Dear global cybersecurity community,
Hack The Box is turning 7 years old today and as I am reflecting on our 2023 ride, I can’t help but celebrate all the amazing milestones that brought us where we are today. That’s definitely a reason to party!
As a cybersecurity professional myself, I was always looking for ways to enhance my hacking skills and challenge conventional thinking. Yearning for more than just reading textbooks, I founded Hack The Box; a platform providing a community of cybersecurity professionals and enthusiasts with hands-on practice and the opportunity to improve their cybersecurity capabilities.
However, I soon realized that my primary goal extended beyond personal development. I aimed to spearhead a movement towards advanced learning experiences, in an effort to address the challenges around cybersecurity skills development and bridge the 4 million cyber skills gap that our industry is facing. Quickly, the initial concept evolved into an all-in-one environment that encompasses cybersecurity learning, upskilling, and recruitment, allowing individuals and security teams to keep track of their development and identify knowledge or skill gaps quickly and easily.
From 2017 until today, Hack The Box has brought together a community of over 2.6 million members worldwide and has served more than 1,500 organizations around the globe.
2023 was a momentous year for Hack The Box! From securing $55 million in Series B funding to surpassing 2 million platform members worldwide, an expanded product offering that introduced new defensive security solutions, and our recognition as a leader in The Forrester Wave's category of Cybersecurity Skills and Training Platforms, 2023 has been a heck of an amazing ride!
Among others, some remarkable milestones of Hack The Box include:
New HTB platform members: 918,237
New businesses using HTB: 364
New universities enrolled: 178
CTFs hosted: 233
Number of CTF players: 42,544
Machines spawned on our platform: 9,509,979
Machines released: 114
Challenges released: 149
Sherlocks released: 55
HTB Academy modules completed: 491,808
HTB Academy sections completed: 8,609,076
New social media followers across channels: 202,810
So here is a brief recap of what 2023 felt like for us.
The curtain rose on securing $55 million in Series B funding Loading Preview... Loading Preview... Loading Preview...
As the seasons changed, new faces emerged at Hack The Box. 100 new employees from across the globe joined us, each bringing with them a spark of innovation and a hunger for our mission. But what made this growth truly special was the role played by our existing employees; thirty percent of our new hires were welcomed through our referral program.
We were also honored with accolades, and certified by Great Place to Work in Greece, the UK, and the US. Our Greek entity ranked #1 in the category Best Workplace in Technology in Greece, #4 in the category Best Workplace in Greece, and #7 in the category Best Workplace in Europe.
The heartbeat of these accolades lay in our people. Internal satisfaction surveys revealed that 92% of our employees would recommend Hack The Box as a great workplace. Our surveys also highlighted the areas where we shine brightest, with top scores in giving voice to all cultures and backgrounds (95%), providing flexibility (92%), and offering robust manager support (91%).
But amidst our everyday work, there came a time for celebration. More than 200 HTBers from over 20 countries converged on the Greek island of Poros for our annual Global Retreat.
We expanded our product line to include defensive security learning solutions.
One of our reports conducted last year on the critical skills for modern SOC analysts revealed that over 58.4% of participants prioritize practical Machines (vulnerable virtual instances) to enhance their DFIR skills. Amidst new record highs of ransomware attacks and an 8% increase in global cyber threats during the middle of 2023, HTB introduced new solutions to equip blue teamers with the latest skills needed to combat cybercriminals effectively. As of today, our product portfolio includes:
The SOC analyst career path and the HTB Certified Defensive Security Analyst (HTB CDSA) certification Loading Preview...
Investigation-based defensive security scenarios for HTB Labs named Sherlocks Loading Preview...
A new lab within HTB Labs, named FullHouse Loading Preview...
A new Blockchain challenges category Loading Preview...
And we didn’t stop there…
We introduced Hack The Box’s Capture The Flag (CTF) Marketplace Loading Preview...
HTB Academy made it to the NIST NICE Framework: Loading Preview...
We expanded our industry certifications portfolio: The HTB CSDA was not the only new certification we launched last year. We also introduced the HTB CWEE Loading Preview...
