The National Police Chiefs Council Cybercrime Programme, delivered through the City of London Police, has marked the successful conclusion of Mythicode, an innovative cyber security competition purpose-built for UK policing by SudoCyber Limited.
The pioneering initiative engaged more than 120 police officers and staff from specialist cybercrime units nationwide. Participants first competed in a demanding online phase before the highest-performing 24 advanced to a live final hosted at Cardiff’s Principality Stadium.
Developed in partnership with SudoCyber and delivered via the advanced SudoRange cyber training platform, Mythicode represents a significant advance in immersive, scenario-led professional development for policing’s cyber workforce.
The competition introduced a distinctive approach by blending imaginative storytelling with operationally realistic cyber challenges. It was the first event of its kind to unite national-scale participation, narrative-driven learning, and a live finals environment built on authentic technical infrastructure aligned with policing priorities.
This design created an inclusive learning space that supported officers with varying levels of cyber expertise, enabling progression while maintaining operational relevance.
DCI Mark Catney of the NPCC National Cybercrime Team shared his thoughts on the event. “Participating in Mythicode gave police officers and staff a unique opportunity to enhance their cybercrime capabilities in a dynamic, engaging, and practical environment. The competition strengthened core technical skills from digital forensics to threat intelligence encouraging them to work together and problem solve under pressure, replicating a real life scenario. We would like to thank SudoCyber for creating the challenge and for hosting the grand final which was a fantastic event.”
A central objective of Mythicode was to strengthen cyber capability across the four strands of Pursue, Prevent, Protect and Prepare. Each challenge encouraged structured investigation, proactive threat identification, protective security awareness and readiness for emerging cyber threats.
All content was mapped closely to the National Cyber Security Centre’s Cyber Security Body of Knowledge, ensuring learning outcomes were grounded in recognised national and industry standards.
The immersive Mythicode universe played a key role in reinforcing these objectives. Participants navigated environments such as the Echospire’s cryptic transmissions, the industrial hazards of Emberfell, and the contested zones of Shatter Shield, each providing a memorable setting for complex technical tasks.
These narrative frameworks helped embed technical learning, supporting retention and prompting creative analytical thinking.
More than 120 officers took part in the online stages through the globally deployed SudoRange platform. This cloud-based environment delivered realistic systems, adaptive threat behaviour and layered investigative scenarios reflecting real-world cybercrime investigations.
By combining story-led challenges with high-fidelity simulation, SudoRange delivered a learning experience fully aligned with CyBOK and the operational demands of the NPCC Cybercrime Programme.
From this national pool, the top 24 competitors progressed to the live final in Cardiff. Working in teams, officers traced malicious activity, secured compromised systems and exposed adversaries inspired by threats such as the Annonids of the Dark Web Forest and the influence of The Breach. These exercises tested teamwork, decision-making and investigative discipline across all Four Ps.
Jason Davies, CTO at SudoCyber had this to say about the event:
“It has been great to see the network embrace this event with police officers, partner entities and specialist police volunteers all taking part throughout. This new blend of narrative driven immersive world, offering character depth, along with physical and digital challenges has given participants an opportunity to demonstrate their skills as well as step out of the known and explore new topics and areas in the cyber domain. The network demonstrated a great breadth of skills with participants completing 90 labs consisting of 450 specially designed challenges testing both knowledge and skills. We would like to congratulate all of the participants, especially the winners who showed great tenacity, skill and attitude throughout.
This event has demonstrated the thirst for knowledge that policing has in this space and the willingness to push boundaries and embrace new challenges in this area. Through our partnership with CDS DS and the NPCC, we have seen the network continue to grow and evolve and look forward to continuing to support this growth in the future.”
The SudoRange platform, available to all members of the NPCC Cybercrime Programme, underpinned both competition phases, enabling rapid scenario delivery, secure environments and training shaped directly by policing requirements.
Participants highlighted the rare combination of creative storytelling, technical depth and operational realism, describing Mythicode as a learning experience unlike anything previously delivered within UK policing.
As a first-of-its-kind initiative, Mythicode demonstrates how innovation, structured capability development and engagement can be brought together to prepare policing for the rapidly evolving cybercrime landscape.
Congratulations are extended to all finalists, and particularly to the winners who emerged victorious following intense national competition.
Regional Winners:
1st Place: London
2nd Place: SEROCU
3rd Place: TARIAN
Individual Winners:
1st Place: Max Holben, Surrey & Sussex Police
2nd Place: Samuel Papworth, Metropolitan Police
3rd Place: Matt Lucas, Police Cyber Volunteer
Highest Accuracy: Stacey Ford, Eastern Region Special Operations Unit
Work is already progressing on the next phase of Mythicode, with plans to broaden participation, introduce deeper technical challenges and further establish the competition as a national cornerstone of police cyber development.
