Cyber Team builds confidence for national competition

November 22, 2024

Xavier University's Cyber Team recently competed in the finals of the Virtual Internship and Varied Innovative Demonstrations (VIVID) cybersecurity competition in Augusta, Georgia. The group was one of only 15 to qualify for the finals out of 107 teams from 65 universities who have taken part in the competition. The VIVID competition was open to any school designated as a National Center of Academic Excellence in Cyber Defense, a distinction Xavier earned in 2022.

The Cyber Team includes five members who meet weekly to work through challenges like penetrating a network as well as discovering how a breech may have occurred.  “Being a part of the Cyber Team really builds confidence because I'm not sure what I'm doing is always right,” team co-captain Julian Brito-Hanley says. “Cybersecurity is an ever-growing landscape, and being a part of this team really helps you get some confidence under your belt. You find yourself being able to do things you didn’t think you could do.”

Team member Samuel Kadima agrees and encourages others in computer science to be a part of this group. “You have to be willing to fail and also to learn how you failed,” Samuel says.  “We have a very great team, always willing to help…it's a very friendly environment.”

The team performed well in the recent competition, securing 11th place.  “I am incredibly proud of the hard work and dedication shown by our group,” Deep Ramanayake, Director of the Cybersecurity Program and teaching professor of computer science and cybersecurity, says. “During the intense King of the Hill competition, our team demonstrated outstanding defense by successfully protecting our Xavier flag from all attempts to steal it!”

Cyber Team members (pictured left to right) include Jack Frambes, Brian Matton, Julian Brito-Hanley, Samuel Kadima, and Oma Ugwa.