CTFs are awesome for honing your cyber skills, but let's face it: they're not always a true reflection of real-life challenges. It's time to change that.
MCPS HSF is designed to be more realistic, with the winning teams chosen based on their score and writeup. We want to see how you think, not just how fast you can solve a problem.
And fun? We've got that covered too! Each year's competition revolves around a mystery and there's always at least one physical challenge (last year it was lockpicking).
What is an HSF?
An HSF is a flavor of a CTF. The challenges are connected to a theme, and the goal is not to get the most flags, but to create the most convincing writeup.
What is a writeup?
A writeup is a collection of all the evidence and flags you have collected, and how you found them. Check out b1c's excellent writeup for MCPS HSF 2023.
What are the divisions?
The competition is divided into a novice and advanced division. The novice division is for beginners, and the advanced division is for more experienced hackers.
Do I need experience?
No! This competition is for people for all skill levels. Also, winners are determined by the writeup and number of flags.
Are there prizes?
Yes! We had drones and GoPros last year. The top three in both the novice and advanced division win prizes.
I have more questions!
Join our Discord server below and ask away! We'll be happy to answer any questions you have.
