On the weekend VolgaCTF.org team held its tenth qualifier event, namely VolgaCTF 2021 Qualifier. Significant changes were brought about this year:
- The event duration was reduced from 48 to 24 hours. Managing a 2-day competition is too hard for such a tiny team.
- Static scoring gave way to dynamic one (in accordance with CTF Design Guidelines).
- Sign in/up with CTFtime.org was implemented.
Now we would like to share some key metrics that were collected during the competition this year. The data is compared against VolgaCTF 2020 Qualifier.
Key metrics
- Sign up
- Number of teams
- Team sign in activity
- Task submit attempts distribution
- Task hit distribution
- Task review distribution
- Team/country distribution
Tasks
- Static Site
- Online Wallet (Part 1)
- Online Wallet (Part 2)
- QR Codebook
- Knock-Knock
- Carry
- Chosen Ones
- Unicorn Networks
- flask-admin
- Snake
- JWT
- JWS
- Inception
- penny wise
- Streams
- Feedback
Sign up
Sign up was made available on March 15th and teams could register up to the end of the competition. Unsurprisingly, the maximum number of teams (194) joined the event on the first day of the contest, March 27th.
Number of teams
This year saw a sharp decline in the number of teams playing. This can be explained with the following factors:
- Sign in/up with CTFtime.org account encouraged the participants to join the event on behalf of a team rather than as an individual.
- Another CTF events being held at the same time, e.g. UMassCTF 2021.
| Number of teams | VolgaCTF 2020 Qualifier | VolgaCTF 2021 Qualifier | Change |
|---|---|---|---|
| Total | 1433 | 765 | -668 |
| Qualified | 1250 | 631 | -619 |
| Disqualified | 0 | 0 | – |
| Signed in during the competition | 1238 | 588 | -650 |
| Submitted at least one flag | 621 | 285 | -336 |
| Solved at least one task | 504 | 231 | -273 |
| Reviewed at least one task | 322 | 130 | -192 |
Team sign in activity
The chart below shows how many different teams signed in during the competition.
Task submit attempts distribution
The chart shows the number of teams who submitted flags to the given number of tasks (at least).
Task hit distribution
The chart shows the number of teams who solved the given number of tasks (at least).
Task review distribution
A team can write a review to the task they solved. The chart below shows the number of teams who reviewed the given number of tasks (at least).
Team/country distribution
Traditionally, VolgaCTF is played in all areas of the world. The most represented countries are shown in the diagram:
And here is a comparison table:
| # | Country | Number of teams (2020) | Number of teams (2021) | Change |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Russia | 170 | 162 | -8 |
| 2 | India | 149 | 51 | -98 |
| 3 | China | 80 | 39 | -41 |
| 4 | International | 31 | 36 | +5 |
| 5 | Republic of Korea | 60 | 32 | -28 |
| 6 | Vietnam | 36 | 26 | -10 |
| 7 | Japan | 53 | 23 | -30 |
| 8 | United States | 113 | 22 | -91 |
| 9 | France | 38 | 20 | -18 |
| 10 | Italy | 23 | 16 | -7 |
| 11 | United Kingdom | 15 | 11 | -4 |
| 12 | Ukraine | 7 | 11 | +4 |
| 13 | Taiwan | 18 | 11 | -7 |
| 14 | Germany | 40 | 10 | -30 |
| 15 | Poland | 16 | 9 | -7 |
| 16 | Indonesia | 24 | 9 | -15 |
| 17 | Israel | 12 | 7 | -5 |
| 18 | Brazil | 14 | 7 | -7 |
| 19 | Singapore | 8 | 6 | -2 |
| 20 | Portugal | 9 | 6 | -3 |
| 21 | Malaysia | 4 | 6 | +2 |
| 22 | Austria | 12 | 6 | -6 |
| 23 | Tunisia | 18 | 5 | -13 |
| 24 | Switzerland | 11 | 5 | -6 |
