FPT University students win first prize at the International Cryptography Olympiad.

This year's competition was held online with participants from over 40 countries. Through the in-depth competition categories,FPT University students achieved many outstanding results.

In the individual category, Nguyen Thanh Danh, a K18 student majoring in Information Security, excelled in overcoming challenges to win first prize with a test related to cryptographic theory and applied mathematics problems. Tran Quang Quan, also a K18 student majoring in Information Security, won third prize, demonstrating his logical thinking ability and capacity to solve complex problems accurately and creatively.

In the team competition, which required contestants to solve in-depth research problems combined with programming, the FPTU K18 Information Security student team, consisting of Tran Quang Quan, Vu Quang Huy, and Nguyen Thanh Danh, continued to demonstrate their research capabilities, problem-solving skills, and effective teamwork spirit to win third place overall.

Sharing his thoughts on his achievement, Nguyen Thanh Danh said that this was a very difficult international competition, so the moment he was announced as the winner made him feel that all his efforts had been deservedly recognized. The biggest pressure was the time factor: the cryptographic problems were long, requiring in-depth analysis and many steps of reasoning, while the time allotted was quite limited. "There were times when I had found a solution but didn't have enough time to fully implement it. That pressure helped me hone my ability to prioritize, process quickly, and maintain a strong mindset," Thanh Danh shared.

Sharing similar sentiments, Tran Quang Quan said: "In the individual round, the biggest challenge came from the difficulty of the exam questions and the race against time, having to solve 9 in-depth questions in just 4 and a half hours. In the team round, the exam required a high level of application; contestants had to read and understand relevant research papers and quickly translate that into solutions using programming or proposing research directions. Thanks to clear assignments and good teamwork, we overcame our own limitations to achieve today's results."

The competition has been held annually since 2014 by leading universities and research institutes in Russia, Belarus, and Belgium, including Novosibirsk State University, Sobolev Institute of Mathematics, Belarusian State University, Tomsk State University, and KU Leuven.

To date, the competition has attracted over 3,000 participants from 68 countries, becoming one of the world's most prestigious intellectual arenas for young researchers in the field of cryptography. It is also the only Cryptography Olympiad in the world that includes scientific problems for experts and students from all countries.

What makes NSUCrypto unique is that its exam combines traditional Olympic-style problems with open-ended, unsolved problems. Teams often have to focus on solving multiple challenges on topics such as exploiting web application vulnerabilities, reverse engineering software, finding and exploiting bugs in server applications and software, and solving cryptographic problems.

The content covers many important areas of modern cryptography such as block ciphers, public-key cryptography, cryptographic analysis, etc. This requires candidates not only to have a solid grasp of fundamental knowledge but also to possess superior logical thinking, research skills, and creativity.

The achievements of FPT University students at NSUCrypto 2025 once again affirm the quality of the university's education, especially in the field of technology. With a curriculum based on international standards and a learning environment that emphasizes critical thinking and in-depth research, FPT University students are increasingly demonstrating their competitiveness in the context of globalization.

QUYNH NGUYEN

Source: https://nhandan.vn/sinh-vien-truong-dai-hoc-fpt-gianh-giai-nhat-cuoc-thi-olympic-mat-ma-quoc-te-post929299.html