Riyadh, Saudi Arabia: SANS Institute, the global leader in cybersecurity training and certifications, has announced SANS Cyber Safari 2024 in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia (October 5 - 24) offering a comprehensive lineup of cybersecurity training. Held at the Hyatt Regency Riyadh Olaya, Cyber Safari is SANS’ most extensive training event in the Kingdom. Participants will gain expert-led training through 12 specialized courses across key cybersecurity disciplines, including NetWars tournaments and Community Night Talks.

As of 2024, Saudi Arabia has emerged as a leader in cybersecurity, ranking first globally in the cybersecurity category of the World Competitiveness Yearbook, published by the Institute for Management Development. This ranking reinforces the Kingdom's strategic focus on developing its cybersecurity sector in alignment with Vision 2030, emphasizing both security and growth. The Kingdom's cybersecurity sector is further strengthened by investments in workforce development and the establishment of the National Cybersecurity Academy. Cybersecurity significantly contributes to Saudi Arabia's economy, with reports indicating the size of the Kingdom’s cybersecurity market reached SAR 13.3 billion so far this year, according to the National Cybersecurity Authority (NCA).
“Saudi Arabia's remarkable cybersecurity achievements highlight the vital role of ongoing skills training in sustaining this momentum and continuing to build capabilities against new attacks,” said Ned Baltagi, Managing Director, Middle East, Turkey, and Africa at SANS Institute. “SANS Cyber Safari will allow professionals to engage in a dynamic learning environment with hands-on labs, simulations, and exercises, all focused on practical application in their workplace with immediate effect.” 

SANS Cyber Safari offers the following courses designed to broaden participant’s skill sets and develop well-rounded expertise:

1. SEC401: Security Essentials - Network, Endpoint, and Cloud
2. SEC504: Hacker Tools, Techniques, and Incident Handling
3. FOR578: Cyber Threat Intelligence
4. SEC497: Practical Open-Source Intelligence (OSINT)
5. SEC488: Cloud Security Essentials
6. LDR514: Security Strategic Planning, Policy, and Leadership
7. SEC530: Defensible Security Architecture and Engineering: Implementing Zero Trust for the Hybrid Enterprise 
8. SEC450: Blue Team Fundamentals: Security Operations and Analysis
9. SEC565: Red Team Operations and Adversary Emulation
10. SEC542: Web App Penetration Testing and Ethical Hacking
11. SEC511: Cybersecurity Engineering: Advanced Threat Detection and Monitoring
12. FOR572: Advanced Network Forensics: Threat Hunting, Analysis, and Incident Response

With both in-person and live online training options available for all courses, SANS Institute allows participants to choose their preferred learning environment for optimal engagement.

SANS Cyber Safari 2024 event features two anticipated tournaments: Core NetWars and DFIR NetWars, designed to enhance cybersecurity skills through immersive, practical scenarios. The DFIR NetWars Tournament will occur on October 8 and 9, from 6:30 PM to 9:30 PM each evening. This tournament concentrates on digital forensics, incident response, and threat hunting, providing participants with a tool-agnostic approach to analyzing low-level artifacts and high-level behaviors. 

The Core NetWars Tournament, scheduled for October 15 and 16, runs from 6:30 PM to 9:30 PM too and provides participants with a comprehensive cyber range experience focused on diverse disciplines such as cyber defense, penetration testing, and cloud computing. All students registered for a 4-6 day course can participate in NetWars for free, and the top performers will have the opportunity to compete in the annual SANS Core NetWars Tournament of Champions. Both tournaments are available for in-person and virtual attendance, ensuring accessibility for all cybersecurity practitioners, regardless of experience level.

Additionally, on October 7, 14, and 21, SANS Instructors Chris Edmundson and Andy Smith will host Community Night Talks in Riyadh, offering valuable insights into key cybersecurity topics while providing opportunities to network with fellow professionals. ‘DevSecOps: Securing Web Applications in the Cloud Era’ on 7th October will explore how to implement a comprehensive development security approach for secure web applications within the DevSecOps framework. ‘Demystifying AI in the SOC: A practical intro to the word soup of ML, NN and LLMs’ on 14th October aims to clarify the various types of AI and their applications in cybersecurity, making complex concepts accessible for better integration into security operations. And lastly, ‘Securing LLM-Powered Applications’ on 21st October will address the unique security challenges posed by LLM-powered applications and strategies to mitigate potential vulnerabilities.

“I strongly encourage participants to take advantage of additional sessions and activities we are hosting, such as the NetWars tournaments and Community Nights, where they can refine their skills furthe

For more information on all available courses, please visit SANS Cyber Safari 2024. To register for SANS Cyber Safari Community Night Talks, visit: https://www.sans.org/mlp/community-night-cyber-safari-october-2024/.

About SANS Institute
The SANS Institute was established in 1989 as a cooperative research and education organization. Today, SANS is the most trusted and, by far, the largest provider of cybersecurity training and certification to professionals in government and commercial institutions worldwide. Renowned SANS instructors teach more than 60 courses at in-person and virtual cybersecurity events and OnDemand. GIAC, an affiliate of the SANS Institute, validates practitioner skills through more than 35 hands-on, technical certifications in cybersecurity. The SANS Technology Institute, a regionally accredited independent subsidiary, offers master’s and bachelor’s degrees, graduate certificates, and an undergraduate certificate in cybersecurity. SANS Security Awareness, a division of SANS, provides organizations with a complete and comprehensive security awareness solution, enabling them to manage their “human” cybersecurity risk easily and effectively. SANS also delivers a wide variety of free resources to the InfoSec community including consensus projects, research reports, webcasts, podcasts, and newsletters; it also operates the Internet's early warning system–the Internet Storm Center. At the heart of SANS are the many security practitioners, representing varied global organizations from corporations to universities, working together to support and educate the global information.