Cyber Madness Middle School Tournament FAQs

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Have a question that's not answered? Please reach out to ndcybermadness@k12.nd.us for more information on the Cyber Madness Middle School Tournament

Can you explain what the competition looks like?

The ND Cyber Madness Middle School Tournament consists of two rounds, a virtual play-in round and an in-person finals round.

The first event is virtual and determines who will move ahead to the finals. Teams work together to answer various challenges.
During the virtual event, teams can be connected to a Microsoft Teams site to ask questions and for support.
The finals will be face-to-face in the form of a daylong competition.
There will be a live scoreboard during the virtual and face to face events.
Students at the face-to-face event will be gathered around their devices as a team competing with other Middle School teams across North Dakota.

How do teachers/coaches and teams prepare for the competition?

Teams can go to https://practice.ctfcyber.org/ to practice for the event. A great resource here would be for teams to try out the sample challenges in the elementary and middle school space. To practice please go to the website link and choose the “Challenges” tab at the top. However, there are other resources on the “Student Resources” tab that may be used in the competition.

For the competitions, how will student’s access or login to the event?

There are several platforms which will be utilized during the Cyber Madness competitions.

The Virtual Play-In Round will be participating in a Capture the Flag (CTF) site that will be very similar to the site at https://practice.ctfcyber.org/. The school teams will be pre-enrolled on the site and will log in and join their team at the start of the competition. Each student will log in individually and will then join their team with additional login info that will be provided by their teacher.
After the Virtual Play-In Round, each of the teams that qualify for the finals will be given access to a virtual Cyber Range that they will use during the competition. On the Range, each student will have their own account that will be grouped by team. Qualifying teams will be given access to the Range beginning immediately after the Virtual Play-In Round results are announced so that they can practice on the Range environment in advance of the finals.

What is Capture the Flag?

Capture the Flag is a way of scoring points when you answer the jeopardy style questions. Since multiple teams could answer the same question, the first team to answer correctly captures that flag and scores more points.

The virtual play-in round is all done through the Capture the Flag model.

What is a cyber range?

The final round utilizes the cyber.org cyber range.

But what exactly is a cyber range? Think of the comparison of a cyber range used for learning cybersecurity like how you'd use a chemistry lab for learning chemistry.

Cyber.org describes it this way:

"A chemistry lab contains a lot of dangerous things like chemicals, fire, sharp items, etc. All these items outside of the chemistry lab are dangerous and could harm people, however a chemistry lab is built for these items to be used in a secure environment where students are able to learn chemistry safely. In the same sense, cyber-attacks are dangerous, so students need a safe place to practice these attacks where they can’t cause harm. A cyber range is that secure place where students can use real-world cyber-attacks and not accidentally damage a system."

Does there need to be adults supervising the team?

One adult coach per team is required. There will be several support staff on hand to help answer questions and to assist coaches.

Do teachers/coaches need to have experience in computer programming?

Teachers and coaches do not need computer expertise, just a supportive attitude! It is a competition to introduce students to concepts. You will set your teams up for success if you encourage them to practice on their own time.

Do you need four students on a team, or can you have less?

We encourage four students but will allow less. We can combine with schools from other schools if need be.

Can teams be made up of students from all the middle schools or just from their own school?

Teams can be made up of students from more than one school.

Does the virtual play-in round happen during the school day?

Yes, the virtual round is during the school day.

Is the event timed? How long is the competition?

Yes, it is a timed event.

The virtual round will take place 9am-3pm central time.

More detailed event info will be sent out to each coach after registration for the event has closed.

What equipment is needed?

Equipment allowed are computers and the internet. Connectivity will be provided for the in-person finals along with extension cords for power.

What kind of help and resources can students use during the competition?

Students may use their own ingenuity, resources, notes etc. to complete challenges. They may also use online resources if the competitor is solely responsible for obtaining the solution. In other words, competitors may search Websites and resources (being careful of which resources they trust) but they may not simply ask someone for tips or solutions.

May we use phone apps or other tools we find online?

Oh yes! There are some great tools out there including cyber chef, rapid tables, and more. The whole internet is at your fingertips!

This is an exciting opportunity to expand the community of youth in North Dakota who are interested in the rapidly growing field of Cyber Security and technology! Participants can practice for the tournament at: Cyber.org sample challenges.

During the competition, is the resources section available like on the practice site?

Yes, similar to the practice site's sample challenges, resources are available during the competition. Your team can access them at anytime during the competition.

Can the teams bring a physical copy of the resources? Or do they have to use the electronic version?

Yes, you can choose to print out the resources and bring them with if you'd like!

Do all team members join the competition from individual devices or do they only use one shared laptop?

Your team can decide what devices to use and how many.

Is there anything we need to have prepared for our student's devices to work for the competition?

Make sure to add sites to your content filters.

On the practice.ctfcyber.org site there is a list of websites to add to your IT Department allow lists. These websites will be used during the competition.

Websites to allow include: