Our Mission

Our student-led team is passionate about learning and providing others with the best material and resources to learn about cybersecurity. We offer access to top-notch technical resources, raise cybersecurity awareness, and engage in fun and exciting extracurricular activities relevant to the industry. Our members are highly educated, coached, and informed on identifying and responding to cyber threats, helping those affected by cybersecurity incidents on and off campus. Our ultimate goal is to contribute to the social and cultural dimensions of the student educational experience, prepare a cyber-ready workforce, and address the national shortage of qualified cybersecurity professionals.

About Us

We are a group of students from all over LACCD trying to learn about technology and how it works. We are open to people of all knowledge and experience with technology. We are supported by Professor Rios and Veliz, as they help us focus on real world cybersecurity related material.

We think about learning cybersecurity as a step-by-step process of learning concepts and methods. We understand that technology, and cybersecurity in-particular, can look overwhelming and difficult at first sight, but through being around other link-minded people on a team we work together to overcome those challenges and prepare ourselves for the real world scenarios and situations in cybersecurity.

CTFs - Cybersecurity Competitions are our bread and butter

A CTF (Capture the Flag) is a gamified cybersecurity competition where players solve cybersecurity-related challenges to gain points. In CTFs, players compete to find a flag (usually a long sequence of characters) using problem-solving methods and modern hacking techniques. CTFs can also be a jeopardy-like competition where players knowledge, research abilities, and question answering skills are tested.

The NCL is a cybersecurity competition dedicated for college students. We like to compete in the NCL because it offers an entire ecosystem for real-world cybersecurity education and practice. Also the the NCL is convenient for us to focus on because the teaching material, practice platform, and competition environments are all on their website. At the end of the season the NCL provides a scouting report showing your rankings and scores in all the competitions categories, and we this report we learn what areas we can we improve in. NCL also hosts a community Discord for to seek further help and explanations on problems and categories. Access to the material, platform, scouting report, and entry into their three national virtual/online cybersecurity competitions for the entire season is only $35.

To learn more about the NCL please visit their website: https://nationalcyberleague.org

Club History

2018 - Beginnings

In Spring 2018, Mission-X made its first foray into the cyber competition space with just one competitor who managed to score 210 points. By Fall 2018, the club had attracted a small group of five individuals, showing early signs of growth, though no team participation occurred in the first year.
Despite the small number of participants, this humble beginning laid the foundation for what would soon become a steadily growing and increasingly competitive group. The individual scores in Fall 2018 remained modest, with a maximum of 225 points, but it marked the club's first real attempt to build a team spirit and interest in cybersecurity competitions.

2019 - Turning Point

The year 2019 marked a turning point for Mission-X. In Spring, the club fielded its first team, scoring 340 points, while individual performances showed marked improvement, with one participant scoring 970 points. By Fall 2019, the team score rose to 690 points, and individual participation surged to nine members, with the top individual scoring 615 points.
This increase in participation and performance suggested that the club was beginning to gain traction, both in terms of team cohesion and individual competency in the cybersecurity field. The introduction of team competition signaled a new phase for the club, where collaboration and group problem-solving became as important as individual skill.

2020 - Growth Amidst Challenges

In 2020, despite the global challenges posed by the COVID-19 pandemic, Mission-X showed incredible resilience and growth. The Spring semester saw the team score rise dramatically to 1285 points, with individual scores staying strong at 965 points for the top performer. This upward trend continued into Fall 2020, where the team score leaped to 1910 points, nearly tripling the previous year's performance. The number of individual competitors also doubled, reaching 10 participants, and the top individual scored an impressive 1400 points.
This period represents a significant milestone for the club, demonstrating its ability to not only survive but thrive during a time of uncertainty. The rise in both individual and team scores underscores the growing expertise within the club as members gained experience and honed their skills.

Fall 2021 - Spring 2022 - Momentum Builds

The upward trajectory of Mission-X continued through 2021. In the Spring, the club fielded two teams for the first time, achieving a combined score of 2050 points, while the top individual reached 1480 points. Although Fall 2021 saw a slight dip in team performance with a score of 770, individual scores remained strong, with a maximum of 1135 points. In Spring 2022, the team score bounced back to 1665 points, and the individual scores remained consistently strong, with a top performer scoring 1180 points. By this point, the club had established a rhythm, with consistent participation and strong performances across both team and individual events.

Fall 2022 - Spring 2023 - Stability & Consistency:

From Fall 2022 to Spring 2023, the Mission-X club demonstrated stability in its membership and performance. The team in Fall 2022 scored 1110 points, while the top individual earned 1305 points. In Spring 2023, the team hit a high score of 2105 points—one of the highest in the club’s history—while the top individual scored 1240 points.
These semesters reflect the club’s maturity, as it consistently fielded competitive teams and individuals, maintaining a high level of performance across the board.

Fall 2023 - Spring 2024 - Success in Numbers

In Fall 2023, Mission-X showed continued growth, with a team score of 1660 points and an increase in individual participation, reaching 11 members. Although individual scores were slightly lower, with the top score being 1135, the club’s expanded membership reflects
growing interest in cybersecurity within the college.
In the most recent Spring 2024 semester, the team reached a remarkable 1905 points, while individual participation saw a slight decrease with seven members, and the top individual scored 570 points. While this is a dip in individual scores compared to previous
semesters, the strong team performance highlights the club’s emphasis on teamwork and collaboration as it moves forward.

Fall 2024 - Present - The Next Generation

In Fall 2024, a new set of students took to the club as the past years team members advanced to undergraduate school and into their careers in tech. This new class of students formed a small team, but scored performed well in the their individual scores, with two members getting high scores of 1480 and 1465. The team also performed considerably okay in the team portion with a score of 1245.
The new class is preparing for the Spring 2024 season and hope beat all previous high scores. This new team has taken the initiative to participate in more CTFs, and these have been the LACTF, HackTheBox CTF, and TryHackMe.

Club History - The Whole Story