Melbourne Kids SecuriDay 2024

Join us for Kids Securiday in Melbourne this November! This exciting event is dedicated to inspiring the next generation of security enthusiasts. Kids aged 6-16 will have the opportunity to engage in fun, hands-on workshops and talks. These interactive sessions are designed to teach valuable skills and knowledge in a fun and engaging way. Don't miss out on this fantastic opportunity to empower young minds with the tools for the digital age.
Ages: 6-16
What you need: a ticket and a laptop - and if you don't have a laptop we can lend you one!
Cost: Pay what you want
What you get: fun talks, workshops, competitions, games, and mentoring from security professionals
When: Sat 30th Nov 2024, 9:00 am - 3:15 pm AEDT
Where:  The Hub Docklands, 80 Harbour Esplanade, Docklands VIC 3008

Schedule

Time	Location : Descrition
9.00am	The Hub Docklands : Registration and venue opens
9.20am	Atrium: Welcome to the Day with Heidi Winter
9.30am	Atrium: Keynote with ​Somindu Abeydeera
10.00am	Atrium: Workshop Junior & Senior Cybergames
10.30am	Cinema : Morning Tea
11.00am	Atrium : Junior Workshop Modern Mechanisms Cinema : Senior Workshop Hack A Bank Game
12:00pm	Atrium : Junior Workshop Hack A Bank Game ​Cinema : Senior Workshop Modern Mechanisms
1.00pm	Cinema : Lunch
1.30pm	Atrium : Talk with Kane from Australian Federal Police
2.30pm	Atrium : Panel "Ask Me Anything (AMA)" with Somindu, Jeanette, Abbas, Maeesha, Grant, Maleehah and Kane
3.00pm	Atrium : Awards and Closing with Heidi Winter

Due to the nature of the event, these times may change.

Talks

Keynote
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Somindu Abeydeera

This presentation will discuss my journey as a thirteen-year-old who has found passion in the art of lockpicking. This presentation will show the audience a glimpse into the journey I took from struggling with practice locks to winning lockpicking competitions. The audience will hear about the highs, the lows, and so much more about my journey. I hope to inspire a spark within the audience, encouraging them to experience such a journey themselves. I will be showcasing to the audience that they can not only find their way through the lockpicking world, but anything they want to as long as they try. I’m looking to give others a way to pave their own path to mastery of anything, alike to mine and many others. I will be talking about my journey through competitions, won and lost, and everything in between. From losing my first place in a lockpicking competition but instead doing the impossible at the Black bag CTF to dodging lasers and saving the world from destruction. Through this journey, I aim to show that anyone can cultivate their skills and find joy through sacrifices and hard work.
Bio
I'm a high school student currently in grade 8, I enjoy studying in STEM. I am a lockpicking enthusiast and I have won 1st place in the 2023 BSides Melbourne lockpicking competition and got 2nd place in the 2023 AISA Cyber-Con lockpicking competition. At BSides Adelaide I got third in Lockpicking and participated in the Black bag CTF. I aspire to further explore the fields of cyber security and astrophysics. I wish to be an inspiring ambassador that will inspire the younger generation to be more cyber-aware in their day to day lives.

Talk
Kane
​Federal Agent, Australian Federal Police

Kane’s presentation will cover off on the basics of cybercrime from a policing perspective, including educating kids on what cybercrime is and where the online legal boundaries lie. He will also share some easy tips people can follow in order to stay safe in the online world and provide advice on where kids should go to if they ever find themselves in trouble online. The audience will also learn about the many interesting and rewarding careers available to people with an interest in all things cyber!

Bio
Kane is a Federal Agent with the Australian Federal Police. Kane has worked in a variety of roles with the AFP and is currently an investigator in Cybercrime Operations. The AFP investigates serious cybercrime against the Commonwealth Government, critical infrastructure, systems of national significance and those impacting the whole of Australian economy. Kane holds a Bachelor of Justice from Queensland University of Technology and a Masters in Cybersecurity, Strategy and Diplomacy from University of New South Wales.​

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Panel
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Ask Me Anything (AMA)

This is your chance to ask questions to an incredible panel of cybersecurity professionals, who are ready to share their insights, experiences, and advice. Whether you’re curious about hacking, coding, problem-solving, or even what a day in the life of a security expert looks like—this is your moment to learn from the best!

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Workshops and games

Cybergames

Capture the flag games are puzzles based on real world information security vulnerabilities. Race against the clock solving complex and fun exercises gathering ‘flags’ to earn points. This workshop returns for 2024 with all new challenges and prizes!

Modern Mechanisms

Step into the world of advanced physical security where cutting-edge tech meets practical know-how! This workshop elevates your understanding from basic principles to the fascinating realm of modern security systems. Get ready to unravel the mysteries of RFID and NFC technology, discovering their pivotal role in safeguarding our physical spaces. Plus, take a deep dive into information security, gaining foundational insights essential for today's tech-driven world. This session is more than just an introduction; it's your gateway to mastering the art of modern physical security!

