CyberPatriot
Cyber Patriots Club
Competition Overview
CyberPatriot’s National Youth Cyber Defense Competition is the world’s largest cybersecurity competition and is open to all schools and approved youth organizations. Before getting started with the registration process, review this competition overview to get a better understanding of the competition!
Looking to promote the competition or get involved? Check out the competition engagement guide!
WHO
TEAM MEMBERS
- Coach: An adult (e.g. teacher, JROTC instructor, administrator, parent, etc.) approved by a participating organization to act as the administrative lead of a CyberPatriot team. The coach is the main point of contact for competition-related correspondence. A team can only have one coach.
- Competitors: Each CyberPatriot team must consist of between two and six competitors enrolled in the participating school or organization. While up to six students are permitted on each team’s roster, a maximum of five students are permitted to compete at any one time during a competition round. A one-time substitution can be made each round.
- Technical Mentor(s): IT-experienced individuals who volunteer to assist in the cybersecurity training of CyberPatriot teams. Mentors must register on the CyberPatriot website and are required to successfully complete a background check before being eligible to officially join a team. (Minimum age: 18)
- Team Assistant(s): Adult volunteers who provide non-technical support and encouragement to the team (assisting with scheduling, set-up, snacks, etc.). Team assistants must register on the CyberPatriot website and pass a background check. (Minimum age: 18)
| Divisions | Who? |
|---|---|
| Open Division | High school students from schools, scouting units, Boys and Girls Clubs, home school programs, STEM programs, etc. |
| All Service Division | High school students in JROTC Programs / Civil Air Patrol units / Naval Sea Cadet Corps units |
WHAT
CyberPatriot’s National Youth Cyber Defense Competition challenges teams of high school and middle school students to find and fix cybersecurity vulnerabilities in virtual operating systems. Using a proprietary competition system, teams are scored on how secure they make the system. Top teams advance through the online round of competition, and the best of the best advance to the in-person National Finals Competition.
Each team has two challenges during their four-hour competition period:
- Network Security Challenge: involves finding and fixing security vulnerabilities in Windows and Linux operating systems.
- Cisco Networking Challenge: consists of an online quiz and a virtual networking exercise based on specific training materials.
HOW
CyberPatriot is designed for any student, regardless of prior cybersecurity knowledge. Training materials are available through the volunteer dashboard and through Cisco Networking Academy. Instructions for competition round preparation are emailed directly to coaches prior to each round.
Hardware & Software Requirements
WHERE
All rounds of competition, except for the National Finals Competition, take place online. Teams may meet at and compete from any location – classroom, computer lab, public library, home, etc.
Teams qualifying for the National Finals Competition travel all-expenses paid to Bethesda, MD in the spring.
WHEN
Team Registration: June 2 – October 1, 2026 (You must register a team to get access to the rounds below)
- Exhibition Rounds: Basic practice rounds available during the summer months – May to August
- Training Round: A basic practice round that includes an answer key – September
- Official Practice Round: Final practice round before the scored rounds begin – October
- Scored/Live Rounds: Competitions take place on specified weekends throughout the school year. Scored rounds are held one weekend a month from October to January. Teams choose any four-hour period during the competition weekend (Thursday, Friday, Saturday, or Sunday) to complete all their work.
CyberPatriot 19 (2026-27) Training Schedule
*Images and download instructions are emailed to coaches of registered teams by 5:00 PM ET the day before each round begins. All training and practice rounds run continuously from 9:00 AM ET on the first day through 11:59 PM ET on the last day, unless otherwise specified. Please see the schedule below for details.
| EVENT | DATES (Dates and times may be subject to change.) |
DESCRIPTION |
| Exhibition Round (Recruiting and Practice) |
June 3 – August 24, 2026 | Practice and Recruiting. All teams may participate. Only Coaches must be registered. |
| Training Round 1 (Basic-Level Images) |
September 3 – October 5, 2026 | Answer keys are available in the ReadMe file. All teams may participate. Only Coaches must be registered. |
| Sneak Preview (Optional Test) |
September 24, 2026 (1 Day Only) Start: 9:00 AM ET End: 9:00 PM ET |
Practice/Test New Software One Day – No Alternate Dates Scores do not count toward competition. All teams may participate. Only Coaches must be registered. |
| Practice Round (Critical) |
October 7 – October 20, 2026 | The software is updated, and teams must test at least one image to ensure no problems accessing the images for the competition. Re-release of training images with answer keys available. Scores do not count toward competition. All teams should participate. Only Coaches must be registered. |
| Training Round 2 (Intermediate-Level Images) |
Oct 30, 2026 – Jan 19, 2026 | Training images with answer keys are available in the ReadMe file. |
CyberPatriot 19 (2026-27) Competition Schedule
Teams may compete only during the scheduled competition windows on competition weekends. Each team must select one continuous 4-hour block within the available times to complete their competition. All times are listed in U.S. Eastern Time.
