Pink Elephant Unicorn Competition comes to NU-Seattle

Pink Elephant Unicorn Competition comes to NU-Seattle

Signs with mysterious, but adorable, little pink elephant unicorns took over the Seattle campus’ 401 Terry Ave. building this weekend. They led to a room where more than 80 cyber security enthusiasts gathered to participate in Pacific Northwest National Laboratory’s “capture-the-flag” competition, titled Pink Elephant Unicorn (PEUx2.5).

In its second year, the free competition aims to raise awareness about cyber issues and bring together novices and experts to learn about hacking and defense.

“Pink Elephant Unicorn is about education, new people getting the confidence to move forward to the next step of cyber security,” said Dan Best, cyber security researcher at PNNL and founder of PEU.

The competition stayed true to this message of collaboration by creating balanced teams with a range of experience.

“We want you to meet with cyber security experts and learn cyber security basics. Don’t rage quit and run away, talk to your neighbors,” Best advised the competitors, which included participants from more than 10 universities and organizations including University of Washington-Tacoma, Green River Community College, Seattle University, and Northeastern University-Seattle’s Computer Science ALIGN program.

Computer Science students from Northeastern University – Seattle join the competition.

Cyber challenge puzzles demonstrated what makes a computer security system vulnerable, how attackers infiltrate even the most complex networks, and how to defend these systems. Participants had to share knowledge and establish camaraderie within their teams to capture the cyber flag.

Typically located in the tri-cities at Pacific Northwest National Laboratory (PNNL)’s Richland, WA headquarters, this was the first time the Pink Elephant Unicorn competition has been held in Seattle. A decision driven by PNNL’s increased presence in the Seattle region said Dave Thurman, Manager, National Security Computing Programs at PNNL, and through a partnership with Dr. Ian Gorton, Northeastern University-Seattle’s Director of Computer Science and former PNNL Laboratory Fellow. Thurman wants to see the competition continue to expand annually in both Richland and Seattle.

You may be wondering why this cyber security event is called Pink Elephant Unicorn? Well it’s quite simple, according to Founder Dan Best.

“When we were developing everyone was worried about what to call it. I said, ‘I don’t care what you call it. Call it Pink Elephant Unicorn. It’s just important that we do this training,’” said Best. “I want everyone here to have a fun time and learn about cyber security.”

The coveted Pink Elephant Unicorn trophy, a 3-D printed model of the mythical creature.

The name stuck. The coveted Pink Elephant Unicorn trophy, a 3D printed model of the mythical creature.

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