About WRCCDC
The Western Regional Collegiate Cyber Defense Competition (WRCCDC) is the premier collegiate cybersecurity competition serving California, Nevada, Arizona, Utah, Idaho, Oregon, Washington, Montana, Wyoming, Colorado, New Mexico, and parts of Texas. As part of the National CCDC program, WRCCDC provides students with hands-on experience defending corporate networks against professional red team attackers.
Competition Format
The Scenario
You and your team have just been hired as the IT and security staff for a company. You inherit an existing network infrastructure with limited documentation, unknown security posture, and potentially vulnerable systems. Your job: secure everything, keep services running, and handle business operations - all while under active attack from a professional red team.
Key Elements
Blue Team (Competitors)
- 8 teams compete simultaneously
- Each team has 6-8 students
- Teams must maintain critical business services
- Handle business injects and customer requests
- Defend against red team attacks
- Document actions and create security reports
Red Team (Professional Penetration Testers)
- Industry professionals with extensive experience
- Use real-world attack techniques and tools
- Test defenses throughout the competition
- Provide realistic adversary pressure
- Offer educational feedback post-competition
White Team (Competition Officials)
- Ensure fair play and rule compliance
- Monitor scoring and infrastructure
- Adjudicate disputes
- Provide clarifications when needed
Business Injects
- Realistic business tasks and requests
- Customer support scenarios
- Executive requests
- Compliance requirements
- Crisis response situations
Qualification Process
Online Qualifier
- Date: Saturday, February 6, 2027
- Outcome: Top 8 teams advance to regionals
Regional Finals
- Dates: TBD
- Outcome: Winner advances to NCCDC Nationals
Eligibility
To compete in WRCCDC, teams must:
- Be from accredited institutions in the Western Region
- Have students currently enrolled (undergrad or grad)
- Register during the registration period (see schedule)
- Comply with all NCCDC and WRCCDC rules
- Complete required paperwork and agreements
What to Expect
Day 1: Setup and Initial Defense
- Team check-in and orientation
- Network familiarization period (1 hour)
- Competition begins
- Initial service checks and hardening
- Red team reconnaissance phase
Day 2: Full Operations
- Continued service maintenance
- Active red team engagement
- Business inject handling
- Incident response activities
- Team strategy adjustment
Day 3: Final Push and Awards
- Morning competition hours
- Final scoring period
- Network shutdown procedures
- Awards ceremony
- Networking with sponsors and volunteers
Preparation Tips
Technical Skills to Develop
- Operating System Hardening - Windows and Linux security
- Network Security - Firewalls, IDS/IPS, network segmentation
- Service Management - Web servers, databases, email, DNS
- Incident Response - Log analysis, forensics, malware detection
- Scripting and Automation - Bash, PowerShell, Python
- Security Tools - Wireshark, nmap, Splunk, etc.
Team Organization
- Assign roles - System admins, network security, incident response
- Develop procedures - Change control, documentation, communication
- Practice teamwork - Work together under pressure
- Create runbooks - Quick reference guides for common tasks
- Plan communication - How to coordinate during competition
Resources
- Review past competition scenarios in our archive
- Participate in invitational events
- Attend WCCOMPS workshops and training sessions
- Practice with online labs and CTFs
- Study NIST Cybersecurity Framework
Past Winners
WRCCDC has crowned exceptional teams over the years:
- 2024: Stanford University
- 2023: UC Irvine
- 2022: Stanford University
- 2021: UC Irvine (Virtual)
- 2020: Cal Poly Pomona
See full history and detailed results in competition history above
Registration
Registration opens in late October and closes in mid-January. Check our schedule page for exact dates and registration links.
Steps to Register:
- Form a team at your institution
- Ensure eligibility requirements are met
- Complete online registration during the window
- Submit required documentation
- Pay registration fee (if applicable)
- Receive confirmation and competition details
Sponsorship Opportunities
WRCCDC relies on generous sponsors to provide this experience to students. Sponsors receive significant visibility and recruitment opportunities. See our Sponsor page for details.
Questions?
- Email: info@wrccdc.org
- Director: Brandon Brown - brandon.brown@wrccdc.org
- Website: wrccdc.org
Connect
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