Austria Cyber Security Challenge
Next Event: Qualification Start - 01. Mar - 18:00
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About#
The Austria Cyber Security Challenge is a Capture The Flag (CTF) competition for (young) talents in the field of cybersecurity organized by Cyber Security Austria.
What is happening when?#
We will start this year with a kick-off event in Vienna, where you can meet the organizers and other participants. It will also be available on-line for those that can't make it in person.
February 27 - 16:00-18:00
Entry-Level Kick-Off Event explaining the mode, participation is not mandatory.
- Main Location: TU Wien - FAV Hörsaal 1
Favoritenstraße 11, 1040 Wien - Online: on Discord
- Time: 16:00-18:00
- Language: English (German is of course possible for questions)
There will also alternative locations.
- Main Location: TU Wien - FAV Hörsaal 1
After that we start with the qualification, which is a single player jeopardy competition run over two months with challenges released in two waves. This will be held in partial cooperation with our German and Swiss counterparts.
You can solve all challenges at any time during the qualification period (01.03.-01.05., eg the first challenge to be released can still be solved in the very last minutes before submission close).
March 1st - 18:00 CEST
1772384400 (Sun Mar 01 2026 18:00:00 GMT+0100)1st Qualifying Wave - online
April 1st - 18:00 CEST
1775059200 (Wed Apr 01 2026 18:00:00 GMT+0200)2nd Qualifying Wave - online
May 1st - 18:00 CEST
1777651200 (Fri May 01 2026 18:00:00 GMT+0200)Submission close and CTF end
Given your ranking in your qualification category, you will be invited to the team-based finale:
September 14th - 17th
Finale - Linz
There you have the chance to get to know a great community of hackers and win the ACSC finale with your team!
What category can I participate in?#
The categories are based on your age and are as follows, cutoff-date for the age is December 31st of the year of the competition (31.12.2026):
| Group | Age Range | Finale |
|---|---|---|
| junior | 14 to 20-year-old security talents (01.01.2006 to 31.12.2011) | Top 21 juniors based on qualification |
| senior | 20 to 25-year-old security talents (01.01.2001 to 31.12.2005) | Top 21 seniors based on qualification |
| open | is OPEN to ALL security interested people | Top 20 open-category players based on qualification |
To participate in the "junior" or "senior" categories, you furthermore have to either be an Austrian citizen, live in Austria or be enrolled in an Austrian educational institution (see Conditions).
Do you want to be forbidden good? Join us!#
The goal of the qualification is to address both new and experienced players. Each round contains challenges with all kinds of difficulties and categories, from easy to pretty damn hard.
Don’t let this get you down - the path to the finale will be equally difficult for everyone!
If you need a little support to get into a topic you can take a look at our resources page or ask in our Discord server. It’s important to NEVER ask for or look up solutions for ACSC challenges before the qualification period is over, as this can lead to disqualification.
In order to take part in the qualification, register using the “Register” button above or below right now, so you’ll be ready once the challenges drop.
You should also join our Discord Server and select “ACSC” as topic you’re interested in. We will keep you up to date with all the information you need to know on there.
Sponsors#
An initiative of Cyber Security Austria in cooperation with:
With support from:
We are proud of our security Startups:
Sponsored by:
Media partners:
