CyberPatroit has more than 450 teams

National High School Cyber Defense Competition Exceeds 450 Teams

Registration for Cyber Security Education Initiative Remains Open until Oct. 8

ARLINGTON, Va., Sept. 24 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- The Air Force Association announced today that CyberPatriot now has more than 450 teams registered to participate in the premier high school cyber defense competition. Only Iowa, Montana and Wyoming have yet to join the contest.

CyberPatriot is the nation's largest and fastest-growing high school cyber defense competition. With 47 states, Puerto Rico and U.S. Department of Defense Dependent Schools in Japan and Korea already represented, word is getting out to high school educators across the country. Teams have registered from public, private, parochial and home schools in many states in the competition's Open Division. Additionally, Junior ROTC units of all Services and Civil Air Patrol squadrons are rapidly filling the All-Service Division in the two-track competition.

CyberPatriot provides students interactive learning while competing virtually against their peers. Teams of five, with an approved coach (usually a teacher), learn to defend computer networks from real-life computer threat scenarios. In the preliminaries, hundreds of teams compete online using software provided by CyberPatriot to competitively solve vulnerabilities in a network. The top teams then compete again in a series of online rounds to determine the finalists for an all-expenses-paid trip to Washington, DC and the Championship Round at the Gaylord National Convention Center in April 2011.

"CyberPatriot calls attention to one of the nation's most critical needs by exciting, educating and motivating the talent who will become the country's next generation of cyber leaders," said Bernie Skoch, CyberPatriot Commissioner. "Educators are continually learning about this great opportunity for their students, so we're excited to have this number of registered schools in our unique competition."

Coaches can learn more about CyberPatriot and sign up at www.uscyberpatriot.org. Information is also available from the CyberPatriot staff at info@uscyberpatriot.org.

CyberPatriot is presented by Northrop Grumman, with founding partners SAIC and the CIAS at the University of Texas-San Antonio.

The AFA is a 501(C)(3), nonprofit organization promoting public understanding of aerospace power and the pivotal role it plays in the security of the nation. AFA has over 200 chapters nationally and internationally representing 120,000 members.