Cyber Quest competition draws in young talents

Abu Dhabi: One of the UAE’s most anticipated student competitions began in the capital on Sunday with participation from 90 students from around the country.

The fourth edition of Cyber Quest competition, organised by the National Electronic Security Authority (NESA), began at the Abu Dhabi National Exhibition Centre (ADNEC) and will run until April 12.

The competition is designed to develop skills while raising awareness about the importance of cyber security among the UAE youth through an innovative programme that includes interactive workshops and talks.

The first day included a session titled “Cyber talks” which addressed many topics relating to cyber security and its importance in light of the growing digital attacks.

The students that Gulf News spoke with seemed to have been inspired to develop their projects in order to find a solution to real life issues.

“I learnt, during a field trip, that we (Emiratis) have to work on our agriculture so we don’t stay reliant on oil. That’s why we have developed this smart greenhouse,” said Saeed Masood Al Mansoori, a 17-year-old student from Abu Dhabi.

Al Mansoori and his teammates, Mayed Mohammad Al Mutawa, Abdullah Mohammad Naji and Rashed Abdullah Al Mansoori, with the support of their teacher, created a mini-greenhouse for their project. The plant’s environment is then monitored and controlled using a number of temperature and moisture sensors that send on and off signals to fans and water pumps.

“If this technology is developed and used in our agriculture we can grow products all year round and it is very energy efficient too,” said Al Manssoori.

Another group inspired by the desire to solve a problem included four 17-year-old girls from Abu Dhabi, Wadha Ahmed Al Breiki, Fatima Maizar Al Sadid, Reem Harib Al Saifi and Al Yazia Adel Al Menhali.

“We have developed a system, using ultrasound, that can detect objects within five metres of the car and raise a red light on the side of the car that the object appears,” said Al Sadid.

“We were really scared when we were going to school during the heavy fogs and it was really sad to see how many accidents happened during fogs, so we hope that this type of technology can be adopted to reduce accidents in the country,” she said.

Al Saifi added that accidents with animals could also be reduced using this technology as the ultrasound would drive the animals away.

An official from the National Electronic Security Authority said in a statement, “The Cyber Quest contest was designed after careful study of the latest developments in the field of cyber crime, to help expand students’ perceptions and to educate them about the need to protect the infrastructure. The contest supports the UAE Vision 2021 towards a smart government, which aims to nurture a generation of Emirati leaders capable of leading the country’s goals towards a knowledge-based economy.”

The first day of the competition culminated in honouring the winners. Humaid Ibrahim Alzaabi, Mohammad Khalifa Al Marzouqi and Tahseen Bin Taj Islam from FTP Team was in first place, second place went to Saif Ahmed Alkaabi, Muktadir Mohammad Mir and Ahmed Hossameldin Attalla from Bitcoin Team, and Saeed Ali Alnaqbi, Ali Nasser Alteneiji and Abdulhamid Sami Badran from IPMI Team were in third place.

University students’ competition winners will be announced tomorrow (Monday).

The event will be open to the public on April 11 and 12 from 10am until 7pm at ADNEC.