| 25 | Spain | 11 | 5 | -6 |
| 26 | Netherlands | 11 | 5 | -6 |
| 27 | Belgium | 14 | 5 | -9 |
| 28 | Australia | 9 | 5 | -4 |
| 29 | Egypt | 13 | 4 | -9 |
| 30 | Sweden | 14 | 3 | -11 |
| 31 | Morocco | 15 | 3 | -12 |
| 32 | Iran | 17 | 3 | -14 |
| 33 | Hong Kong | 8 | 3 | -5 |
| 34 | Greece | 4 | 3 | -1 |
| 35 | Bangladesh | 1 | 3 | +2 |
| 36 | Argentina | 6 | 3 | -3 |
| 37 | Algeria | 6 | 3 | -3 |
| 38 | Turkey | 11 | 2 | -9 |
| 39 | Thailand | 4 | 2 | -2 |
| 40 | Saudi Arabia | 4 | 2 | -2 |
| 41 | Romania | 9 | 2 | -7 |
| 42 | Philippines | 1 | 2 | +1 |
| 43 | Mexico | 9 | 2 | -7 |
| 44 | Hungary | 4 | 2 | -2 |
| 45 | Denmark | 7 | 2 | -5 |
| 46 | Canada | 15 | 2 | -13 |
| 47 | Antarctica | 3 | 2 | -1 |
| 48 | Uzbekistan | 0 | 1 | +1 |
| 49 | U.S. Minor Outlying Islands | 0 | 1 | +1 |
| 50 | Republic of Lithuania | 0 | 1 | +1 |
| 51 | Qatar | 1 | 1 | – |
| 52 | Puerto Rico | 0 | 1 | +1 |
| 53 | Norway | 10 | 1 | -9 |
| 54 | Nigeria | 1 | 1 | – |
| 55 | Nepal | 0 | 1 | +1 |
| 56 | Kazakhstan | 5 | 1 | -4 |
| 57 | Ireland | 1 | 1 | – |
| 58 | Iceland | 1 | 1 | – |
| 59 | Hashemite Kingdom of Jordan | 1 | 1 | – |
| 60 | Georgia | 0 | 1 | +1 |
| 61 | Finland | 3 | 1 | -2 |
| 62 | Fiji | 3 | 1 | -2 |
| 63 | Ethiopia | 2 | 1 | -1 |
| 64 | Ecuador | 0 | 1 | +1 |
| 65 | Djibouti | 0 | 1 | +1 |
| 66 | Czechia | 3 | 1 | -2 |
| 67 | Croatia | 2 | 1 | -1 |
| 68 | Colombia | 0 | 1 | +1 |
| 69 | Cameroon | 1 | 1 | – |
| 70 | Bulgaria | 2 | 1 | -1 |
| 71 | Benin | 0 | 1 | +1 |
| 72 | Belarus | 1 | 1 | – |
| 73 | Armenia | 0 | 1 | +1 |
| 74 | Afghanistan | 0 | 1 | +1 |
Static Site
| Metric | Value |
|---|---|
| Value | 252 |
| Categories | Web |
| Opened | Mar 27 at 14:02 UTC |
| Flags submitted | 84 first on Mar 27 at 14:03 UTC last on Mar 28 at 13:06 UTC |
| Solved | by 38 teams first on Mar 27 at 15:14 UTC by Bushwhackers last on Mar 28 at 13:06 UTC |
| Rated | 4.15 (based on 13 reviews) |
Online Wallet (Part 1)
| Metric | Value |
|---|---|
| Value | 129 |
| Categories | Web |
| Opened | Mar 27 at 14:02 UTC |
| Flags submissions | 224 first on Mar 27 at 14:06 UTC last on Mar 28 at 13:28 UTC |
| Solved | by 135 teams first on Mar 27 at 14:15 UTC by ret2school last on Mar 28 at 13:13 UTC |
| Rated | 3.97 (based on 39 reviews) |
Online Wallet (Part 2)
| Metric | Value |
|---|---|
| Value | 343 |
| Categories | Web |
| Opened | Mar 27 at 14:03 UTC |
| Flags submissions | 35 first on Mar 27 at 14:12 UTC last on Mar 28 at 13:28 UTC |
| Solved | by 14 teams first on Mar 27 at 17:36 UTC by xof5566~ last on Mar 28 at 13:28 UTC |
| Rated | 5.00 (based on 4 reviews) |
QR Codebook
| Metric | Value |
|---|---|
| Value | 196 |
| Categories | Crypto |
| Opened | Mar 27 at 14:04 UTC |
| Flags submissions | 148 first on Mar 27 at 14:05 UTC last on Mar 28 at 13:54 UTC |
| Solved | by 68 teams first on Mar 27 at 15:00 UTC by More Smoked Leet Chicken last on Mar 28 at 13:54 UTC |
| Rated | 4.16 (based on 19 reviews) |
Knock-Knock
| Metric | Value |
|---|---|
| Value | 172 |
| Categories | Crypto |
| Opened | Mar 27 at 14:14 UTC |
| Flags submissions | 839 first on Mar 27 at 14:46 UTC last on Mar 28 at 13:59 UTC |
| Solved | by 87 teams first on Mar 27 at 14:51 UTC by SUSlo.PAS last on Mar 28 at 13:59 UTC |
| Rated | 3.96 (based on 26 reviews) |
Carry
| Metric | Value |
|---|---|
| Value | 234 |
| Categories | Crypto |
| Opened | Mar 27 at 14:14 UTC |
| Flags submissions | 50 first on Mar 27 at 15:24 UTC last on Mar 28 at 13:56 UTC |
