The Department of Energy’s (DOE) CyberForce® Program is a workforce development program that aims to inspire and develop the next generation of cyber defenders for the energy sector through hands-on competitions, webinars, learning resources, and career fairs. It strives to raise awareness of the nexus between critical infrastructure and cybersecurity through competitions that:
- Make critical thinking and soft skills key components,
- Focus on both operational technology (OT) and information technology (IT) cyber skills,
- Value both individual and team balanced work,
- Emulate real-world energy scenarios, and
- Build self-confidence and enhance cyber skills.
The CyberForce Competition® is the original competition that started the program in 2016. It is a collegiate, team-based competition with a defend/attack energy cyber scenario focused on the hardening nature of cybersecurity for critical infrastructure. Teams defend a simulated virtual infrastructure against Red Team attackers. This competition incorporates life-like constraints and tasks, actual end users, and continual emerging threats. The next CyberForce Competition will take place in November 2024.
The CyberForce Program also offers three collegiate, virtual, individual-based Conquer the Hill® cybersecurity competitions. The “Command” edition is task-based and provides participants with a hands-on experience performing real-world tasks for an IT administrator and security professional position. The “Adventure” and “Reign” edition competitions are theme-based and narrow in on specific skills.
In addition, the program hosts virtual career fairs for participants of its collective programs to learn, network, and apply for internships and jobs in this focus area. The CyberForce Program also holds informational cybersecurity webinars and maintains a workforce portal for participants.
Learn more about how DOE is inspiring the next generation of energy sector cybersecurity professionals and get involved by visiting https://cyberforce.energy.gov.
CyberForce® Competition
Conquer the Hill® Competition
CyberForce Webinar Series
Career Fairs
