Challenge Information

• Type of Challenges and Samples
  • Binary Exploitation
  • Cryptography
  • Forensics
  • Reverse Engineering
  • Web Exploitation
  • Miscellaneous
• * All the challenges in this contest are bilingual (i.e. Trad. Chinese and English) Past Challenges https://github.com/hkcert-ctf/CTF-Challenges
• Arrangement
• The participating teams will receive an email from the organiser one day before the qualifying round, containing the login account for the platform and the platform link.
• Qualification to Final Round
• The top 5 teams with the highest scores in each category of the qualifying round, after reviewed by the organiser (including identity verification and other necessary check), will be qualified to the finals.
• * If a team waives their qualification for the finals, fails to pass the review or is disqualified for any other reason, the qualification for the finals will be passed on to the next highest-scoring team in the qualifying round of that group.
• * In the event of a tie in scores, the qualification for advancement will be determined by the time the teams earned their last score in the qualifying round, with the team that scored earlier being given priority.

• Type of Challenges and Samples
• Participants are required to utilise any information technology and cybersecurity knowledge.
• * All the challenges in this contest are bilingual (i.e. Trad. Chinese and English).
• Arrangement
• Physical competition, the venue will be announced soon.
• * Each participating teams will share one account to participate.
• • 1. Secondary School
  • Each participating team must designate a teacher from their school to accompany them to the finals.
  • 2. Tertiary Institution / Open Category
  • Participants who are under the age of 18 on the day of the finals must be accompanied by a parent or guardian to attend the finals.
  • 3. International Category
  • • The organiser will provide each participant^{(note 1)} accommodation at a designated hotel and a subsidy of round-trip transportation from their point of departure to Hong Kong. The subsidy amount from different points of departures is shown in Appendix A.
    • Apart from the designated accommodation and the transportation subsidy reimbursed by the organiser, all other expenses must be borne by the participants themselves.
    • Additional teams may be invited by the organizing committee to compete at the Final Round of the International Category, at the discretion of the organizing committee and in accordance with the partnership agreements and criteria established for the Tournament. Teams receiving such an invitation will not be eligible for the official ranking and prize in the final.
    • The organiser reserves the final right of interpretation and decision regarding hotel arrangements.
  • ^{(Note 1)}: Only participants who reside outside Hong Kong

• The organiser will provide power (British Style, 220V) and wired Internet services.
• All participants must bring their own laptops, install the necessary software, bring LAN adaptor, power charger and power cords to the competition. The organiser will not provide any additional equipment or software.

Secondary School will receive

• Gold: HKD 10,000 Shopping Voucher (Per Team)
• Silver: HKD 8,000 Shopping Voucher (Per Team)
• Bronze: HKD 6,000 Shopping Voucher (Per Team)
• * In circumstances beyond the control of the organiser where shopping vouchers cannot be provided, the organiser reserves the right to substitute the shopping vouchers with gifts of no less than equivalent value without further explanation or notice.
• * Each winning school will receive a trophy (i.e. the school of Gold, Silver and Bronze winners, and the winning school of the “Supportive School Award” and “Best School Award”)

Each Category of Tertiary Institution/ Open Category/ International Category will receive

• Gold: HKD 16,000 (Per Team)
• Silver: HKD 13,000 (Per Team)
• Bronze: HKD 11,000 (Per Team)

• Each participating team will be named as per the rule specified under the “Team Name” section. The organisers reserve the right to substitute any name with another name at any time without prior notice. The participants shall not raise objections.
• The whole team is disqualified if any member of the team is not eligible.
• All works of the team in qualifying round and final round must be contributed by eligible and registered members of the team.
• The decisions of the organisers on the contest results will be final and the results of the contest will be published on https://ctftime.org. The participants shall not raise objections to the contest results or rankings.
• The number of team members attending the Final Round must not be less than half of the number of members originally registered for the Qualifying Round. Failure to meet this minimum may result in disqualification from the Final Round and ineligibility for any transportation subsidy.
• All teams must register with accurate information in the registration system. If any inaccuracies or omissions are found, the team may be disqualified. For teams advancing to the Final Round, they are required to submit the identity document of the members, the organising committee will verify that the submitted information matches the registered detail exactly.
• Each participant can only enrol to one team and submit one application and agree to and comply with all the terms and conditions as well as the rules of the competition.
• Any dispute regarding the terms and condition, the organiser reserves the right to make the final decision.