| Solved | by 46 teams first on Mar 27 at 15:24 UTC by Super Guesser last on Mar 28 at 13:56 UTC |
| Rated | 3.67 (based on 15 reviews) |
Chosen Ones
| Metric | Value |
|---|---|
| Value | 266 |
| Categories | Stegastics |
| Opened | Mar 27 at 14:14 UTC |
| Flags submissions | 102 first on Mar 27 at 14:40 UTC last on Mar 28 at 13:48 UTC |
| Solved | by 33 teams first on Mar 27 at 14:47 UTC by More Smoked Leet Chicken last on Mar 28 at 13:48 UTC |
| Rated | 4.08 (based on 13 reviews) |
Unicorn Networks
| Metric | Value |
|---|---|
| Value | 230 |
| Categories | Web |
| Opened | Mar 27 at 14:14 UTC |
| Flags submissions | 88 first on Mar 27 at 15:12 UTC last on Mar 28 at 13:21 UTC |
| Solved | by 48 teams first on Mar 27 at 15:24 UTC by WeAreScientists last on Mar 28 at 13:21 UTC |
| Rated | 4.19 (based on 16 reviews) |
flask-admin
| Metric | Value |
|---|---|
| Value | 179 |
| Categories | Web |
| Opened | Mar 27 at 14:14 UTC |
| Flags submissions | 155 first on Mar 27 at 14:44 UTC last on Mar 28 at 13:53 UTC |
| Solved | by 81 teams first on Mar 27 at 15:47 UTC by vubar last on Mar 28 at 13:53 UTC |
| Rated | 3.83 (based on 23 reviews) |
Snake
| Metric | Value |
|---|---|
| Value | 331 |
| Categories | Reverse |
| Opened | Mar 27 at 14:14 UTC |
| Flags submissions | 298 first on Mar 27 at 14:16 UTC last on Mar 28 at 13:50 UTC |
| Solved | by 16 teams first on Mar 27 at 17:50 UTC by WreckTheLine last on Mar 28 at 13:50 UTC |
| Rated | 3.80 (based on 5 reviews) |
JWT
| Metric | Value |
|---|---|
| Value | 132 |
| Categories | Web |
| Opened | Mar 27 at 14:14 UTC |
| Flags submissions | 301 first on Mar 27 at 14:22 UTC last on Mar 28 at 13:55 UTC |
| Solved | by 131 teams first on Mar 27 at 14:33 UTC by MailRu last on Mar 28 at 13:55 UTC |
| Rated | 4.41 (based on 39 reviews) |
JWS
| Metric | Value |
|---|---|
| Value | 356 |
| Categories | Web |
| Opened | Mar 27 at 14:14 UTC |
| Flags submissions | 28 first on Mar 27 at 14:35 UTC last on Mar 28 at 13:43 UTC |
| Solved | by 12 teams first on Mar 27 at 21:33 UTC by The Flat Network Society last on Mar 28 at 13:43 UTC |
| Rated | 1.33 (based on 6 reviews) |
Inception
| Metric | Value |
|---|---|
| Value | 454 |
| Categories | Stegastics |
| Opened | Mar 27 at 23:07 UTC |
| Flags submissions | 38 first on Mar 27 at 23:16 UTC last on Mar 28 at 13:56 UTC |
| Solved | by 3 teams first on Mar 28 at 07:25 UTC by Maple Bacon last on Mar 28 at 11:18 UTC |
| Rated | – |
penny wise
| Metric | Value |
|---|---|
| Value | 232 |
| Categories | Exploits |
| Opened | Mar 27 at 23:13 UTC |
| Flags submissions | 49 first on Mar 28 at 00:17 UTC last on Mar 28 at 13:42 UTC |
| Solved | by 47 teams first on Mar 28 at 00:17 UTC by the3000 last on Mar 28 at 13:42 UTC |
| Rated | 3.32 (based on 19 reviews) |
Streams
| Metric | Value |
|---|---|
| Value | 295 |
| Categories | Stegastics |
| Opened | Mar 27 at 23:26 UTC |
| Flags submissions | 48 first on Mar 28 at 00:13 UTC last on Mar 28 at 13:59 UTC |
| Solved | by 24 teams first on Mar 28 at 00:19 UTC by More Smoked Leet Chicken last on Mar 28 at 13:59 UTC |
| Rated | 2.00 (based on 4 reviews) |
Feedback
| Metric | Value |
|---|---|
| Value | 1 |
| Categories | Feedback |
| Opened | Mar 28 at 08:00 UTC |
| Flags submissions | 414 first on Mar 28 at 08:01 UTC last on Mar 28 at 13:58 UTC |
| Solved | by 130 teams first on Mar 28 at 08:01 UTC by bi0s last on Mar 28 at 13:58 UTC |
| Rated | 4.36 (based on 25 reviews) |
P.S. Thanks for participating and see you next year!