UST Announces Winners of GenCyS 2025 CTF Competition; SRM University's Team Emerges as Winners

BusinessWire India

Thiruvananthapuram (Kerala) [India], September 16: UST, a leading AI and technology transformation solutions company, successfully concluded its GenCyS 2025 Capture the Flag (CTF) Finale at its Thiruvananthapuram campus. The competition aimed to advance cybersecurity talent through real-world, competitive problem-solving and received over 1000 entries from students and working professionals across the country.

This year’s event presented participants with challenging scenarios across a broad spectrum of domains, including Web, Forensics, Cryptography, OSINT, IoT, Boot to Root, AI Challenge, and Reverse Engineering. The top 50 teams advanced to the final round conducted at UST’s Thiruvananthapuram campus.

At the finale, Team Abu, represented by Abdur Rahman from SRM University, Tamil Nadu, emerged as the winner of the GenCyS 2025 CTF competition. The first runner-up position was secured by Team BirdsAreNotReal, comprising Vishnu AR and Sai Teja from TCS, while Team NullByteNinjas, represented by Mohit Singh Papola and Krrish Bhurani from Poornima University, Rajasthan, finished as the second runner-up. All winning teams were awarded cash prizes in recognition of their outstanding performance and problem-solving skills. The winning team received a Rs. 1.5 lakh prize (Rs. 1 lakh in cash and Rs. 50,000 worth of gift hampers) along with a conditional job opportunity at UST. The first runner-up received a Rs. 70,000 cash prize, while the second runner-up received a Rs. 30,000 cash prize.

Speaking about the event, Sunil Balakrishnan, Chief Values Officer, and Global Head of Development Center Operations, UST, said, “With initiatives like GenCyS, UST is committed to nurturing the next generation of cybersecurity professionals by creating hands-on opportunities for experimentation, innovation, and continuous learning. The Capture the Flag finale not only showcased exceptional talent and creativity among young minds but also reinforced UST’s dedication to building a collaborative, future-ready cybersecurity ecosystem rooted in excellence and shared growth. My heartfelt congratulations to all the winners and participants. Their passion and performance are a promising sign of what lies ahead for the industry.”

Muraleekrishnan Nair, Global Head of Cloud Infrastructure Services & Managing Director of CyberProof, UST, added, “Cybersecurity is at the core of overall digital transformation, and building talented people is crucial to remaining ahead of emerging threats. GenCyS 2025 highlights the innovation, technical skills, and problem-solving capabilities of the next generation of cybersecurity professionals. We are honored to host the CTF competition that offers authentic problems, supports experiential learning, and enables innovation in preparing the industry to be equipped with the talent required for a secure and resilient future. My warmest congratulations to all participants and winners on their exceptional achievements.”

Nitin Kalra, Chief Information Security Officer; James Dasher, Global Head of Cybersecurity; and Adarsh Nair, Director & Global Head – Information Security Compliance, UST, attended the finale and award ceremony.

The finale, held alongside the Global Conference, featured over 20 international speakers and attracted more than 1000 participants, further strengthening UST’s brand presence in the cybersecurity ecosystem and collaboration with industry partners.

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