EAGER: Visualizing Cyber Defense Networks

SRI International （SRI）和Asylum Labs （Asylum）提议使用3D虚拟世界游戏技术来提高网络挑战竞赛（Cyber Challenge Competitions）的理解、参与因素和招聘影响。该项目旨在通过设计在电子竞技联盟中非常成功的可视化和演示技术来解决C3参与挑战。该项目将展示C3论坛如何通过网络安全人才招聘的高参与度可视化层进行转型。这个项目有可能增加学生和研究人员社区在网络挑战学术竞赛中的参与度。它将实现电子竞技比赛中的关键创新和经验教训，作为可视化框架的潜在设计替代方案。通过提高C3的兴趣和影响力，它将有助于发现和吸引人才。提升C3活动的参与者和观众的体验有可能增加对网络安全职业的兴趣，将网络安全推广到更大的人才库，并降低人们对该领域感兴趣的年龄。目前，与C3赛事相比，电子竞技赛事在少数族裔群体中吸引了更广泛的追随者。该项目旨在提高C3活动对更年轻、更广泛受众的吸引力，并了解阻碍女性和少数族裔学生参与网络安全相关领域的具体因素。这个项目的目的是识别和发展关键的网络安全技能。当前这一代C3活动中采用的参与策略和人性化的演示方法似乎吸引了那些已经对网络安全感兴趣的人。提议的网络攻击和防御系统的潜在3D游戏式可视化可能会导致对未来威胁分析环境的操作增强。该项目将主要关注人类参与和理解快节奏计算机攻击和防御竞赛中的复杂数据表示。该项目的系统设计将结合人机交互（HCI）研究界的观点和先前的研究，包括抽象、包容性人口统计学和性别吸引力、直观图像学和视觉认知负荷管理。该奖项反映了美国国家科学基金会的法定使命，并通过使用基金会的知识价值和更广泛的影响审查标准进行评估，被认为值得支持。

SRI International (SRI) and Asylum Labs (Asylum) propose using 3D virtual world gaming technologies to enhance the understanding, engagement factors, and the recruitment impact of Cyber Challenge Competitions (C3). This project intends to address the C3 engagement challenge by designing visualization and presentation technologies that have proven highly successful in e-Sports leagues. The project will demonstrate how C3 forums can be transformed with a high-engagement visualization layer for cybersecurity talent recruitment. This project has a potential to increase student and researcher community engagement in cyber-challenge academic competitions. It will implement key innovations and lessons from e-Sports competitions as potential design alternatives for the visualization framework. By increasing the interest and impact of C3, it will help to identify and attract talented individuals. Elevating the experience of participants and spectators at C3 events has a potential to increase interest in the cybersecurity profession, promote cybersecurity to a larger talent pool, and decrease the age at which people become interested in this field. Currently, e-Sports events draw a broader following among minority groups than C3 events. The project aims to increase the appeal of C3 events to a younger and broader audience and to understand specific factors that inhibit female and minority student participation in fields related to cybersecurity.The purpose of this project is to identify and develop critical cybersecurity skills. The engagement strategies and human-intuitive presentation methods employed in the current generation of C3 events seem to attract those who have already acquired an interest in cybersecurity. The proposed underlying 3D game-like visualization of network attack and defense systems may lead to operational enhancements to future threat-analysis environments. The project will primarily focus on human engagement and understanding of complex data presentation in fast-paced computer attack and defense competitions. The project's system design will incorporate perspectives and prior research from the Human Computer Interaction (HCI) research community, including abstraction, inclusive demographic and gender appeal, intuitive iconography, and visual-cognitive load management.This award reflects NSF's statutory mission and has been deemed worthy of support through evaluation using the Foundation's intellectual merit and broader impacts review criteria.