Students Place Second and Third in Cyber Security Competition

Six University of Scranton students, all majoring in cybercrime and homeland security, competed against students from Boston University, Endicott College, Bridgewater State University and Endicott College in a cyber security simulation competition. Teams of three students each tested their cyber hacking skills to use vulnerabilities is a cyber environment in the competition hosted by Endicott College in October.

Members of the Scranton team placing second in the competition were Frank Magistro, a member of the class of 2025 from Hawley; John McMonagle, Philadelphia, a member of the class of 2025 who is also majoring in philosophy; and Buse Onat, South Abington Township, a member of the class of 2026 who is also majoring in philosophy and is a member of the University’s Special Jesuit Liberal Arts Honors Program.

Members of the Scranton team placing third were Brian Callery, a member of the class of 2025 from Huntington, New York; Jessica Sommo, a member of the class of 2026 from Commack, New York; and Colin Straub, a member of the class of 2025 from Royersford.

The six students are in the Cyber Intelligence (CYBR 250) course taught by Sinchul Back, Ph.D., assistant professor and director of cybercrime and cybersecurity at the University.

The University began offering a bachelor’s degree in cybercrime and homeland security in the fall of 2020 and master’s degree in cybercrime investigation and cybersecurity in a fully online format in the fall of 2022.