Ukraine’s first Grid NetWars cyber training has started in Kyiv

The National Cybersecurity Coordination Center at the National Security and Defense Council of Ukraine, with the support of the USAID Cybersecurity for Critical Infrastructure in Ukraine Activity, is holding Ukraine’s first cyber training, «National Cybersecurity Preparedness: Grid NetWars».

Representatives of key cybersecurity actors, the private sector, and higher education institutions are gaining new knowledge in the field of cybersecurity of critical infrastructure.

Grid NetWars scenarios were developed by SANS Institute, the world’s leading organization that trains and certifies cybersecurity professionals.

The Grid NetWars format envisages teamwork to repel simulated cyberattacks, which helps participants not only test but also improve their skills. For the first time, Ukrainian specialists will receive a prestigious certification from the SANS Institute.

Among the speakers at the opening ceremony were: Deputy Secretary of the National Security and Defense Council of Ukraine Serhiy Demedyuk, Head of the Service for Supporting the NCSCC at the NSDC Staff Serhiy Prokopenko, Director of the USAID Office of Economic Development in Ukraine Christopher Abrams, CTO of the SANS Institute Tim Conway, Manager of the USAID Cybersecurity Activity Ihor Malchenyuk.

Mr. Demedyuk noted that reliable cybersecurity of critical infrastructure in the context of hybrid aggression is critical, and stressed the importance of coordinated action by public and private sector actors in ensuring cyber protection.

“Over the year, the NCSCC conducts training for cybersecurity experts on critical infrastructure, and the Grid NetWars competition at the end of the year is a kind of summary, based on which we will be able to assess the readiness of specialists to counter cyber threats”, - he stressed.