs lies in the joy of problem-solving and the spirit of exploration. The competitions encapsulate what being in cybersecurity is all about: facing the unknown, persistently working at it, sometimes failing, but learning along the way and eventually triumphing with new knowledge gained. The flag you capture is not just a string of text – it’s a testament to your creativity, skill, and determination. Whether your goal is to become a better hacker, to land a job in infosec, or simply to have fun testing your wits, Capture The Flag events provide a welcoming and thrilling arena. So if you haven’t already, give a CTF a try – you’ll experience firsthand “hacking as sport” and join a global community that’s passionate about making technology more secure, one challenge at a time. Happy hacking!