BALTIMORE, April 7, 2016 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Northrop Grumman Corporation (NYSE:NOC) and the Northrop Grumman Foundation will sponsor cyber defense competitions this month in the U.S., Middle East and Europe demonstrating the company's global commitment to cyber education and workforce development and the importance of inspiring tomorrow's youth to pursue a career in cybersecurity. In addition, the company will sponsor a cyber workforce discussion featuring Tony Scott, U.S. federal chief information officer.

"Cyber is a borderless threat. Globally, we face a critical shortage of trained professionals ready to take on the job of securing our systems and networks," said Kathy Warden, corporate vice president and president, Northrop Grumman Mission Systems. "We are channeling our expertise to help tomorrow's workforce develop the skills and competencies needed to succeed and keep all sectors of our economy safe. These competitions are a great way to get youth involved and open their eyes to the enormous potential of pursuing an education and a career in cybersecurity."

Competitions:

• The 8^th annual CyberPatriot competition is slated for April 12 in Baltimore. Created by the Air Force Association and presented by the Northrop Grumman Foundation, teams of high school and middle school students will compete face-to-face in a one-day event to defend virtual networks and mobile devices from a professional aggressor team. A record 3,300 teams entered nationwide this year, with the top 28 teams - including three middle school teams - competing in the finals. Media are invited to attend the competition. For more information, click here or follow the competition on Twitter @CyberPatriot, #CP8Finals.
• The CyberArabia competition will take place at King Saud University, Riyadh, in Saudi Arabia on April 18 and 19. This is the second year that Northrop Grumman has hosted this two-day cyber security awareness and training session, which will include a hands-on training workshop culminating in a cyber defense competition on both the men's and women's campuses. 
• The CyberCenturion competition will be held at the National Museum of Computing, Bletchley Park, in the United Kingdom on April 26. Now in its second year, CyberCenturion is the U.K.'s first team-based cyber security contest for 12-18 year olds. Sponsored by Northrop Grumman in partnership with Cyber Security Challenge U.K., the competition aims to engage talented young people with an interest in cyber as a way to bridge the national skills gap in STEM subjects and encourage careers in cyber security. Media are invited to attend the competition. For more about CyberCenturion, click here. Or follow the conversation on Twitter @CyberChallenge, #CyberCenturion.

In addition to these competitions, Northrop Grumman will sponsor a cyber workforce discussion with Passcode on April 12 titled "Workforce 2.0: How to cultivate cybersecurity professionals." Headlining the discussion will be Tony Scott, U.S. federal chief information officer, along with Rodney Petersen, leader of the National Initiative for Cybersecurity Education at the U.S. National Institute of Standards and Technology, Maryland. Follow the conversation on Twitter via the hashtag #SecurityCulture and @csmpasscode. Or follow the livestream here.

Northrop Grumman and the Northrop Grumman Foundation are committed to supporting cyber security education, training, technology and workforce development. Highlights include the University of Maryland Baltimore County (UMBC) Cyber Scholars program; the University of Maryland Advanced Cybersecurity Experience for Students program; the university-based Cybersecurity Research Consortium; the Cync incubator program in partnership with bwtech@UMBC; UK CyberInvest, in which the company is an industry partner, and numerous other global academia-focused partnerships.  For more about Northrop Grumman in cyber, go to www.northropgrumman.com/cyber.

Northrop Grumman is a leading global security company providing innovative systems, products and solutions in autonomous systems, cyber, C4ISR, strike, and logistics and modernization to government and commercial customers worldwide. Please visit www.northropgrumman.com for more information.

CONTACT: US: Marynoele Benson
         (703) 556-1651 (office)
         (703) 282-5428
         Marynoele.benson@ngc.com
         
         UK:  Ken Beedle
         +44 (0) 207-747-1910 (office)
         +44 (0) 7787-174092 (mobile)
         Ken.beedle@euro.ngc.com