Competition Windows:
- Thursday, 9:00 AM – 10:00 PM ET
- Friday, 9:00 AM – 11:59 PM ET
- Saturday, 8:00 AM – 11:59 PM ET
- Sunday, 10:00 AM – 8:00 PM ET
Email schedule:
- Monday prior to competition: Image download instructions and links will be sent to approved Coaches by 5:00 PM ET
- Thursday (day 1 of round): StartEx email with the password to the images will be sent to approved Coaches by 9:00 AM ET
| ROUND | DATES (Dates and times may be subject to change.) |
DESCRIPTION |
| Round 1* (All Open and All Service Division teams participate) |
October 22 – 25, 2026 | Tests basics of cybersecurity skills. |
| Round 2* Open and All Service Divisions (All teams participate – even if they did not compete in Round 1) Introductory Round* Middle School Division (This is the 1st competition round for middle school teams) |
November 12 – 15, 2026 | More difficult for high school teams than Round 1. The results allow teams to be divided into skill-level tiers for the State Round. The Introductory Round tests the basics of cybersecurity skills. |
| State Round (All teams participate. Open and All Service Division teams have a clean slate) |
December 10 – 13, 2026 |
Past performance or participation in High School Rounds 1 and 2 do not count toward placement. Teams compete against other teams based on skill level for State Awards and Tier Awards. |
| Semifinals (Only teams that qualify can participate) |
January 21 – 23, 2027 (3 Days only) |
|
| National Finals | March 12-16, 2027 |
National Finalist teams compete for the National Championship in their respective divisions. |
*Image answers will be released after the round is completed.
Please refer to Chapter 4 of the CYBERPATRIOT RULES BOOK for procedures concerning severe weather and emergencies. (NOTE: Scheduling conflicts are not considered emergencies)
Rules Book
Check the competition schedule for important dates and deadlines
CyberPatriot 19 (2026-27) Rules Book
BE SURE TO REVIEW THE TECHNICAL SPECIFICATIONS (HARDWARE AND SOFTWARE).
NOTE: ALL TEAMS ARE REQUIRED TO HAVE 64-BIT HOST COMPUTERS AND OPERATING SYSTEMS TO COMPETE SUCCESSFULLY IN CYBERPATRIOT.
Sponsor: Ms. Paquette & Major Linen
Email: papaquette3@madisoncity.k12.al.us
rlinen@madisoncity.k12.al.us
Interested in being a Mentor to our teams, please reach out to one of us.
-
Competition Overview
CyberPatriot’s National Youth Cyber Defense Competition is the world’s largest cybersecurity competition and is open to all schools and approved youth organizations. Before getting started with the registration process, review this competition overview to get a better understanding of the competition!
Looking to promote the competition or get involved? Check out the competition engagement guide!
WHO
TEAM MEMBERS
- Coach: An adult (e.g. teacher, JROTC instructor, administrator, parent, etc.) approved by a participating organization to act as the administrative lead of a CyberPatriot team. The coach is the main point of contact for competition-related correspondence. A team can only have one coach.
- Competitors: Each CyberPatriot team must consist of between two and six competitors enrolled in the participating school or organization. While up to six students are permitted on each team’s roster, a maximum of five students are permitted to compete at any one time during a competition round. A one-time substitution can be made each round.
- Technical Mentor(s): IT-experienced individuals who volunteer to assist in the cybersecurity training of CyberPatriot teams. Mentors must register on the CyberPatriot website and are required to successfully complete a background check before being eligible to officially join a team. (Minimum age: 18)
- Team Assistant(s): Adult volunteers who provide non-technical support and encouragement to the team (assisting with scheduling, set-up, snacks, etc.). Team assistants must register on the CyberPatriot website and pass a background check. (Minimum age: 18)
Divisions Who? Open Division High school students from schools, scouting units, Boys and Girls Clubs, home school programs, STEM programs, etc. All Service Division High school students in JROTC Programs / Civil Air Patrol units / Naval Sea Cadet Corps units WHAT
CyberPatriot’s National Youth Cyber Defense Competition challenges teams of high school and middle school students to find and fix cybersecurity vulnerabilities in virtual operating systems. Using a proprietary competition system, teams are scored on how secure they make the system. Top teams advance through the online round of competition, and the best of the best advance to the in-person National Finals Competition.
Each team has two challenges during their four-hour competition period:- Network Security Challenge: involves finding and fixing security vulnerabilities in Windows and Linux operating systems.
- Cisco Networking Challenge: consists of an online quiz and a virtual networking exercise based on specific training materials.
HOW
CyberPatriot is designed for any student, regardless of prior cybersecurity knowledge. Training materials are available through the volunteer dashboard and through Cisco Networking Academy. Instructions for competition round preparation are emailed directly to coaches prior to each round.
