GenCyberCoin is not just a widely used educational tool—it’s also an award winner. Dr. Vitaly Ford, assistant professor of Computer Science and Mathematics at Arcadia University, was one of five winners in the National CyberWatch Center’s (NCC) Innovations in Cybersecurity Education award program for his submission, “Incentive-Based Platform for Teaching Cryptocurrency, Bug Bounty, Reconnaissance and More.”

Since 2018, Dr. Ford has held a grant to develop GenCyberCon, a web platform where middle school and high school students can learn about cryptocurrency and web security. Originally, he received a subaward grant from the National Security Agency (NSA) and the National Science Foundation (NSF) for Tennessee Tech University’s GenCyber summer camps in 2017 and 2018. This year, the grant was renewed to extend the project into other universities and high schools around the country to teach hundreds of students about cryptocurrency, bug bounty, reconnaissance, security principles, password management, and other cybersecurity-related topics.

“Education drives progress, and gamified learning makes that progress come alive,” said. Dr. Ford. “As a passionate cybersecurity practitioner, I am honored to receive this award and hope that GenCyberCoin will plant a seed of bold enthusiasm in students to pursue a cybersecurity career. I am especially grateful for the opportunity to share this project with the larger community of educators across the nation, who are fully devoted to students and their education. Together, we discover innovation and deliver success.”