Janssen sponsor new cybersecurity category at Worldskills competition

Cork-based Janssen Sciences Ireland UC have announced sponsorship of a new cybersecurity category in a national competition taking place this month.

The pharmaceutical company, which is part of the Johnson & Johnson group, announced sponsorship of a new cybersecurity category in the Worldskills Ireland competition, which will debut at the upcoming national Worldskills final from September 13-15 at the RDS in Dublin.

The Worldskills competition involves students and young professionals across a range of industries battling it out for the coveted 2022 Silver Medal.

Janssen’s sponsorship means cybersecurity students and young professionals will now join the competition, facing challenges around cybersecurity attack, defence, and investigation.

General manager at Janssen Sciences Ireland, Gary Hartnett, said that the company embraces “cutting-edge science, digital technology, and new ways of thinking” to improve patient outcomes, and is “delighted” to support the new Worldskills category and invest in “education and developing a talent pipeline for the future”.

Worldskills Ireland expert for cybersecurity, Dr George O’Mahony, and Mr Dylan Smyth are both lecturers in the Department of Computer Science at Munster Technological University, and are leading in the development of the new cybersecurity category.

Preparation

To prepare the competitors for the upcoming national final, the lecturers utilised a sophisticated cybersecurity infrastructure called a “cyber-range”, which simulates cybersecurity attacks. It is available through Cyber Skills, Ireland’s only cybersecurity education provider to use this state-of-the-art infrastructure.

Over the course of 2022’s Worldskills events in Ireland, a team of two will be selected to compete on the world stage. The pair will be the first-ever Irish team to compete in the cyber security skill at the global WorldSkills competition special edition, which is to be held in Korea in October.

Chair of Cybersecurity at Munster Technological University, Prof Donna O’Shea, said that the new category sponsored by Janssen is “a fantastic opportunity for Ireland to showcase our talented young professionals on a global stage”.