Two teams from the Isle of Man Code Club have been invited to take part in the CyberCenturion National Finals this year.

This is the first time two Manx teams have got into the top 15 spots in the competition, scoring some of the best scores out of the 400 teams taking part this year.

Each year, teams from Code Club participate in CyberCenturion, a national cyber education initiative for 12- to 18-year-olds across the British Isles.

The programme is designed to e motivate students to pursue further education and careers in science and cybersecurity.

This year’s competition has been running since October 2021 and the teams have taken part in three competitive rounds where they faced various cybersecurity challenges to test their skills and abilities.

In each session, the teams had a number of computers to protect; removing vulnerabilities and hardening the machines to make them more secure.

At the end of the three sessions, one of the Manx senior teams was placed second overall and one of the junior teams achieved second place in the junior mixed team category.

The senior team representing the Isle of Man is composed of four boys from different schools around the island: Aaron Rielly, Arthur Owenson, Luka Warren and Siddharth Muthu Pandian participating together under the team name CyberAces.

This team had won the junior category three years ago and came second in the CyberCenturion National Finals last year.

The junior team consists of Alexander Owenson, Aristea Owenson, Brodie Millar, Cameron Bazley and Phelim Bullock.

A total of 23 Manx teenagers took part in the contest, learning aspects of cybersecurity, networking and operating systems as part of their training and preparation.

Owen Cutajar from Code Club said: ’We are delighted that these two teams managed to qualify for the final.

’This success is a testament to how hard they worked and the effort they put in. Digital skills are essential in today’s world and cybersecurity is a growing area which is becoming increasingly important.

’This competition gives these teams an opportunity to shine, learn new skills and demonstrate outstanding teamwork.’

The finals will be held in the UK in April.

Saturday Code Club sessions are held at Eagle Lab in Douglas between 4pm and 6pm every Saturday and are free for anyone to attend.