DETROIT – The Michigan National Guard and the Michigan Cyber Range hosted an International Cyber Exercise on October 28 as part of the state’s North American International Cyber Summit. Ten teams from six countries and five states competed in an all-out, fast paced cyber exercise that resembles the physical game of paintball. And the team from Estonia won.
“The Michigan Cyber Range is very proud to continue our partnership with both the State of Michigan and the National Guard in our sixth annual International Cyber exercise,” said Kevin Hayes, Chief Information Security Officer for Merit and the Michigan Cyber Range.
“In partnering with not only other states but other countries around the world, we can effectively simulate real-life situations and train both ourselves and our allies to defend against the kinds of cyber attacks that could damage us today.”
While the Michigan teams participated from the Summit’s location, the other teams took part from their home station – making the exercise span multiple time zones. Set in the virtual cyber city of Alphaville, the teams had to attack targets while defending servers that they controlled, stressing the importance of quick decision making, communication and technical skills.
At the end of the day, the Estonia team prevailed, but the competition challenged all the teams. Everyone who participated is eagerly anticipating next year, when they hope to return to Alphaville and compete against other teams again.
Continuous support for the ICE comes from our event community supporters include Cisco, Juniper Networks and ADVA.
For more information about the Cyber Range, click on https://www.merit.edu/
