Army, Academia and Enterprise Teams Train Cyber Readiness at Mississippi's National Guard Trident South Event in Jackson, MS, USA

On August 14, 2026, military personnel, government cyber specialists, healthcare representatives and university participants came together in Jackson, Mississippi, for a Capture the Flag (CTF) competition hosted by the Mississippi National Guard. Held as part of Trident South, the event brought 30 participants onto Cympire's cloud-native cyber range to work through realistic threat-simulation scenarios.

Cympire, the hyper-realistic cyber range by CyberproAI, provided the platform for teams to compete and apply their skills under pressure. The competition required participants to put technical knowledge into practice and make decisions as they worked through the scenarios.

A Cross-Section of Cybersecurity Institutions

The range of organizations and institutions in the room showed us the bigger picture, that cybersecurity across the state and beyond is no longer just one industry's problem. Military representation included the Mississippi Army National Guard, Mississippi Air National Guard, Michigan Army National Guard and Nevada Army National Guard. Civilian participants included the Mississippi Office of Homeland Security Cyber Unit, Neshoba County General Hospital, students from the University of Southern Mississippi and representatives of the Mississippi Cyber Initiative and Mississippi State University.

The Mississippi Cyber Initiative, led by Mississippi State University, connects academia, government, defense and industry around the state's cybersecurity needs. Its participation added to an event that brought together both practitioners and students, linking professional training with the development of future cyber talent.

A Workshop the Day Before

The CTF competition followed an operational technology workshop held in Jackson the day before. Led by Ken Smith, CyberproAI's Director of Cyber & AI Solutions and Strategic Partnership US — and delivered using Cympire, the workshop focused on water infrastructure for the Mississippi Office of Homeland Security, with participation from the Mississippi National Guard and Mississippi State University.

At Trident South, the focus was on applying cyber skills in a shared training environment. Bringing military and civilian participants into the same exercise created an opportunity to practice under realistic conditions across organizations with different operational responsibilities, placing practical preparation at the center of the event.