CyberPatriot Team Tours Fairchild

On 5/20/22, Alex Rey, Network Security Engineer at ESP, had the opportunity to visit Fairchild Air Force Base as a chaperone with the Rogers High School CyberPatriot team. 

CyberPatriot is the Air Force Association's National Youth Cyber Education Program. It was created to "inspire K-12 students toward careers in cybersecurity or other science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) disciplines critical to our nation's future." CyberPatriot offers a variety of cyber-based competitions that culminate with students competing against each other and live "red team" attackers. These competitions are designed to challenge and educate participants on the importance of cybersecurity. In addition to the competition element, CyberPatriot also offers educational resources and opportunities for participants to learn more about cybersecurity and explore careers in this field.

Alex took his team to Fairchild to meet with the 141st Air Refueling Wing of the Air National Guard to learn how they handle cyber security threats both internally and in external deployments. Three squadrons within the wing are dedicated to combating cyber threats: 141st Communications Flight, 242nd Combat Communications Squadron, and 256 Intelligence Squadron. The CyberPatriots were fascinated to see the technology the Air Force uses to establish secure communication in disaster zones or during presidential inaugurations.

They also toured some of their internal IT facilities at the airbase and observed how they manage cyber security on a daily basis. Overall, it was an excellent opportunity to learn more about real-world cybersecurity and the military's role in protecting our nation's critical infrastructure.