FS-ISAC Cyber Range Exercise | Operation Akela Defensive

Join us for a member only cyber range team sim exercise

Operation Akela is a defensive range aimed at users with a beginner to intermediate knowledge level of incident response, threat hunting, and defensive tools.

Your investigation begins when a user alerts the SOC team to some suspicious activity they’ve identified on their machine. When they opened a document received via an email, they saw a flash of a black application with white text on their screen before it closed itself and the document opened.

It’s believed that the suspicious file discovered was in fact malicious. You’ve been tasked to investigate it.

With this information, you will examine and analyze the incident to determine what has happened.

This exercise provides:

Hands-on experience to build real-world skills in a low-pressure environment
Practice with the latest tools and techniques to defend and protect your networks before, during, and after an attack
Scenarios and techniques that can be used to inform your firm's formal incident response playbooks and checklists
Opportunity to compete and collaborate with industry peers to enhance best practices

How it works:

Members will compete in teams of up to 10
Individual registrants are placed on teams with their peers and compete against other member organizations
Teams will compete amongst themselves and will be scored according to number of completed tasks, accuracy, and time taken

Event details:

FS-ISAC members only
$495 fee per person, due at registration. Full 10-person team registration is available at a discount; please contact exercises@fsisac.com for more details.
Experience level: Beginner to intermediate

Time: 9:00 AM - 5:00 PM ET

Date: 16 - 18 September 2025

How to register:

Members: To register, log in via Intelligence Exchange dashboard*, select the Member Services icon. From this dashboard, select the Event/Training tab and select the exercise.
*If you are a member and do not have an Intelligence Exchange account, please contact memberquestions@fsisac.com.
If your financial institution is not a member of FS-ISAC, join FS-ISAC today.

This exercise runs on the Immersive Labs platform and does not have any specific device requirements.

FAQ

I am unable to attend; can I cancel and receive a refund?

Refunds are available up to 10 days prior to the event. If you are unable to attend, we would be happy to assist in facilitating the transfer of your registration to another member up to 24 hours prior. No changes, cancellations, or refunds can occur within 24 hours of the event.

I registered for another employee in my organization. How do I give them access to the registration?

If you registered for someone else, please contact us at exercises@fsisac.com with their name and the email address connected to their FS-ISAC account, and we will be happy to transfer the registration over.

I am unable to attend. Can I transfer my registration to someone else?

Yes, if you registered and are unable to attend, please contact us at exercises@fsisac.com with the name and email address connected to the FS-ISAC account of the person replacing you, at least 24 hours prior to the event, and we will be happy to transfer the registration over to them.

I registered for the upcoming Cyber Range but have not received any event information or invitation. What do I need to do?

Event access information and invitations are sent out a week ahead of the Cyber Range. If you have not received the invite after this time, please reach out to us at exercises@fsisac.com.

Who are the Cyber Ranges designed for, and do they require prior experience?

Our Cyber Ranges are technical exercises designed for beginner to intermediate level network defenders. However, they are meant to challenge even those with more experience.

What can I expect day of? What is the structure of the exercise?

At 9:00 AM ET on Monday, the day prior to the exercise, FS-ISAC will hold a briefing and all registrants are sent a link to the recording. Teams begin the exercise at 9:00 am ET on Tuesday and should plan to complete it by 5:00 PM ET on Thursday.

*Members in any region can participate. The exercise starts and ends in eastern time, but the exercise can be played anytime/24 hours within that time frame. Support staff in each region will be available.

Is there any prep work I need to do for the Cyber Range exercises?

No, there is no prep work required prior to the exercise.

Can I receive a certificate of completion for the Cyber Range exercises?

Yes, every attendee will receive a certification of completion to be filled out for their individual continuing professional education submission.

How much do the Cyber Ranges cost?

The Cyber Ranges are priced at $495.00 per person. However, discounts are available for full team registration. Please reach out to exercises@fsisac.com for more information.

What payment methods are accepted for the Cyber Range exercises?

Payments are processed directly through the Member Services app in your IntelX account. Therefore, credit card is the preferred method of payment.

How is the competition scored?

FS-ISAC strives to provide an environment of friendly competition and collaboration in our cyber range exercises. Each cyber range exercise is split into a series of tasks each team will need to complete. The scoring will be based on the number of tasks completed, the accuracy of answers, and the length of time taken to complete each task.