Introduction

This is a post for leaving what I did as the president of CyKor over 2025, Cyber Security Club at Korea University.

1. Unification of Communication Channels

Problems - History Loss: Chat rooms were recreated annually, erasing previous data. - Internal Disconnect: Communication was cut off between CTF players (who used Discord) and non-CTF members. - Alumni Gap: There was no communication channel between current students and alumni.

Solution - Inspired by how Zellic runs. - Unified all communication channels into a single Discord server (excluding the official student announcement channel).

Result - Established a sustainable, centralized platform connecting all members and alumni.

2. CyKor Blog Operation

Problems - Visibility: Lack of external awareness regarding CyKor’s potential and students’ skills. - Funding: Need for a medium to attract long-term sponsorships. - Sustainability: Difficulty in motivating members to voluntarily write high-quality posts.

Solution - Launched an official technical blog (blog.cykor.kr) and an X account.

Result - The platform is active and promoting the club, though finding ways to encourage voluntary participation remains an ongoing task. - Helps to get sponsors at a CyKor CTF.

3. Career & Employment Opportunities

Problems - Career Pressure: The majority of members are 3rd or 4th-year students facing immediate job search or graduate school decisions. - Limited Exposure: Students lacked knowledge and opportunities regarding global employment and full-remote work environments.

Solution - Leveraged alumni connections to organize seminars and entrance tests with global firms like OtterSec.

Result - 9 students participated in the hiring test, gaining valuable motivation and experience in the global job market process.

4. Expansion of Scope (Research & Seminars)

Problems - Narrow Focus: The club was overly focused on CTF (Competitions), ignoring the broader spectrum of hacking. - Theory Gap: A disconnect existed between practical skills (Field) and theoretical research (Academia). - Limited Horizon: Undergraduate students often lacked exposure to deep, specific security topics.

Solution - Recruited BoB graduates and undergraduate researchers to integrate CTF with research. - Launched regular academic seminars led by student researchers.

Result - Successfully conducted seminars on advanced topics (Spectre/Meltdown, TEE, PUF), significantly broadening members’ technical perspectives.

5. Curriculum Overhaul (Development First)

Problems - Foundation Deficit: Students attempted hacking without the ability to read code or understand development logic. - Wrong Order: Teaching hacking before development was deemed fundamentally incorrect. - Passive Learning: Need to filter out passive learners and assess Self-motivation (especially given the rise of AI tools).

Solution - Curriculum Change: Shifted the first semester to focus entirely on Development (C, Web) before teaching hacking.

Result - High Attrition: While applicants increased (>100), only 18 members survived the rigorous process. - Quality Control: Successfully filtered for a small, highly motivated group ready for the summer hacking curriculum.

6. Joint Seminar with KAIST GoN

Problems - Networking Imbalance: While CTF players had numerous channels for interaction (competitions, Discord), non-CTF players lacked opportunities to network with peers from other universities.

Solution - Organized and hosted the first Joint Seminar with KAIST GoN.

Result - The event was successfully conducted under the sponsorship of Theori. - Several students successfully secured internship opportunities through connections made at the event.

7. Hosting CyKor CTF

Independence The challenge was to host an international-scale competition relying solely on the technical capabilities of current students and select alumni, without external assistance in problem creation.

Authors: Exclusively composed of CyKor current students and alumni.

Result - Scale: Established a $5,000 prize pool. - Sponsors: Secured funding from Enki, Theori (Dreamhack), ExpOnlyNoPoc, and Zellic. - Infrastructure: Secured infrastructure sponsorship from HSpace.

8. Exchange Program with the University of Tokyo (TSG)

Problems - International Reach: There was a lack of regular exchange with top-tier international hacking clubs.

Solution - Direct Action: Sent a cold email directly to the President of TSG (University of Tokyo) to propose a partnership.

Result - Bi-Annual Exchange: Successfully established a regular exchange program held twice a year. - Winter: CyKor visits Tokyo. - Summer: TSG visits Korea.

9. Bridging the Internal Gap (Departmental Integration)

Problems - Departmental Divide: CyKor consists of students from the Department of Cyber Defense (approx. 10-year history) and the Department of Smart Security (newly established). - Disconnect: There was a lack of interaction and integration between the established department and the new department.

Solution - Constitution Amendment: Revised self-governing rules to allow students from the Dept. of Smart Security to run for Vice President. - Leadership: Strengthened the inclusivity of the presidency. - Financial Equality: significantly reduced financial barriers/gaps between members. - Social Events: Organized frequent snack events to create natural opportunities for members to greet and interact with each other.

Result - Successfully created an environment that fosters unity and reduces the cultural and structural distance between the two departments.

Besides

1. Group hoodies.
2. Semester Opening Meeting with presentations of members with various topics.
3. Amendment of self-governing rules to mandate the President’s disclosure of CyKor’s financial ledgers.