ITB Student Team Wins National Best Defender Award at Gemastik 2023

By Anggun Nindita

Editor Anggun Nindita

BANDUNG, itb.ac.id -   Three students from the Jejaring Jagat Jembar Team at Institut Teknologi Bandung (ITB) received recognition for their outstanding performance at the National Student Exhibition Competition in the field of Information and Communication Technology (Gemastik) 2023 Cyber Security Division. They were honored with the Best Defender award.  The Best Defender award recognizes teams that successfully defend a system in the safest manner.

Meet the three students: Marcellus Michael Herman Kahari, Amar Fadil, and Faris Maganthis. They are studying Informatics Engineering and Telecommunication Engineering. They took part in a variety of events that ultimately brought them to the last stage. The final round took place at Brawijaya University from Tuesday to Saturday (12-16/09/2023). Out of 253 participants, only the top 20 teams in the Cyber Security category made it to the final.

The Cyber Security competition is just one of the many exciting competitions taking place in Gemastik 2023. This competition aims to evaluate participants' skills in detecting, mitigating, and resolving cybersecurity challenges in computer systems or networks. Participants are invited to engage in hacking systems, testing web or mobile application security, conducting forensic analysis, or solving network security problems.

The competition is divided into two stages: preliminary and final rounds. In the preliminary round, participants will engage in a Capture the Flag (CTF) format. The final round will consist of a competition (Attack-Defense) and a presentation session.

Throughout the competition, every team is provided with a system that has vulnerabilities and given the opportunity to address them.   Players need to locate the enemy's flags and protect their own flags to stay undetected. During the presentation stage, participants will be expected to share the findings from their write-up.

During an interview on Friday (22/09/2023), three talented ITB students discussed their preparation and the Jejaring Jagat Jembar Team's achievement in receiving an award.

Throughout the preparation period, they expanded their knowledge beyond what they learned from their studies. As they sought to enhance their knowledge of defense and attack strategies, they independently pursued further learning and engaged in discussions with experienced senior students. They also delved into various aspects that were not addressed in their lectures.

The team was deeply impacted by the competition. Amar discussed his encounters with new experiences during the competition, which inspired him to pursue further knowledge. "Expanding one's horizons beyond the classroom and nurturing a thirst for knowledge," Amar expressed.

Meanwhile, Faris discussed the difficulty of managing time during the competition because of other obligations on campus. Nevertheless, the recognition he and his teammates received overshadowed this challenge. Following his participation in the competition, Faris has shown a keen interest in delving into the realm of cybersecurity, with a particular focus on networks.

As for Michael, he found great satisfaction in successfully solving unfamiliar challenges.

They recommend that others seek knowledge from multiple sources, create effective plans, and actively explore different opportunities in their area of interest.

Reporter: Gishelawati (Astronomi, 2019)

Translator: Anggi Nurdiani (Manajemen, 2021)

Editor: Hanifa Juliana (Urban and Regional Planning, 2020)