Postie Is UK Cyber Safety Champ

A postman from Wakefield has been crowned Britain's initial cyber safety champion.

Dan Summers won a government-backed contest to find pledge experts in the field.

The intrigue was written to publicize recognition of jobs in IT security, in the face of descending recruitment figures.

Candidates had to infer their technical skills by traffic with unnatural safety breaches in a made-up company.

Mr Summers, who had worked in IT before fasten the Post Office, walked divided with a multiple of prizes value 37,000.

Stuart Rennie, a 17-year-old tyro from Cambridgeshire, took second place.

"This was the many heated and rewarding experience of my life," mentioned Mr Summers, after being crowned champion. "I'm only so blissful we did this."

He mentioned he would right away severely ponder swapping his work as a postman for a vocation in cyber security.

The last dare entangled entrants working in teams to war a array of increasingly complex cyber attacks.

As good as contrast expertise of P.C. security, it moreover demanded that teams uncover their personal and business shrewdness in a array of face-to-face trials.

The contest began in July 2010, when members of the open who rated their cyber safety skills were invited to try their palm at a array of online challenges.

The tip performers in these challenges were asked to take segment in offline competitions, culminating in a splendid last during that they were faced with a array of trials.

The contest was set up, with the help of the government, by P.C. safety firms disturbed about the stepping up burden of recruiting expert staff to help war the taking flight waves of cyber crime.

The number of young UK residents entering IT careers has depressed by 50% over the past 5 years, according to the supervision body e-Skills.

"The only way to finish the extreme lack in modernized safety skills, is to make sure people with the skills are recognized and compensated appropriately," mentioned Alan Paller, executive of investigate at the SANS Institute that advises governments and companies on P.C. security.