Pointer Overflow CTF is UW–Stevens Point’s annual multi-bracket online jeopardy capture-the-flag, designed for learners and newcomers as well as experienced players. The 2026 contest opened September 27, and new challenge waves release weekly through November, so there is still time to register individually or as a team and catch up.
The National Cyber League is a learning-centered, CTF-style competition for high school and college students. Players train in the Gymnasium, then compete individually and in teams of up to seven on challenges covering OSINT, cryptography, forensics, network traffic, log analysis, web applications, password cracking, scanning, and exploitation. Every player earns a Scouting Report that maps skills for internships and hiring. Regular registration is open through October 9 ($45); late registration runs October 10–13.
An introductory capture-the-flag night from TryHackMe and GopherHack, the University of Minnesota’s CTF club, for U of M students interested in cybersecurity and hacking. This event is open to University of Minnesota students only; RSVP through the event page.
Hack the Gap is a one-day hackathon focused on increasing gender diversity in tech. It is open to all experience levels: pitch an idea or join a team on site, build something new during the day, and demo in the afternoon. Breakfast and lunch are provided, and cash prizes are split among winning team members.
MinneAnalytics and the Midwest Undergraduate Data Analytics Competition invite undergraduate and graduate teams to tackle a real client problem—this year, food insecurity with The Food Group. Teams of up to five students plus a faculty advisor analyze the data for about a month, then pitch their models to industry judges on October 17. Divisions include Graduate, Undergraduate, and Novice, with cash prizes for analytic acumen, serendipitous discovery, and overall prediction. Colleges outside Minnesota are welcome; travel lodging may be available for teams coming two hours or more.
CyberPatriot is the Air & Space Forces Association’s National Youth Cyber Defense Competition, the largest K–12 cyber defense contest in the United States. Middle and high school teams harden virtual networks across scored weekend rounds from October through the state round in December, with semifinals in January and National Finals in March 2027. Open, All Service, and Middle School divisions give Wisconsin, Illinois, and Minnesota schools a clear path into hands-on systems administration and cybersecurity. Teams must be created by October 1 and competitor rosters completed by October 21.
BSides Peoria’s inaugural on-site jeopardy capture-the-flag covers web, pwn, crypto, forensics, reversing, and full-pwn challenges, with teams of up to two. A BSides Peoria conference attendee pass is required. The conference also hosts a Vishing Challenge, the Zero Trust social engineering game, and a Phishing Simulation.
CCDC is the premier team-based collegiate cyber defense competition: students operate and defend a live business network while a professional red team attacks and judges add business injects. The Midwest season, organized by the CAE EPNC at Moraine Valley Community College in Palos Hills, Illinois, draws two- and four-year schools from Illinois, Indiana, Iowa, Kentucky, Michigan, Minnesota, Missouri, Ohio, and Wisconsin. Practice invitationals run October 24, November 7, and November 14, 2026. State qualifiers follow in 2027—Indiana/Minnesota on January 30; Ohio/Michigan/Kentucky/Iowa/Wisconsin on February 6; Illinois/Missouri on February 13; and a Wildcard on February 20—with the Midwest Regional on March 19–20, 2027 and National CCDC in April 2027.
The International Collegiate Programming Contest Mid-Central regional is the algorithmic programming qualifier for Illinois colleges, including the Greater Chicago area. Teams of three full-time students race the clock to solve as many problems as they can; regional finalists advance toward the North America Championship and World Finals. Coaches register teams through ICPC Global. Registration open and deadline dates will be posted on the official regional site when they are confirmed.
The North Central ICPC regional welcomes collegiate programming teams from Minnesota, Wisconsin, Iowa, the Dakotas, Nebraska, Kansas, and the Upper Peninsula of Michigan. Three-student teams compete on-site to solve real-world algorithmic problems under pressure. Top regional teams advance to the North America Championship. Recent North Central finalists have included University of Wisconsin and University of Minnesota squads.
CSAW (see-SAW) is the world’s largest student-run cybersecurity games series, now in its 23rd year. High school through doctoral students compete in capture-the-flag and other applied security challenges hosted by NYU Tandon and partner universities. The 2026 in-person games run November 12–14, with an entry-level jeopardy CTF that historically opens with a September qualifying round. Midwest students can compete online in quals and watch the official site for finalist notifications.
The U.S. Department of Energy’s CyberForce Competition brings collegiate blue teams to the Chicago suburbs to defend simulated energy infrastructure. Up to 100 teams of 4–6 students from the same university work a realistic critical-infrastructure scenario built by DOE national laboratories. Rolling acceptances opened July 20, 2026, with student registration running through the end of September. Volunteer roles (red, green, scoring, logistics) are also posted on the official 2026 competition page.
MadHacks is Wisconsin’s largest in-person hackathon, a 24-hour event at UW–Madison open to all disciplines and backgrounds. Applications for the fall 2026 event are open on the official site.
SOC Wars is the public version of Torq’s “Torq Wars” competition, run by Torq, the AI SOC and security automation company. It is a blue-team capture-the-flag played inside the Torq AI SOC Platform: teams of two work live cases on a 90-minute clock, with every objective scored on a live leaderboard. No Torq experience is required—bring a laptop and a teammate, or get matched at the door. Swag for everyone and prizes for the top three teams; RSVP on the official page.
Iowa State hosts live blue-team cyber defense challenges in Coover Hall, where teams build and defend a network against a professional red team from 8 a.m. to 4 p.m. Saturday. The Community College CDC is open to community colleges in Iowa and surrounding states—including Wisconsin, Illinois, and Minnesota. The International CDC on February 6, 2027 is open to schools in Iowa and neighboring states as well as international partners. Scenarios drop about four weeks before each event; contact [email protected] to field a team.
MinneHack bills itself as the biggest hackathon in Minnesota: 24 hours of hacking organized by ACM UMN at the University of Minnesota. Registration is open; the detailed schedule has not been announced yet.
HackIllinois is UIUC’s flagship student hackathon, held in person in Urbana as a Major League Hacking event. Detailed schedule and registration information will be posted on the official site; an interest form is open now.
CypherCon, Wisconsin’s largest hacker conference, returns for its 10th year with capture-the-flag competitions, security challenges, puzzles, and contests alongside more than 100 talks. Pre-conference workshops run March 22–23 and BSidesMKE follows on March 26 as part of “InfoSec Spring Break.” CTF-specific details have not been posted yet.
BSidesMKE is Milwaukee’s locally organized, community-driven security conference and the closing day of “Hacker Spring Break” after CypherCon. The program includes a CTF and villages alongside talks; student and first-timer ticket pricing is available.
SecretCon is Minnesota’s hacker and cybersecurity conference, with two days of hands-on hacking, AI security, privacy, hardware, and CTFs for security pros, builders, and first-time hackers in the Twin Cities.
BSides312 is Chicago’s non-profit Security BSides conference, held the day after THOTCON. Alongside two talk tracks, attendees can test their skills in the CTF Hacking Challenge, plus lockpicking, game shows, and a Linux village.
NetWars is SANS Institute’s hands-on cyber range tournament, with Core and DFIR tracks run at training events and online. Core NetWars now includes AI security challenges and is the path to the invitation-only Tournament of Champions. Standalone registration is available at many events even if you are not taking a SANS course. Check the official upcoming-tournament calendar for Core, DFIR, and invite-only North America sessions.