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Hack A Bank Game

Hacking a bank is no child's play!  In this game we ‘steal’ money from each other and the bank - the person with the most at the end wins. The aim of this workshop is to teach about the importance of securing websites and databases correctly, and the impact of not addressing vulnerabilities

Prizes

We always have heaps of prizes and giveaways at this event! More details to be announced in July.

Meet the Mentors

Heidi
​Founder of Kids SecuriDay

Heidi is a seasoned technology professional with over 30 years of experience in both enterprise and government sectors. In 2016, she made the shift to cybersecurity, completing a Master’s in Cyber Security Operations from UNSW. Passionate about community education, Heidi founded Kids SecuriDay, an award-winning program that introduces young people and their families to security concepts in fun, hands-on ways.
Known for her down-to-earth approach, she’s all about removing the cybersecurity magic and making complex concepts straightforward, so everyone feels empowered to take control of their digital security.

Jeannette
Cyber Risk and Compliance Consultant at Monash University

Jeannette brings over fifteen years of expertise in IT and cyber across commercial and higher education sectors. Her extensive background spans cyber risk and compliance management to successful project leadership of cross-functional teams. She excels in establishing robust reporting, planning, and stakeholder management processes, prioritising relationship-building at every step. A strong foundation in technical application management, administration, support, implementation, and migration, Jeannette effectively engages with a diverse customer base from executives to technical teams in order to drive service excellence and continuous improvement.

Abbas
Asia’s SMC Regional Chief Security, Risk, Compliance Advisor​ at Microsoft

Abbas Kudrati is an award-winning CISO, cyber security strategist, and thought leader in the Cloud tech domain. He has been featured in countless publications like the ‘Zero Trust Journey across the Digital Estate’ and ‘Threat Hunting in the Cloud’ and is a firm advocate of the OSINT framework. Abbas believes in the policy of “never trust, always verify,” and this philosophy translates to every aspect of his work. He is a strong proponent of Zero Trust Architecture models and has appeared as Tom Fox’s second guest on Microsoft Week. You can spot him tweeting from @askudrati, and he is currently based in Melbourne (VIC), Australia.

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Bryan
DFIR Wizard

Bryan is a Senior Security Engineer at a large international company, and has worked in the digital forensics incident response (DFIR) field for the better part of the last two decades.

Adam
Data Security Technology Specialist

Adam has been involved in IT & cyber security for over 20 years in public sector, MSPs and multiple vendors and currently he specialises helping keep your data safe and secure! Adam has 2 kids of his own and lives in Sydney where he likes walking his dog, hitting the gym and bothering dinosaurs.

Maeesha
Security Consultant

Maeesha is a Security Consultant proficient in Python, JavaScript, C, and C++. She enjoys exploring algorithms, software architecture, and reverse-engineering software.

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Maleehah
Cybersecurity Analyst

Maleehah is a driven security professional focused on understanding the business impact of security issues and honing her technical skills. With experience in software development and proficiency in Python, JavaScript, PHP, and GoLang, she creates automation to identify and exploit security vulnerabilities at scale. 

Grant
Comedic Information Security Officer

Grant can sometimes be found leading security programs for health, and can sometimes be found performing standup comedy. His 20-ish year IT career has taken him from education to high performance sports to managed services before landing in healthcare cybersecurity, where he found himself advising a range of hospitals and businesses on improving their security posture.

Sajeeb
Global TISO

Sajeeb is a Global TISO and Senior Director of Cybersecurity, as well as a sessional lecturer at the University of Melbourne. Holding OSCP and OSWE certifications, he is a core contributor to the open-source tool Interlace and is ranked in the top 40 on Bugcrowd and #2 on DVuln.

Rannee
Bug Hunting Hero

Rannee works in the cybersecurity team at Belong, where she works with teams to make sure their software doesn't have any bugs. She went to university for biomedical engineering, where halfway through she discovered a passion for cybersecurity. After graduating, she worked various telecommunications engineering roles before spending a few years working on the software stack for a security operations centre. In her spare time, Rannee enjoys following esports and playing puzzle games

Kane
Federal Agent

Kane is a Federal Agent with the Australian Federal Police. Kane has worked in a variety of roles with the AFP and is currently an investigator in Cybercrime Operations. The AFP investigates serious cybercrime against the Commonwealth Government, critical infrastructure, systems of national significance and those impacting the whole of Australian economy. Kane holds a Bachelor of Justice from Queensland University of Technology and a Masters in Cybersecurity, Strategy and Diplomacy from University of New South Wales.​

Danielle
Modern Mechanisms Magician

Danielle is a tech alchemist who has contributed to industry projects designing and sustaining communications and cyber-physical systems across a variety of domains. Danielle gained the magical tome of knowledge from the Greybeard Wizards during an undergraduate degree in IT (Information Systems), subsequently completing a grad cert in data science. In her current role since 2022, Danielle is focused on support systems analysis, optimising reliability, maintenance planning, and supply chain considerations.

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This is a child safe event. You can view our child protection policy here, and our mentor code of conduct here.
Bookings are essential. To ensure accessibility for everyone in the community, this is a "pay what you want" event.
All adults must be accompanied by a child. All children must be accompanied by an adult.

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