Guided Mode is now available as part of the HTB Machines: Loading Preview...
Streaks at HTB Academy: Loading Preview...
New training pathways for Crest's Certified Web Application Tester exam: Loading Preview...
The University of South Florida and Ecole 2600 broke down barriers to cyber education with HTB. By utilizing HTB Academy content and Dedicated Lab challenges, USF Loading Preview...
Similarly, Ecole 2600 Loading Preview...
E.ON Loading Preview...
8bit Loading Preview...
With a fully remote team operating in over 22 countries, Halborn Loading Preview...
Once again, we united aspiring hackers, corporate teams, and students through our Capture The Flag (CTF) events, offering hands-on, real-time experience, and opportunities for knowledge exchange.
We launched the CTF season, with the largest online competition for hackers worldwide, Cyber Apocalypse CTF Loading Preview...
In our Business CTF Loading Preview...
During Business CTF, we analyzed the team’s performance data Loading Preview...
Many security teams are still catching up with blockchain and cloud-related technology, with solving rates for these challenges nearly 30% lower than the average.
Over 70% of managers view team events like CTFs as effective in raising employee engagement and measuring skills.
62% of managers rated "opportunities to learn new skills" as the best way to prevent burnout among security staff.
Employees prioritize skill advancement over pay, with less than one in four security team members considering a pay increase as the best way to engage them at work.
The CTF season concluded with three days of intense competition involving 6,500 students from around the world in our University CTF Loading Preview...
In the latest research that we conducted, called “Securing the future of cybersecurity: From classroom to every career stage Loading Preview...
A similar pattern occurs within businesses' assessments, with 64% asserting that existing recruitment processes inadequately assess candidates for their practical skills in addressing ever-evolving cyber threats. Relying solely on university degrees is no longer effective; assessments must equally emphasize testing candidates against real-world threats. Companies valuing practical experience and embracing talented, ethical hackers with hands-on experience will be best placed to succeed.
Here are a few key results of our survey :
95% acknowledge their organization's understanding of cybersecurity importance and required skills.
64% feel current recruitment processes inadequately assess practical skills for addressing evolving cyber threats.
78% deem traditional university cybersecurity education insufficient for countering evolving cybercriminal tactics.
90% stress the need for cybersecurity graduates to gain hands-on experience before their first role.
The cybersecurity talent shortage is most acute in SOC teams, with demand for security analysts expected to surpass average growth by 150%. Our report “Developing the Modern SOC Analyst: A 360 Upskilling Report Loading Preview...
Significant findings from our research include the following:
Fundamental skills, notably incident handling processes, and methodologies, are crucial for analysts.
Over 40% prioritize cloud security skills for analysts in the next five years.
58% prefer learning digital forensics and incident response (DFIR) through vulnerable virtual machines.
A growing number of professionals seek careers blending offensive and defensive roles, with hybrid blue/red teamers emerging.
Cheers to our new ThreatReady LinkedIn newsletter Loading Preview...
We also met many of you around the world.
From GISEC and GITEX in Dubai to Infosecurity Europe and Black Hat Europe in London, to AISA CyberCon in Canberra and Melbourne, leHACK in Paris, BSides in South Florida, RomHack in Rome, Ekoparty in Argentina, Black Hat USA and DEFCON in Las Vegas, we met for the very first time or reunited with you!
We hosted various HTB Meetups for Universities Loading Preview...
Apart from our HTB Meetups for Universities, we spread the joy of hacking far and wide! We embarked on a hacking adventure with your help - our incredible community. We traveled to 10 exciting destinations, including Paris, Texas, Salta, Kathmandu, La Paz, San Salvador, Casablanca, Warsaw, Portugal, and Guadalajara. Some meetups were led by our existing HTB ambassadors, while others were hosted by the 20 new meetup groups formed throughout the year.
As the challenges of cybersecurity continue to evolve, we're not losing sleep over them. Instead, we're embracing them head-on. We're here to empower you to be the best you can be each day, by providing you with solutions for all cybersecurity domains.
Keep an eye out for exciting updates coming soon! Until then, keep hacking in your unique style.
Cheers,
Ch4p
Community
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