​AWIS DC Presents

​CyberGuard Challenge: A Collaborative Hackathon

​Learn. Build. Defend. Collaborate.

​🎃 Cybersecurity Awareness Month is about to get spooky.

​Join us October 24–25 for the inaugural CyberGuard Challenge: A Collaborative Hackathon, presented by AWIS DC in collaboration with Hack The Box and ChameleCo®.

​CyberGuard Challenge is a two-day, beginner-friendly cybersecurity experience bringing together individuals from diverse professional, academic, technical, military, government, and STEM backgrounds to learn, collaborate, build confidence, and develop practical cybersecurity skills.

​No cybersecurity experience? No problem.

​No prior cybersecurity, hacking, or Capture the Flag (CTF) experience is required.

​Whether you're a student, scientist, engineer, technologist, career changer, cybersecurity professional, military member, veteran, government professional, or simply curious about cybersecurity, CyberGuard Challenge is designed to help you explore where your existing skills and new cyber capabilities can take you.

​What You'll Experience

​Through hands-on learning, guided workshops, mentorship, team collaboration, and a Hack The Box CTF experience, participants will have opportunities to explore areas including:

​OSINT • Digital Forensics • Web Security • Linux • Windows • Networking • Cloud • Offensive Security • Defensive Security • AI & Cybersecurity

​Challenges will progress from approachable introductory exercises toward more challenging scenarios, giving participants opportunities to learn, build confidence, test their skills, and discover areas of cybersecurity they may want to explore further.

​Two Days: Learn, Then Apply

​The CyberGuard experience combines learning with application.

​Participants will build foundational knowledge through technical guidance, workshops, mentorship, and interaction with cybersecurity professionals before putting those skills into practice through hands-on challenges and Capture the Flag competition.

​This isn't only about who finishes at the top of the leaderboard.

​It's about learning new skills, discovering career pathways, building professional relationships, expanding the cybersecurity community, and strengthening the cyber workforce of tomorrow.

​Join Us In Person or Virtually

​CyberGuard Challenge is a hybrid event, allowing participants to join us in person in the Washington, DC metropolitan area or virtually from anywhere.

​📅 October 24–25, 2026
📍 Washington, DC + Virtual
💻 Hybrid Experience
🎓 Beginner-Friendly
🚩 Capture the Flag Competition
🤝 Mentorship + Collaboration

​No experience required. All skill levels are welcome.

​👻 Some threats are scary. Not knowing how to recognize them is scarier.

​No Tricks. Just Flags. 🚩