White Hat Conference Cybercrime Investigation Competition

Boston University Metropolitan College’s Criminal Justice Graduate Programs will be hosting the 2023 White Hat Conference, supported by the US Department of Justice’s (DOJ) Bureau of Justice Assistance (BJA). This White Hat conference will be collaborating with the project “Student Computer Forensics and Digital Evidence Educational Opportunities Program” led by Boston University, Utica College, the DOJ, and the BJA. This conference is an innovative initiative aimed at providing higher-level educational and realistic environments to cybersecurity, computer forensics, and digital evidence students that allows them to develop advanced cybercrime investigation and prosecution expertise. As a part of this larger grant project, the conference will consist of the Cybercrime Investigation Competition and Student Research Paper Awards.

The 2023 competition will be held both virtually and in-person. For this competition, teams made up of college students and practitioners will engage in cybercrime investigation-focused activities centered on digital forensics. The goal of the competition is to develop effective cybercrime investigation training, test the best practices reflecting the needs of all levels of law enforcement, and establish training guidelines in computer forensics and digital evidence.

The White Hat Cybercrime Investigation Competition will serve as a pathway to evaluating and promoting common goals, needs, and interests associated with technical skills and legal expertise that lead to comprehensive high-level cybercrime investigation educational learning and skill development. BU has created an evidence-based digital case scenario framework that provides competitors with realistic scenarios that reflect major cybercrime cases.

The 2023 International White Hat teams will compete for 20 hours from May 31 to June 1, which is the first day of the White Hat Cybercrime Investigation Competition. Information regarding the competition is detailed below:

Awards:

• Winning Team: $1,000 prize
• In addition to the winning prize, each member of the winning team will be awarded a $1,000 scholarship (a total sum of $3,000 per team) to be applied to the tuition of BU MET’s Cybercrime Investigation & Cybersecurity Graduate Certificate.

Eligibility:

Undergraduate students, graduate students, and government employees in the field of criminal justice are all eligible. Each team will be made up of three members: 1) Desktop Forensics 2) Mobile Forensics, and 3) Legal Specialist.