Today's challenges included various categories, each requiring specific skills: cryptography, reverse engineering, web security, hardware security on real PCB, android and mobile security, digital forensics, windows and binary exploitation. Participants demonstrated remarkable commitment and skill, making the competition intense and engaging, all in the genuine competitive spirit that has characterized this event for the past ten years.

The day started with a strong performance from the teams of Germany, Sweden, Switzerland, Australia, and Denmark. After two hours, Austria temporarily overtook its opponents, claiming first place, but was soon surpassed again by Sweden and Australia.

As the day progressed, halfway through the available hours, Denmark took the lead, pulling ahead of Italy by about 300 points. Italy, which had been in first place until that moment, dropped to second position behind Australia. Switzerland and Sweden followed closely behind.

With three hours left in the competition, it was evident that the race was far from over: Poland, which had never been on the podium before, climbed to the top of the leaderboard, pulling ahead of Germany in second place by just over 100 points, with Canada in third. However, two hours before the end, the leaderboard was "frozen", preventing participants from seeing the final standings. At that moment, Poland was still leading, followed by Germany and Austria. At 6 PM, 8 hours after the start, Gaspare Ferraro officially concluded the competition.

In the afternoon, behind the scenes, several interviews moderated by Davide Maiorca were recorded with prominent figures from ENISA, Team Europe, ECSC Executive Committee and team leaders from the various countries competing this year. During these interviews, participants shared not only their experiences in the field of cybersecurity but also core values such as collaboration, innovation, and determination, which are essential for tackling the challenges of the sector. These interviews were streamed online today and will be available individually in the coming days on the ECSC 2024 website.

Tomorrow, the second day of competitions will take place, featuring a completely different setup compared to today, while Friday will see the closing ceremony and awards presentation, as everyone eagerly awaits to discover which team will triumph in this exciting challenge.