Sejong, South Korea―A local cybersecurity event that emerged from humble origins three years ago in a South Korean city has grown into an international gathering, welcoming over 1,300 college students from around the world as participants.
HackTheon Sejong is an annual conference hosted by Sejong City, located two hours’ drive from central Seoul and serving as the de facto administrative capital of South Korea. The city houses 23 central administrative agencies, 22 affiliated organizations, and several dozen public institutions.
The event’s name, HackTheon, combines ‘hacker’ and ‘pantheon,’ referencing an ancient Roman temple dedicated to the gods, which aligns with the city’s vision of gathering the world’s top cybersecurity talents in Sejong. College students participate in a jeopardy-style Capture-The-Flag (CTF) competition, showcasing their skills to answer questions and achieve the highest score among the 40 teams that reach the final round. These teams gathered at the Government Complex Sejong Convention Center from eight countries, totaling 146 participants.
“We saw a 53% increase in global participation compared to last year,” said Choi Min-ho, Mayor of Sejong City, during the opening ceremony of HackTheon Sejong on Wednesday. “We are thrilled to have you here as our conference continues to grow rapidly year by year.”
This year, Silicon Valley-based nonprofit organization SVCSI (Silicon Valley Cybersecurity Institute) merged its annual event ‘SVCC’ with HackTheon Sejong, enhancing international security dialogue in the Korean city. Additionally, the Korea Institute of Information Security and Cryptology (KIISC), the nation’s leading academic group in cybersecurity, co-hosted the city’s conference and held its summer event at the same venue. With these collaborations, HackTheon Sejong has expanded into a week-long conference, transforming it into a ‘cybersecurity week.’ Last year, HackTheon lasted for two days.
Vikrant Nanda, Senior Program Manager in Security & Privacy at Google, took the stage as the first keynote speaker, sharing his experiences in the realms of security, privacy, and risk. Additionally, scholars from Spain, Singapore, Japan, and the United Kingdom attended HackTheon in person to present their research findings. Among them were David Megias from Open University of Catalonia, Hao Qin from National University of Singapore, Ayesha Khalid from Queen’s University Belfast, Rajkumar Kettimuthu from Argonne National Lab, and Yoshimichi Tanizawa from Toshiba.
Quantum computing was a major topic discussed by many of these experts, occupying half-day sessions on June 19. From the Korean side, Kang You-sung of the Electronics and Telecommunications Research Institute (ETRI) presented the country’s significant efforts in the transformation to post-quantum cryptography (PQC).
In September 2023, Mayor Choi announced an initiative to establish a ‘quantum village’ within Sejong City. Choi emphasized that Sejong City’s substantial research infrastructure and development sites make it an ideal location for this future-leading initiative in quantum technology.
Related articles:
- South Korea announces master plan for post-quantum cryptography
- South Korea selects eight candidates for national post quantum cryptography standards
- South Korea embraces quantum cryptographic devices in public sector
- Quantum cryptographic device passes South Korea’s security testing for the first time
- “Industry-academia cooperation is key to transition to post-quantum cryptography,” national cyber chief says
- Opinion: Understanding quantum security
