Leonardo's Cyber Shield 2018: the first cyber skills competition to put drone data security in the spotlight

The second edition of "Cyber Shield: facing the threat", a cyber security contest organised by Leonardo's Security Computer Emergency Response Team (CERT), took place yesterday at the Company's facility in Rome.

Rome 14 December 2018

The event saw 21 teams from 4 countries investigating a simulated data breach following a cyber-attack. New areas of research including drone forensics were explored

Teams were faced with 50 exercises covering all aspects of cyber security: steganography, mobile and drone forensics, software reverse-engineering, password cracking and log analysis, divided into 10 levels of increasing difficulty

Leonardo has detected a 110% increase in cyber-attacks from 2016 to 2018. This exponential growth is increasing demand for expert-level training

The second edition of "Cyber Shield: facing the threat", a cyber security contest organised by Leonardo’s Security Computer Emergency Response Team (CERT), took place yesterday at the Company’s facility in Rome.

The annual competition sees teams of critical infrastructure operators from international companies, government, military and financial institutions take part in simulated reconstructions of real cyber incidents. The contest aims to improve the defensive skills of participants and bolster their readiness to face cyber-attacks, as well as providing a forum to share technical expertise and procedures and boost teamwork.

The scenario at Cyber Shield 2018 was a first in the cyber training domain, featuring a group of criminals electronically stealing data that had been gathered by a drone. This new scenario added an extra level of challenge for the 21 four-member teams who took part. European and U.S. companies participated remotely and representatives from governmental, military and financial institutions attended as observers.

In today’s digital world where cyber threats are increasingly pervasive and sophisticated, a new strategic model is required to defend sensitive data. The Cyber Shield event helps operators prepare to protect the technological and intellectual property of their organisations, both civil and military, as well as fostering collaboration and a shared approach to security.

Leonardo considers the protection of corporate data to be a priority in achieving its objectives and those of its stakeholders. With established cyber-defence infrastructure and expertise in Italy and the UK, Leonardo is a capability partner to government agencies, companies and national and international organisations and delivers services which protect them against cyber security threats.

Press release