• The recipient must provide the required documents as specified in the “Terms and Conditions” or any relevant supporting documents requested by the organiser.
• The recipient must provide the required information for bank remittance as specified by the designated financial institution. The recipient must be a qualified individual to whom the bank can legally remit fund according to its regulations.
• 1. The recipient must agree to accept the prize in commonly accepted currencies such as CNY, EUR, GBP, JPY, HKD or USD.
  2. If the recipient’s bank does not support these commonly accepted currencies, the transfer may not be processed, and the prize may be forfeited.
  3. In the case of overseas remittance, the exchange rate at the time of remittance of the relevant amount shall apply.
  4. If the winner falls under restrictions based on Hong Kong’s Trade policy or other export control regulations, the bank may be unable to process the remittance.
  5. The recipient shall be solely responsible for any bank charges or fees incurred by the recipient’s financial institution during the receipt of the prize. The organiser is not responsible for refunding or covering any such fees.
• The organisers reserve the right to change the prize, transportation subsidy and accommodation at any time without prior notice. Any dispute regarding the prize, transportation subsidy and accommodation, the organiser reserves the right to make the final decision.


• Responsibilities of the Team Leader
  • The prize and transportation subsidy will be disbursed solely to the team leader designated by the team. The responsibilities of the team leader are as follows:
  • 1. Distribute the corresponding prize and subsidy to the eligible team members.
    2. Must not allocate any portion of the prize or subsidy to individuals who are not entitled to it.
    3. Contact team members and collect the required documents as specified in the “Terms and Conditions” or by the organiser.
    4. If any member’s information or documents do not meet the relevant requirements, the organiser reserves the right to revoke the prize or subsidy for the entire team.
  • The team must carefully select and designate a leam leader during registration. The organiser assumes no responsibility for the distribution of the prize or subsidy among team members.


• Prize
  • If the individual fails to submit any necessary information and supporting documents requested by the organiser, or if the individual cannot be contacted or confirmed due to such failure, such individual is disqualified as a reward recipient, and the prize will not be delivered. In addition, no prize will be awarded if the remittance cannot be made at the discretion of the remitting bank in Hong Kong. The organiser shall not be liable to any such failure.
  • In circumstances beyond the control of the organiser where cash prizes cannot be provided, the organiser reserves the right to substitute the cash prizes with gifts of no less than equivalent value without further explanation or notice.
  • Any person who qualifies for the prize for the Tournament shall forfeit the right to receive the prize unless he/she completes the procedures required by this Rules and the organizing committee within one (1) month from the date of receipt of the notice from the organizing committee regarding the remittance of the prize money. If the date of receipt of the notification is not clear, it will be deemed to have been received after three (3) business days from the date the organizing committee sends (including by email) the above notification.
  • The organising committee reserves the right to cancel the prize for any player who does not comply with the rules and conditions outlined above


• Transportation Subsidy and Accommodation
  • Only participants who are accepted by the organiser to the Final Round of the International Category and reside outside Hong Kong are eligible to receive a transportation subsidy and accommodation. They are not guaranteed and are subject to the discretion of the organising committee and the availability of funding.
  • Participants must submit their travel itinerary (including but not limited to flight bookings, boarding passes or other proof of travel, or other proof of travel) for supporting documents.
  • Participants are solely responsible for obtaining the necessary travel documents, including but not limited to visas or passports. The organiser is not responsible for any travel restrictions, delays, or denials due to personal or governmental reasons.
  • If the participant is unable to attend the event or cancels their travel, the transportation subsidy will not be granted or reimbursed.
  • The transportation subsidy is intended solely to support participants in attending the event, and not to be used for leisure or unrelated travel.
  • Participants must comply with all relevant rules and guidelines as set forth by the organiser. Any breach of these guidelines, including but not limited to misrepresentation of eligibility, failure to adhere to the supervision requirements, violation of travel and accommodation policies, or deliberate cheating in obtaining the transportation subsidy, may result in disqualification or forfeiture of benefits, and may lead to legal action by HKPC for the wrongdoing, including claims for compensation. The organiser retains the authority to request additional documentation or clarification from participants at any stage of the tournament.
  • The organising committee reserves the right to amend, revoke, or withhold the transportation subsidy at any time, for any reasons, including but not limited to changes in team composition, breach of rules, or incomplete documentation.

• Example: A participant from London (LHR) travels to Hong Kong for the event and then to Mainland China. The subsidy will be based on the round-trip fare from the Mainland to Hong Kong, not from London to Hong Kong.