// OFFICIAL_RULES

COMPETITION RULES

Last Updated: July 2026

1. Fair Play & Ethics

All participants of CIPHERX CTF are required to compete with integrity and fairness. Sharing flags, solutions, hints, or assistance between different teams during the competition is strictly forbidden and will result in immediate disqualification of all involved teams.

2. Team Eligibility

CIPHERX is an inter-college CTF event. Each team must fulfill the registered team size requirements. Students currently enrolled at SRM Valliammai Engineering College (SRMVEC) are strictly not eligible to participate or compete.

3. Target Scope & Infrastructure

Attacking, scanning, or probing the platform infrastructure, scoring server, payment portal, or competitor machines outside of designated challenge targets is strictly prohibited. Denial of Service (DoS/DDoS) attacks against any platform system or network equipment will lead to immediate bans.

4. Flag Submission & Scoring

Flags follow the standard format C1X{...} or aran{...} unless specified otherwise in the challenge prompt. Points are awarded upon correct submission. Automated flag brute-forcing is strictly banned. In the event of a tie, the team that reached the final score first will rank higher.

5. Disqualification & Enforcement

The organizers reserve the right to disqualify any team found violating the rules, behaving unprofessionally, or tampering with infrastructure. The decision of the Whitehatians Club and event coordinators is final and non-negotiable.

6. Support & Inquiries

If you encounter broken challenges, technical errors, or infrastructure downtime, contact event coordinators immediately via the contact information provided in the footer.