FIST Students Showcase Cyber Skills at UM Cybersecurity Summit 2025

Team N3WBEES, comprising students from the Faculty of Information Science & Technology (FIST), secured fifth place in the Capture The Flag (CTF) Challenge at the Universiti Malaya (UM) Cybersecurity Summit 2025.

The event brought together top cybersecurity talents from universities across Malaysia in a two-stage CTF competition—beginning with an online Preliminary Round in April 2025, followed by an intensive on-site Final Round in May 2025 at Pusat Asasi Sains Universiti Malaya (PASUM).

Organised by PEKOM (UM’s Computer Science Club) in collaboration with the Google Developer Group (GDG) on Campus UM and cybersecurity consultancy RE:HACK, the competition was endorsed by NACSA and supported by sponsors including Tecforte, TP-Link, FSKTM (UM), Ask Pentest, FIRMUS, TIME dotCom, and Kaspersky.

Team N3WBEES impressed the judges with their ability to solve complex challenges in diverse areas such as web exploitation, cryptography, forensics, blockchain, reverse engineering, binary exploitation, and defensive security (patching and securing vulnerabilities).

What set this CTF apart was the inclusion of defensive cybersecurity elements, requiring teams not only to detect vulnerabilities but also to patch them under time pressure. This innovative format tested participants’ technical depth, agility, and collaborative skills.

Mentored by Assoc. Prof. Ts. Dr. Ooi Shih Yin, the team showcased remarkable problem-solving abilities, technical expertise, and teamwork throughout the competition. This achievement reflects the growing strength of MMU’s cybersecurity education and its commitment to nurturing future-ready digital talents.