The NPCC Cybercrime Programme, delivered by the City of London Police, has announced the successful delivery of Mythicode, a pioneering cyber security competition designed exclusively for UK policing by SudoCyber Limited.
The event attracted more than 120 police officers and staff from specialist cybercrime units across the country. Following a rigorous online competition, the top 24 competitors advanced to a live final staged at Cardiff’s iconic Principality Stadium.
Delivered in collaboration with SudoCyber and powered by the sector-leading SudoRange platform, Mythicode represents a bold step forward in experiential learning and capability development for police cyber professionals.
The competition stood apart through its combination of imaginative world-building and operational realism. It marked the first national policing event to unite large-scale participation, narrative-led learning design and a live cyber final delivered on authentic technical infrastructure aligned with real investigative practice.
This approach ensured accessibility for participants at different stages of cyber maturity, while maintaining a strong focus on real-world 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.”
Mythicode was structured to strengthen cyber capability across the Four Ps framework: Pursue, Prevent, Protect and Prepare. Each task encouraged methodical investigation, proactive identification of threats, understanding of protective controls and readiness for emerging cyber risks.
All challenges were carefully aligned with the National Cyber Security Centre’s Cyber Security Body of Knowledge, ensuring consistency with nationally recognised cyber security principles.
The richly developed Mythicode universe enhanced learning through memorable storytelling. Officers engaged with scenarios set in locations such as Echospire, Emberfell and Shatter Shield, using narrative context to support understanding of complex technical challenges.
This narrative approach helped embed learning outcomes while encouraging creative problem-solving and analytical thinking.
More than 120 participants completed the online phase using SudoCyber’s globally deployed SudoRange platform. The cloud-based environment delivered realistic infrastructure, evolving threat behaviours and layered investigative scenarios closely mirroring real cybercrime operations.
The combination of immersive storytelling and high-fidelity simulation ensured the experience remained operationally relevant while fully aligned with CyBOK and NPCC priorities.
The highest-performing teams progressed to the live final in Cardiff, where they worked collaboratively to trace hostile activity, secure compromised environments and identify adversaries inspired by threats such as the Annonids of the Dark Web Forest and the influence of The Breach. The final tested technical skill, teamwork 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, accessible to all members of the NPCC Cybercrime Programme, supported both competition phases by enabling rapid scenario deployment, secure environments and training tailored to operational policing needs.
Participants consistently praised the balance of storytelling, technical challenge and authenticity, describing Mythicode as a unique and highly engaging learning experience within UK policing.
As a trailblazing initiative, Mythicode highlights how innovation, structured learning and creative engagement can strengthen preparedness for the evolving cybercrime threat landscape.
Congratulations are extended to all competitors, with particular recognition for those who claimed top honours after a fiercely contested final.
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
Preparations are already underway for the next phase of Mythicode, with plans to expand participation, increase technical depth and further establish the competition as a national platform for police cyber excellence.
