US Women’s Cyber Team™
LOGO

Overview

Logos are powerful visual representations of an organization or a brand, telling the world its story imbued with symbols of its identity, values, and culture. The US Women’s Cyber Team logo powerfully illustrates what the team represents in today’s digital and connected world. Individually the elements symbolize the fundamental ideals and aspects of this innovative program. Unified they represent the team's collective talents coming together as a unified and powerful whole.

Colors

Red & Blue - represents Red vs. Blue or attack and defense. Red also symbolizes energy and effort. Blue symbolizes trustworthiness and reliability.
Red, white & blue, stars & stripes - symbolize the United States and its flag.
Purple - represents ‘purple’ teaming in cybersecurity and the appreciation of knowing the full spectrum of offense and defense to be stronger. It's also a regal color denoting power and prestige.
Gold - represents attaining top place in competition.

Images

Women’s silhouettes - are facing outward as a nod to the symbolism in serving as role models and bringing new women into the field. Slight variations in facial attributes demonstrate diversity across many aspects.
Torch - between them symbolizes how they are leading the way, reminiscent of Lady Liberty, which was built to celebrate, inspire, and guide for generations to come.
Morse code along the sides - spells out “Dare Greatly. Together.” representing the courage and self-assurance required to embark on international competition at the highest levels.
Key - represents cryptography and challenges, and unlocking a better future for all.
Scale - represents justice and balance, inspiring equitable participation for women in cybersecurity.
Globe - represents the international nature of competition and connections to the global cybersecurity community.
Shield - emblem of the US Cyber Games program and symbol of shield bearers that protect our nation.
Four quadrants - The four quadrants represent core aspects of the Program, including: cyber competitions and games, workforce development, networking opportunities, and collaboration.

CONGRATULATIONS

The following individuals have accepted their selection and are now committed to the US Women's Cyber Team.

Lauren Delwiche (Yale University), Lily Gross (University of North Carolina at Charlotte), Eliza Hall (University of North Georgia), Carolina Hatanpaa (Rice University), Gillian Morris (Dakota State University), Kris Noyes (Santa Fe College), Sarah Ogden (Northern Kentucky University), Alexandria Petitt (California State University, Bakersfield), Renée Schmidt (Marymount University), Shiloh Smiles (George Mason University), Elan Smolar Eisenberg (Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute), and Gwen Vongkasemsiri (Dakota State University).

READ THE ANNOUNCEMENT

ASSISTANT HEAD COACH

Chelsie Cooper

Chelsie is a two-time Marshall University (Huntington, WV) graduate with degrees specializing in Digital Forensics, Cybersecurity, Criminal Justice, and Leadership Studies. While she was pursuing her master’s degree, she was an Adjunct Faculty member for Marshall’s Cyber Forensics and Security program. Chelsie is currently pursuing a second master’s in Criminology and Sociology from Morehead State University in Kentucky.

She has experience working in both the public and private sectors. Chelsie has worked in various roles throughout her career, from web development and digital forensics to intelligence analysis. Currently, her specialty area of cybersecurity is cyber-threat intelligence (CTI) focusing on open-source intelligence (OSINT) and dark-web research.

Kunoichi Cyber Games (Special Exhibition Game)

Gender disparity in cybersecurity is a global issue that we, collectively, are turning into an opportunity. In collaboration with teams from Japan and the UK, we will host a special women’s cyber games exhibition, Kunoichi Cyber Games, at the upcoming 2024 Code Blue Conference, November 14–15 in Tokyo, Japan.

The US Women's Cyber Team will proudly represent the USA at the Kunoichi Cyber Games taking place during the conference. Female athletes will not just compete but also network with their international peers. While there, they will interact with attendees to help communicate the value of cybersecurity games in learning and sharpening skills, as well as the importance of cybersecurity careers. More information about the games will be released closer to the event.

The US Women's Cyber Team will begin virtual practice in August and continue until the games in November. The program will be an extension of the US Cyber Games. A head coach and assistant head coach will lead training and will pull from the US Cyber Games coaches and mentors as needed.

Many other countries also have all-women cyber teams. We will actively seek opportunities to cross-train and scrimmage with these teams.

National Cyber Strategy Alignment

The US Cyber Games program aligns with the National Cybersecurity strategy focusing on workforce and international cooperation, as well as the NICE Strategic Plan objective to increase understanding of multiple learning pathways that lead to cybersecurity careers.

The US Cyber Games program is supported by NICE, a program of the National Institute of Standards and Technology in the US Department of Commerce, under financial assistance award #70NANB22H102.

THE SELECTION PROCESS

The selection process for joining the US Women’s Cyber Team began with their participation in the Season IV, US Cyber Open CTF (June 3-9, 2024). Athletes were then identified (based on scores) and invited to apply to join the team. After careful consideration, 12 individuals (who identify as female) were selected and invited to join the team.

This team of highly skilled women who are passionate about increasing the number of women in cybersecurity will compete in global cybersecurity competitions and serve as important ambassadors, reaching generations of women to come with inspiration, mentorship, and guidance.

Athletes will now have the opportunity to showcase their expertise in various cybersecurity domains, including:

Workforce skills, such as teamwork, leadership, communication, and more

Technical skills, such as attack and defense, vulnerability management, patch management, forensics, cloud, and web

Plus demonstrate their ability and willingness to support outreach and mentorship opportunities globally.

Eligible athletes are US citizens who identify as female and fall within the 18–28 age bracket.