In the Italian and European cybersecurity landscape, few collaborations manage to combine educational vision, technical realism, and community impact as effectively as the partnership announced between Red Hot Cyber and Hack The Box (HTB) for the Red Hot Cyber Conference 2026.
This alliance represents a turning point not only for the event itself but for the entire ecosystem of hands-on learning and technical competition in cybersecurity.
The RHC Conference, scheduled for Monday, May 18, and Tuesday, May 19, 2026, in Rome at Teatro Italia, confirms its position as one of the most anticipated events in the Italian cybersecurity calendar, attracting students, professionals, researchers, and enthusiasts for two days full of talks, workshops, technical demonstrations, and hands-on activities.
At the heart of the 2026 edition will once again be Red Hot Cyber’s official Capture The Flag (CTF), now completely revamped and enhanced thanks to the direct contribution of Hack The Box .
The RHC Conference Capture The Flag is not a side event but the core of the entire conference. In 2026, the competition will be structured in an online phase (approximately 30 flags) and an onsite phase (approximately 30 flags), integrated into a single competitive experience lasting a total of 26 hours—from 3:00 PM on Monday, May 18, to 5:00 PM on Tuesday, May 19—for about 60 flags in total.
This hybrid format breaks down the barriers between the virtual and real worlds, giving participants the chance to tackle both classic cybersecurity attack scenarios and complex physical environments based on real technologies and operational infrastructures.
In previous years, the Red Hot Cyber CTF has already offered high-level physical challenges such as:
In 2026, thanks to the partnership with Hack The Box, this vision is further expanded and structured in a systematic way.
Hack The Box is the leading AI-powered cybersecurity readiness and upskilling platform, trusted by 1,500+ organizations worldwide, including Fortune 500 enterprises, government agencies, and MSSPs, to build cyber resilience at scale. Through AI-enhanced intelligence, gamified labs, live-fire simulations, and one of the world’s largest cybersecurity communities, Hack The Box enables teams to master offensive and defensive skills through real-world scenarios designed for the age of AI.
Within the Red Hot Cyber Conference 2026 Capture The Flag, Hack The Box will provide the official online CTF platform where users can register, view the leaderboard, and consolidate both online and onsite flags.
Hack The Box will focus on online challenges, featuring approximately 30 flags, divided into:
Technical categories will include Web Application, Microsoft Exchange, Malware Analysis, and other scenarios still under development, aligned with real enterprise environments. This ensures not only high technical quality but also perfect alignment with the skills required today for penetration testers, blue teamers, and security researchers.
One of the most innovative aspects of the 2026 CTF is the balanced distribution of challenges:
The organizers’ declared goal is to fully unify the competitive experience, allowing teams to:
This technical and conceptual choice elevates the CTF from a simple competition to a realistic simulation of a multi-domain attack operation, where offensive skills, investigative abilities, and problem-solving converge.
What makes the 2026 CTF even more ambitious is the introduction of a true narrative storyline. The competition will be structured as a Jeopardy-style CTF but set in a consistent dystopian context: a cyberattack on a futuristic metropolis called “Vetrox Prime.”
The idea is to simulate an attack on a hyper-technological city, which is still being finalized.
This narrative approach is not just a creative exercise but an advanced educational tool: it allows participants to understand realistic attack chains, system interdependencies, and the tangible impact of vulnerabilities.
The partnership between Red Hot Cyber and Hack The Box is not just an operational agreement but a manifesto: to bring Italian players to a level of realism, integration, and quality comparable to the best international events.
The RHC Conference 2026 aims to become a European benchmark, a place where training, competition, and storytelling merge into a single immersive experience. For participants, it will not only be a contest but a technical and narrative journey through the challenges of modern cybersecurity, as well as an opportunity to meet new players and experts in the Italian cybersecurity field.
For the community, it will be yet another confirmation that when collaboration, skills, and vision come together, the result goes far beyond a simple event.
Follow us on Google News to receive daily updates on cybersecurity. Contact us if you would like to report news, insights or content for publication.
