FAQs
What is Grok Cyber?
Grok Cyber consists of 3 activities: Cyber Comp, Cyber Pursuit and Cyber Live.
Grok Cyber Comp is happening between 22 November and 3 December. It is a 45 minute online activity open to all Australian school students in years 5 -12. The comp consists of 12 interactive problems in which students explore how to be more secure online and discover common cyber security risks.
Grok Cyber Pursuit took place earlier in 2021. It consists of Capture the Flag style problems which can take between 10 and 30 minutes to solve. These are challenging problems for keen students. Students take part in teams of 2 to 5 students. It is aimed at students in year 7 and above.
Grok Cyber Live is a one day in-person event scheduled for February 2022. Invited teams will apply cyber security skills in a live dynamic setting, with industry professionals and challenging scenarios.
Who can participate in Grok Cyber?
All students in Australian from years 5-12 can participate for free in Grok Cyber Comp. Grok Cyber Pursuit and Grok Cyber Live are aimed at students in years 7 to 12.
Why should students take part in Grok Cyber Comp?
After taking part in Grok Cyber Comp students will:
- Have a greater understanding of why it is important to protect their personal information
- Know how to create stronger passwords
- Be able to evaluate emails and text messages to reduce the risk of falling victim to scams
- Understand what to do if they receive a scam email or message
When should students do Grok Cyber?
We recommend students take part in Grok Cyber Comp at school, during class time. The activity is suitable as a whole class activity during a pastoral care class, to address ICT Capabilities, as part of a Digital Technologies lesson or as part of a school's digital citizenship or digital literacy program.
How do students participate in Grok Cyber Comp?
The competition window for the second round of Cyber Comp 2021 will be open for 2 weeks from 22 November to 3 December 2021. Each student can attempt the competition for a 45-minute window anytime within that four week period. Students will only be able to participate once after their clock starts.
Teachers who register students will be given a link for their students to access Grok Cyber Comp.
Do my students all need to do Grok Cyber Comp at the same time?
No, you can provide the unlock link to students individually. Each student has 45 minutes to complete Grok Cyber Comp from when they individually click the provided link.
When do students and teacher get their results?
Teachers can view their students' results in their teacher dashboard in the week after Grok Cyber Comp finishes. Students will be able to view their Grok Cyber Comp results in the week after Grok Cyber Comp is completed. Schools will also receive a report outlining aggregated results for their school, with suggestions to improve their school's overall cyber security awareness.
What happens after the Cyber Comp is over?
After the competition window, Grok Cyber Comp will no longer be available to teachers and students.
Is there a cost to take part?
Grok Cyber Comp and Grok Cyber Pursuit are free to take part in. Students and teachers invited to take part in Grok Cyber Live may need to cover some travel and accommodation costs.
Are there prizes?
All students taking part in Grok Cyber Comp receive a certificate recognising their achievement.
Information for teachers
How can my students prepare?
No preparation is required for your students to take part in Grok Cyber. It’s good if your students have a general awareness of how to stay secure online. The final questions in Grok Cyber Comp are designed to be challenging for students. All problems contain an explanation, and some hints are also provided.
Do my students need to have an understanding of cyber security to take part?
Students do not need any specific understanding of cyber security to take part in Grok Cyber Comp. Grok Cyber Pursuit and Live are more challenging events for students who show a particular interest or aptitude for cyber security.
Do students take part as individuals or in teams?
Students register individually on groklearning.com to take part in Grok Cyber Comp. We encourage students to discuss their answers with peers and and as a group when they receive their results and feedback. Grok Cyber Pursuit and Grok Cyber Live are team events.
How can students continue learning after they complete Grok Cyber Comp?
Students can continue learning about cyber security by completing the Schools Cyber Security Challenges. The Schools Cyber Security Challenges are online activities available year round, designed for Australian students.
Challenges cover information privacy and security, data encryption and transmission, wired and wireless network security and web application security. With up to 28 hours of content available across 5 Challenges, the Challenges are suitable for students in years 5 to 12 and cover many key areas in the Australian Curriculum (Digital Technologies and ICT Capability). Explore all of the challenges
here.
How do I register students if I am a teacher?
Access Grok Cyber Comp using the buttons below. From Grok Learning, teachers can visit their
teacher dashboard and assign students to the relevant comp for their year level.
Another way to get students into the Comp is to share the following links directly with students:
You can enrol your students at any time between now and when you want your students to complete Grok Cyber Comp.
