About VUW CTF
Learn about our team, mission, and the world of Capture The Flag competitions
What is VUW CTF?
Victoria University of Wellington Capture The Flag (VUW CTF) is a student-led group focused on cybersecurity education and competitions. We are dedicated to fostering a community of cybersecurity enthusiasts at Victoria University and beyond.
Our group organizes regular workshops, training sessions, and competitions to help members develop practical cybersecurity skills in a fun and engaging way. Whether you're a beginner curious about cybersecurity or an experienced professional looking to sharpen your skills, VUW CTF offers something for everyone.
Our Mission
At VUW CTF, our mission is to:
- Promote cybersecurity awareness and education
- Provide hands-on experience with real-world security challenges
- Foster a collaborative learning environment
- Prepare students for careers in cybersecurity
- Connect with the broader security community
What is a CTF?
A Capture The Flag is a cybersecurity competition where participants solve various challenges to find flags - short pieces of text hidden in various ways.
The methods used to uncover the flag are sorted into a wide range of categories:
- Web Security (web) - exploiting vulnerabilities in web applications
- Cryptography (crypto) - deciphering codes and encrypted ciphertext
- Reverse Engineering (rev) - identifying the behaviour of a program from a source
- Binary Exploitation (pwn) - interfacing with a live application to control the outcome
- Digital Forensics (forensics) - uncovering hidden messages among typical data
- Open Source Intelligence (OSINT) - using public data to find locations and tracking digital footprints
- Hardware (hardware) - hacking physical devices
- Miscellaneous (misc) - general challenges that can use techniques from any of the above
Our Board
VUW CTF is run by a dedicated team of students passionate about cybersecurity:
Tane Haines
President
First year student majoring in Cybersecurity Engineering at VUW, works as a developer outside of University.
Andy Nicholson
Vice President
First year student majoring in Cybersecurity Engineering, partial to any sort of puzzle - be it a CTF challenge or minesweeper.
Lila Scott
Secretary
First year student majoring in Electrical Engineering, with a passion for CTFs and computer graphics.
Oscar Horne
Treasurer
First year student, fascinated by computers - from hardware to the six millionth layer of software abstraction.
Kaution Burrowes
General Committee Member
First year student majoring in CompSci and Computer Graphics and Games with a passion for software development.