On November 29, RNP (Rede Nacional de Ensino e Pesquisa - National Education and Research Network), jointly with the Organization of American States (OEA), Trend Micro, the Government of Canada, and Universidade do Vale do Itajaí (Univali), will hold the “OEA CyberWomen Challenge Brazil – Florianópolis”. The cyber-exercise, held by women, will take place in the Auditorium of the Campus Florianópolis of Univali and will be exclusively destined to female professionals who work in the Segment of Information Technology and Communication. The workshop is free and aims to increase visibility and stimulate the participation of this group of professionals in the activities of their areas.

The Secretariat of the Inter-American Committee against Terrorism (CICTE) of the OAS invited some institutions it has a strong partnership relationship with, and those acting in the governmental and academic scope, such as RNP, the Office of Institutional Security of the Presidency of the Republic (GSI/PR) and the Federal Public Ministry (MPF), to host the first edition of the event in the country.

During the year, the OAS has held Cyberwomen Challenge in nine other Latin American nations. In Brazil, besides the edition of Florianópolis, held by RNP, the event will have editions in Brasília and in São Paulo. Event's proposal is very inclusive and promotes the participation of all sectors, including the representation of the private sector and civil society.

The OAS "CyberWomen Challenge Brazil - Florianópolis" is an initiative held in the form of a competition, in which attacks against critical systems and networks of an organization are simulated in order to stimulate the diverse competencies of participating professionals to solve the challenges related to security of information, encouraging the increase of knowledge of prevention and response to cyber-attacks, and the culture of security in the Country.

The event focused on the female audience is part of the global trend - driven in recent years in several ICT forums such as GEANT, Educause, IT-Women, LACNIC and ISOC - to stimulate women's more active participation in the fields of technology and engineering. RNP's Safety Manager, Liliana Solha, points out the contribution of the event to Country’s technological and social development. “RNP, through initiatives like this, joins this strong global movement to promote actions that stimulate participation of women in ICT - in particular in the area of ​​cyber security - giving greater representation to these professionals, improving their technical knowledge and skills in this area, and strengthening diversity in organizations”, said Liliana.

Registration for the event “OEA CyberWomen Challenge Brazil – Florianópolis” is free and can be carried out until 11/17 through the website.