On Thursday, April 11th the nonprofit Mid-Atlantic Gigabit Innovation Collaboratory (MAGIC) received the Cybersecurity Industry Resource Award at the 2019 Maryland Cybersecurity Awards. The Cybersecurity Association of Maryland, Inc. (CAMI), in partnership with EZShield, Maryland Department of Commerce and Point3 Security, hosted the 3rd Annual Maryland Cybersecurity Awards Celebration. Before a sold-out crowd of 350 attendees at the Maryland LIVE! Casino & Hotel in Hanover, MD, 15 awards were presented to Maryland companies, organizations and individuals judged to have outstanding cybersecurity products, services and/or programs or to have made a substantial contribution to Maryland’s cybersecurity industry.
MAGIC is honored and grateful to have been selected as the Cybersecurity Industry Resource Award recipient by CAMI. This award celebrates a non-cybersecurity business, organization, academic institution or government agency that has significantly contributed to Maryland’s cybersecurity industry through its products, services or mission.
“MAGIC winning the Cybersecurity Industry Resource Award exemplifies the value of the City of Westminster’s investment in MAGIC and the economic development benefit it creates, in particular related to high tech fields such as cybersecurity. This is another step forward to realizing the potential of the City of Westminster’s fiber optic project,” said Tony Chiavacci, City of Westminster Common Council member.
MAGIC is building a tech ecosystem that creates and nurtures talent, entrepreneurship, and tech businesses, elevating the Westminster gigabit community to lead the Mid-Atlantic region. MAGIC’s Capture the Flag (CTF), cybersecurity competitions are entry-level experiences for students. Teams of 2-4 students are challenged to work their way through a series of cybersecurity puzzles set up in a “jeopardy” style format to find hidden flags. MAGIC specifically focuses on CTF events for entry-level participants in a workforce development effort to prepare new and young individuals for technology and cybersecurity jobs. At the same time, these events connect talent with cyber professionals who participate as volunteer coaches during the events. By building a pool of interested cybersecurity students, MAGIC helps to bridge the cybersecurity skills gap for employers throughout Maryland.
MAGIC’s 7th CTF was held on Saturday, April 13, 2019 in Westminster, MD. This live streamed event brought together students, mentors, and employers across 8 different locations in 3 countries! MAGIC’s 4th CTF had 113 students from 39 cities in 3 states participate, the 5th CTF had 149 students from 43 cities in 7 states participate, and the 6th CTF had 124 students from 44 cities in 3 countries participated. To find out more about MAGIC’s events visit https://magicinc.org/