LG Electronics Holds Internal Hacking Competition to Enhance Cybersecurity Capabilities

Expansion of the Competition Scale This Year Including LG Group Affiliates

LG Electronics is accelerating efforts to strengthen its cybersecurity capabilities, which are considered core in various industries such as artificial intelligence (AI), cloud, Internet of Things (IoT), and mobility.

On the 24th, LG Electronics held the finals of its in-house hacking competition, 'LG Hacking Contest 2023,' at LG Science Park in Magok, Seoul. A total of 84 employees from 29 teams who passed the preliminary rounds held in August and earlier this month participated in the finals to compete.

Employees of LG Group affiliates participating at the finals of the 'LG Hacking Contest 2023,' held by LG Electronics to strengthen cybersecurity capabilities / Photo by LG Electronics

Led by the Chief Technology Officer (CTO) division, the in-house hacking contest, first held last year, aims to cultivate cybersecurity capabilities among software (SW) developers. As the importance of cybersecurity has increased across industries recently, the scale of this year’s competition has expanded. Not only LG Electronics but also employees from LG Magna e-Powertrain, LG CNS, LG Uplus, and other group affiliates participated, doubling the size of the final round compared to the previous year. An automotive SW developer working at LG Electronics’ Vietnam branch participated online.

Participants carried out missions from morning to evening in three fields: the Embedded track, the Web track, and the Integrated track. They performed 'vulnerability discovery' by identifying security weaknesses in specific targets and 'capture' missions by acting as hackers to exploit those vulnerabilities. The process involved identifying system security weaknesses, attacking to seize privileges, and then finding answers to given problems within the system.

LG Electronics stated, "This competition is expected to enhance software developers’ cybersecurity capabilities, expanding activities to analyze security vulnerabilities in in-house products and services, and ultimately contribute to strengthening security competitiveness in our business areas."

To further strengthen cybersecurity capabilities, LG Electronics is also focusing on securing outstanding external talent. Earlier this month, it invited university and graduate students majoring in cybersecurity to LG Science Park for the 'HiLG' recruitment program. The event included a 'Tech Fair' explaining the current status and future of security technologies, as well as sessions demonstrating how security technologies are applied in real industries and showcasing actual technologies.

Meanwhile, in 2021, LG Electronics acquired Cybellum, a leading company in automotive cybersecurity, to enhance the competitiveness of its automotive business, which is being nurtured as a future growth engine. Recently, LG Electronics also participated in the smart device cybersecurity certification program introduced by the U.S. government. Through this program, the U.S. government attaches certification marks to products that meet certain cybersecurity standards.

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.