Sapienza triumphs in the Italian Olympics for IT Security

The exciting seventh edition of CyberChallenge.IT has come to an end, a training program dedicated to young talents in the field of information security. This important initiative, managed by the Cybersecurity National Lab of Cini (National Interuniversity Consortium for Computer Science), has involved hundreds of students from universities and high schools throughout Italy. The competition, the last step in a twelve-week training course that involved over 5,000 students between the ages of 16 and 24 from January to May, has announced its winner.

The university podium

The team that defeated the competition is that of the Sapienza University of Rome, which took first place. The University of Trento and the University of Pisa took second and third place respectively. Gaspare Ferraro, coordinator of the project, said he was proud that CyberChallenge.IT has established itself as one of the most significant advanced training courses not only in Italy, but throughout Europe. He also underlined the importance of the experience, not only as an exciting competition, but also as a real opportunity to develop and refine key skills that are in high demand in today's job market.

The awards ceremony

The ceremony took place in the Piedmont Pavilion of the Ilo campus in Turin, with the participation of Chiara Foglietta, Councilor for the Ecological and Digital Transition, Innovation, Environment, Mobility and Transport of the Municipality of Turin. Foglietta expressed the wish that Italy will continue to invest in enhancing young talent and creating opportunities to increase the digital skills that the country needs. The ceremony also saw the intervention of Fabrizio Sensibile, IT security and penetration testing expert. The event was sponsored by leading cybersecurity companies, whose representatives were tasked with evaluating the presentations of the eight finalist teams.

The future of IT security in Italy

The most deserving participants in CyberChallenge.IT can be selected to join TeamItaly, the National Cyberdefender Team, which annually participates in the European Cyber Security Challenge (Ecsc), scheduled in Hamar, Norway, next October. CyberChallenge.IT is part of the larger program "The Big Game", which also includes OliCyber, CyberTrials and CyberHighSchools, and aims to educate and train talent in the field of cybersecurity. This program, recognized by the Ministry of Education since 2020, offers the best participants the opportunity to obtain prizes and scholarships, enhancing the excellence among upper secondary school students.