We bring students the cyber workforce experience before they enter the workforce. Our real-world hands-on cybersecurity challenges are designed around and inspired by the most in-demand technical cyber work roles and the tasks those work roles must be able to competently perform to be successful. Our challenges embrace the variety, complexity, and difficulty of cyber work, taking place in fully virtualized business environments, providing challenge scenarios and details through fictional co-workers, and pushing students to learn and problem-solve on the fly. Through our in-house developed cyber range platform and wide variety of hands-on cyber challenges, we aim to provide the most realistic experiences to students, for free, at scale, and year-round, while also generating useful assessment data about their knowledge, skills, and abilities for educators.

This platform is freely available to US-based academic users only. Educators must sign up for Curator accounts initially on our website and be granted access before they can grant their students’ access.

Through to the end of 2024 -> https://www.nice-challenge.com
Starting in 2025 -> https://www.xpcyber.com

Try Cyber is a web application for cyber work role discovery and exploration. It provides the cyber curious free access to short 15-minute hands-on micro-challenges, where participants can experience a day-one internship as one of the ten supported NICE Framework cyber work roles partnered with a fictional mentor. Try Cyber is sponsored by and developed in collaboration with the Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency (CISA).

https://trycyber.us or https://trycyber.today

The architect of the PISCES International cyber analyst curriculum Michael Tsikerdekis has published a book on taking you from zero to hero (no prerequisites) to ultimately become a security analyst. There are a bunch of illustrations to reduce the cognitive load. The book covers all the necessary analyst theory and there is a freely accessible repository for the technical aspects using Opensearch (using the Malcolm platform) as the main interface.

The following is a description of the book:

Unlock the power of network security with Overnight Hercules for Network Security, your ultimate guide to becoming a skilled security analyst. Authored by Michail Tsikerdekis, an IEEE Senior Member and U.S. Fulbright Scholar, this hands-on manual offers practical strategies, real-world case studies, and cutting-edge tools to help you safeguard networks against evolving cyber threats. No prior security knowledge is required whether you’re just starting out or leveling up your skills. You’ll gain expertise in threat detection, network defense, and AI-driven security techniques—all while preparing for a thriving career in cybersecurity.

Overnight Hercules for Network Security: Become a Security Analyst on Amazon

(This article was originally published on SFCC)

[SPOKANE, Wash.] — Kory Bruno grew up playing computer games where he could be one destroying data and hacking networks. Now the Spokane Falls Community College alumni spends every day doing top secret work defending against the cybercriminals he imitated in online games.

The opening of the Spokane Falls Cyber Center is expanding student interest in the cyber field and training the future workforce through industry partnerships.

Through a partnership between the cyber program and the Public Infrastructure Security Cyber Education System (PISCES), students are gaining real work experience as cyber analysts.

Bruno is one of 10 students who completed the IS 248 – Security Operations Center Analyst pilot course this year as an addition to his associate of applied science in information technology/cybersecurity.

At the end of their work in the PISCES software, students are granted a certificate that is fully sanctioned by PISCES and formally acknowledged by the Department of Homeland Security.

“Having this certificate puts us above entry level,” Bruno said. “I really like that they’re doing this to give students hands on experience.”

Bruno enrolled in the security operations center course to bolster his resumé, not knowing it’d lead to somewhat of a dream job.

“It’s not part of the defender track curriculum but I wanted to do this class because of what it was offering, and I knew it’s where I wanted to go,” Bruno said.

Through a simple message of interest to the PISCES contact, Bruno secured full-time employment because of his combination of certifications and experience.

He began work as an Operations Engineer at PISCES on June 1, where he uses his skills to protect local municipalities in communities that don’t have budgets allocated to cyber protection.

“The environment here is awesome and the partnerships are great. The program specifically partners with students and local municipalities,” Bruno said. “I don’t know what else I’d be doing.”

Program Lead and SFCC IT Professor Mark Neufville said the partnership between PISCES and the Security Operations Center course allows students to look at real life security data, do research and input information into the system for analysis.

“This program is a direct entry into the workforce. There is a direct need for these students right now,” Neufville said.” This class is the first step in being a cybersecurity analyst. They’re all doing real work.”