Hardware & Software Requirements
WHERE
All rounds of competition, except for the National Finals Competition, take place online. Teams may meet at and compete from any location – classroom, computer lab, public library, home, etc.
Teams qualifying for the National Finals Competition travel all-expenses paid to Bethesda, MD in the spring.
WHEN
Team Registration: June 2 – October 1, 2026 (You must register a team to get access to the rounds below)
- Exhibition Rounds: Basic practice rounds available during the summer months – May to August
- Training Round: A basic practice round that includes an answer key – September
- Official Practice Round: Final practice round before the scored rounds begin – October
- Scored/Live Rounds: Competitions take place on specified weekends throughout the school year. Scored rounds are held one weekend a month from October to January. Teams choose any four-hour period during the competition weekend (Thursday, Friday, Saturday, or Sunday) to complete all their work.
-
CyberPatriot 19 (2026-27) Training Schedule
*Images and download instructions are emailed to coaches of registered teams by 5:00 PM ET the day before each round begins. All training and practice rounds run continuously from 9:00 AM ET on the first day through 11:59 PM ET on the last day, unless otherwise specified. Please see the schedule below for details.
EVENT DATES
(Dates and times may be subject to change.)DESCRIPTION Exhibition Round
(Recruiting and Practice)June 3 – August 24, 2026 Practice and Recruiting. All teams may participate. Only Coaches must be registered. Training Round 1
(Basic-Level Images)September 3 – October 5, 2026 Answer keys are available in the ReadMe file. All teams may participate. Only Coaches must be registered. Sneak Preview
(Optional Test)September 24, 2026
(1 Day Only)
Start: 9:00 AM ET
End: 9:00 PM ETPractice/Test New Software
One Day – No Alternate Dates
Scores do not count toward competition.
All teams may participate. Only Coaches must be registered.Practice Round
(Critical)October 7 – October 20, 2026 The software is updated, and teams must test at least one image to ensure no problems accessing the images for the competition. Re-release of training images with answer keys available.
Scores do not count toward competition.
All teams should participate. Only Coaches must be registered.Training Round 2
(Intermediate-Level Images)Oct 30, 2026 – Jan 19, 2026 Training images with answer keys are available in the ReadMe file. CyberPatriot 19 (2026-27) Competition Schedule
Teams may compete only during the scheduled competition windows on competition weekends. Each team must select one continuous 4-hour block within the available times to complete their competition. All times are listed in U.S. Eastern Time.
Competition Windows:
- Thursday, 9:00 AM – 10:00 PM ET
- Friday, 9:00 AM – 11:59 PM ET
- Saturday, 8:00 AM – 11:59 PM ET
- Sunday, 10:00 AM – 8:00 PM ET
Email schedule:
- Monday prior to competition: Image download instructions and links will be sent to approved Coaches by 5:00 PM ET
- Thursday (day 1 of round): StartEx email with the password to the images will be sent to approved Coaches by 9:00 AM ET
ROUND DATES
(Dates and times may be subject to change.)DESCRIPTION Round 1*
(All Open and All Service Division teams participate)October 22 – 25, 2026 Tests basics of cybersecurity skills. Round 2*
Open and All Service Divisions
(All teams participate – even if they did not compete in Round 1)
Introductory Round*
Middle School Division
(This is the 1st competition round for middle school teams)November 12 – 15, 2026 More difficult for high school teams than Round 1. The results allow teams to be divided into skill-level tiers for the State Round.
The Introductory Round tests the basics of cybersecurity skills.State Round
(All teams participate. Open and All Service Division teams have a clean slate)
December 10 – 13, 2026
Past performance or participation in High School Rounds 1 and 2 do not count toward placement. Teams compete against other teams based on skill level for State Awards and Tier Awards. Semifinals
(Only teams that qualify can participate)January 21 – 23, 2027
(3 Days only)National Finals
March 12-16, 2027National Finalist teams compete for the National Championship in their respective divisions. *Image answers will be released after the round is completed.
Please refer to Chapter 4 of the CYBERPATRIOT RULES BOOK for procedures concerning severe weather and emergencies. (NOTE: Scheduling conflicts are not considered emergencies)
-
Rules Book
Check the competition schedule for important dates and deadlines
CyberPatriot 19 (2026-27) Rules Book
BE SURE TO REVIEW THE TECHNICAL SPECIFICATIONS (HARDWARE AND SOFTWARE).
NOTE: ALL TEAMS ARE REQUIRED TO HAVE 64-BIT HOST COMPUTERS AND OPERATING SYSTEMS TO COMPETE SUCCESSFULLY IN CYBERPATRIOT.
-
Sponsor: Ms. Paquette & Major Linen
Email: papaquette3@madisoncity.k12.al.us
rlinen@madisoncity.k12.al.us
Interested in being a Mentor to our teams, please reach out to one of us.