Techgyanathon: Capture The Flag
Hosted on UnstopFetched about 5 hours ago
Wednesday, February 4, 2026
to Tuesday, March 17, 2026
•
1 month long
CybersecurityStudentDiversity & InclusionCommunityInnovation
Student only
This hackathons is only open to students. Double check the event page for more information as this may mean only those from a particular university/country are eligible.
Event Type
in person
13
Participants
₹12,000
Prize Pool
1
Est. Projects
Organizers
About the Event:
Techgyanathon CTF 2026 is a cybersecurity competition designed to identify and challenge the most technically proficient student teams across India.
Structured as a three-stage elimination tournament, the championship evaluates participants on real-world security skills including vulnerability analysis, exploitation, digital forensics, cryptanalysis, system hardening, and open-source intelligence.
This is not a theoretical contest. It is a hands-on, adversarial, time-bound cybersecurity battleground designed to simulate modern attack surfaces and investigative scenarios.
Only the most consistent and technically sound teams will advance to the final stage.
Eligibility:
Open to Undergraduate and Postgraduate students
Inter-college teams permitted
Inter-disciplinary teams permitted
Team size: 3 members (mandatory and fixed)
A participant may be part of only one team
Competition Structure:
The championship is conducted in three progressive rounds:
Event Format & Process:
Round 1: Online Qualifier
Mode: Online
Platform: CTFd
Difficulty: Easy to Medium
Challenges: 10–15
Duration: 4hrs
The Online Qualifier serves as the national screening stage.
Teams will compete in a Jeopardy-style CTF across the following domains:
Web Exploitation
Linux / Shell & System Internals
Cryptography
Digital Forensics
OSINT
Miscellaneous Security Concepts
Evaluation Criteria:
Dynamic scoring model
First-blood bonuses (where applicable)
Leaderboard ranking
Tie-breaker based on submission time
Outcome:
Top-ranked teams will qualify for the Offline Championship Rounds conducted during Techgyanathon 2026.
All participants will receive:
Digital Participation Certificate
Access to official solution writeups post-event
Visitor entry to the Techgyanathon Fest
Round 2: Offline Main CTF
Mode: On-Campus (VPPCOE&VA, Sion, Mumbai)
Platform: CTFd
Difficulty: Medium to Hard
Challenges: 15–20
Part of a 6-hour Offline Event
Shortlisted teams will compete in a high-intensity on-site CTF environment.
The round is designed to test:
Depth of technical understanding
Tool proficiency
Reverse engineering capability
Real-time problem-solving
Team coordination under pressure
A live leaderboard will be projected throughout the competition.
Infrastructure:
Dedicated seating
Charging facilities
Stable internet connectivity
Participants must bring their own laptops.
Advancement:
Top-performing teams from this round will advance to the Final Championship Round.
Round 3: Grand Finale – Advanced Security Challenge
Mode: OfflinePlatform: TryHackMe / CTFdDifficulty: HardFinal segment of the 6-hour event
The Grand Finale is designed to separate top performers from true cybersecurity specialists.
This round will feature:
High-value, advanced-difficulty challenges
Multi-stage exploitation scenarios
Real-world inspired attack chains
Intensive time-critical tasks
A leaderboard freeze may be implemented prior to final result declaration.
Final Evaluation:
Total challenge score
Completion time
Quality and authenticity of submitted writeups
Fair-play verification
The decision of the organizing committee will be final and binding.
Total Offline Duration:
The entire offline championship (Round 2 + Round 3) will be conducted within a structured 6-hour window, including:
Onboarding
Competition runtime
Leaderboard freeze
Result declaration
Scoring & Fair Play Policy:
Dynamic scoring system
First-blood recognition
Strict flag format compliance
Zero tolerance for flag sharing
Attacking the CTF infrastructure is strictly prohibited
Automated solvers or unauthorized external assistance are not allowed
Any violation results in immediate disqualification
Writeup Submission (Offline Rounds)
Teams advancing to the offline rounds must submit concise technical writeups for solved challenges.
Writeups will be used for:
Fair-play validation
Tie-break resolution
Post-event academic reference
Rules:
Flag Sharing Is Strictly Prohibited
Attacking the Ctf Platform or Infrastructure Is Forbidden
Use of Automated Solvers, Bots, or External Help Is Not Allowed
Teams Must Follow the Fixed Flag Format
Any Form of Plagiarism or Unfair Means Will Result in Immediate Disqualification
The Organizers’ Decision Will Be Final and Binding
Bring Your Own Devices (laptop)
Entry Fee Policy:
Entry fee is non-refundable