An Irish team of cybersecurity experts has triumphed over Australia, Korea, Hong Kong, Chinese Taipei (Taiwan), and Singapore to take gold at the WorldSkills Global Skills Challenge 2024, hosted by WorldSkills Australia.

Mark Drinan and Luke Woodside, guided by Dr George O’Mahony of Munster Technological University (MTU), overcame fierce competition from several nations renowned for their cybersecurity expertise. 

L-R: Mark Drinan, Luke Woodside, Dr George O'Mahony.

The victory marks the first time an Irish team has triumphed in an official World Skills Competition in Cybersecurity, with Ireland first entering the cybersecurity skill in 2021. Team Ireland is now setting its sights on the upcoming WorldSkills International Cybersecurity Competition (Skill 54) in Lyon this September as part of WorldSkills Team Ireland. 

The challenge

As part of the Global Skills Challenge, the teams were put into the scenario of a real-world cyber-attack on a fictitious company that was started based on a rogue malicious USB and insider threat.

Over three days the teams had to run digital forensics on an infected end-user computer, each team also had to create reports including a technical brief, a timeline of the cyber attack, a report for the media and a report for the board of directors. This competition was about accurately identifying what happened and providing real-world preventative measures and recommendations.

The team

Team Cybersecurity for WorldSkills Ireland consists of Mark Drinan, a recent graduate from the Cybersecurity Master's at MTU and an engineer at IBM, and Luke Woodside, a graduate from TUS (Technological University Shannon) and managing director of Woodside Networks.

The duo beat stiff competition in regional competitions to make the national team. The team was trained and mentored by MTU Cybersecurity lecturer and WorldSkills Ireland expert for cybersecurity Dr George O’Mahony. 

The team trained on and competed nationally using MTU’s Cyber Range, a state-of-the-art cybersecurity platform unique to Ireland. The facility enables simulations of cyber attacks on virtual organisations, providing invaluable training for students, researchers, and industry professionals without risking real-world damage or outages.

Professor Maggie Cusack, president of MTU, said: “MTU’s leadership in cybersecurity education, research and innovation, mentorship and training ensures that our graduates and trainees have the skills, capabilities and confidence to succeed at the highest levels in Ireland and globally. On behalf of everyone at MTU, I am delighted to congratulate our Team Ireland members on their extraordinary achievement of winning gold at the WorldSkills cybersecurity challenge.”

Dr George O’Mahony, cybersecurity lecturer and researcher at Cyber Skills at MTU and WorldSkills Ireland Expert Skill 54 – Cybersecurity, said: “This win is a great example of the work Ireland's cybersecurity academics and experts are doing in preparing young Irish professionals to compete on the world stage. It highlights the calibre of talent being produced and the strong pipeline of skilled cybersecurity professionals available in Ireland. The win is a great boost to the team and a big step along their training and upskilling journey. The work Mark and Luke have put in has been a testament to their drive and determination.”

High-quality, practical cybersecurity education

Mark Drinan, Team Ireland, said: “I am incredibly proud to represent my country and bring home a gold medal for Ireland. This medal represents Ireland's commitment to investing in high-quality, practical cybersecurity education.”

Michael Hourihan (MTU), WorldSkills Ireland official delegate, said: “This win highlights the positive outcomes that result when skills and technological careers are recognised and promoted at national and international levels. Congratulations to our competitors Luke Woodside and Mark Drinan and to our Cyber Security expert George O’Mahony.”

Ray English (TUD), WorldSkills Ireland chair-technical delegate, said: “The Global Skills Challenge held in Melbourne and hosted by WorldSkills Australia was a great platform for the WorldSkills Ireland Team of Luke Woodside, Mark Drinan and cyber security expert George O’Mahony to test their preparedness for the Olympics of Skills in Lyon in September 2024. We encourage ICT students to start their Skills Olympics journey by participating in the WorldSkills Ireland National Competitions this September, test your skills against the best nationally and possibly internationally.”