Digital Forensics Team Competes in Regionals

The team won the qualifiers for the competition on Jan. 27.

ALBANY, N.Y. (March 8, 2018) – The University’s Digital Forensics team will compete next weekend in the Northeast Collegiate Cyber Defense Competition (CCDC). The event will take place March 16-18 at the University of New Hampshire.

The CCDC is a national competition in which students are scored on their ability to detect and respond to simulated threats to their hardware and software while simultaneously attending to their business's needs, according to Damira Pon, the team’s faculty advisor.

She said this year was the first time that the team passed the qualifiers, which took place on Jan. 27.

“The competition requires the dedication of a large amount of personal time, and resources outside of the classroom, in order to gain the skills needed to participate in the competition,” said Pon, who is also the director of student services in the School of Business’ Digital Forensics Program.

The team has surpassed teams from Harvard, Dartmouth, Syracuse and New Haven, among others, according to Anthony Capece, a digital forensics major on the team.

“We are so proud that in just two years we’ve achieved this level of competition, which is a testament to the Digital Forensics program," he said. “This is a clear indicator that amazing things are still to come for cyber defense at UAlbany.”

The students are prepared for the competition because of the practical experience they receive on a daily basis, said Sanjay Goel, the team's second faculty advisor.

“All of our classrooms are in the lab, so the students are used to working hands on,” Goel said, a business professor and cybersecurity expert. “In two years, we’ve been able to achieve what has taken others ten because of the quality of the program and the dedication of the advisors and students.”

If the team wins the regionals, the students will go on to compete in the national championship in April.

“I am delighted that these talented students applied their knowledge in the classroom to advance in this competition,” said James Stellar, provost and senior vice president for academic affairs. “It not only demonstrates their skills, but also the mentorship by our outstanding faculty, such as Professor Goel.”

Digital Forensics Team

• Caitlyn Doherty (Captain)
• Eric Carpenter
• William Smith
• Anthony Capece
• Amanda Lubeskie
• Cheng Lin
• Amy Chan
• Jonathan Matza
• Alternates: Michael Wilder, Michael Lim

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