Colorado State University to Host Computer Hacking Exercise for College Students April 11

Colorado State University on Friday will host a contest to help college students learn to defend against hackers and determine the security of current computer systems.

At least 50 undergraduate students from Colorado State University, the U.S. Air Force Academy, the University of Colorado and the University of Denver will attend the event. The exercise is hosted by Colorado State University’s Department of Computer Science in the College of Natural Sciences and the Department of Computer Information Systems in the College of Business.

The event will take place Friday, April 11, in the Center for Collaboration and Cognition, 1730 S. College Ave., Fort Collins.

"Computer hacking is a potential threat to every business these days – this is a good opportunity for students to learn about the pitfalls and apply them in a simulated setting," said Stephen Hayne, professor in the College of Business.

In the exercise, professors in the College of Business and Computer Science will create a fake home mortgage company network with a mix of simple and complex vulnerabilities and then ask students to assess company security. Teams are expected to explore privacy, financial security and network security issues. At the end of the day-long exercise, each team submits a written assessment that is delivered to the chief executive officer and the chief technology officer of the company. The professors will evaluate these reports and award prizes to the best teams.

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