Cyber Tatanka 2026
Nebraska's Premier Defensive Cyber Range Exercise
June 1-12, 2026 | Kiewit Hall, UNL
Countdown to Cyber Tatanka 2026
About Cyber Tatanka
In short, Cyber Tatanka is the premier, free, non-competitive, hands-on defensive cyber range exercise for critical infrastructure hosted by Cyber Strong Nebraska.
Cyber Tatanka is an annual, hands-on cybersecurity training event designed to strengthen collaboration and readiness among diverse groups. In 2026, we'll celebrate our 5th year of bringing together industry professionals, the military, international partners, government agencies, schools, and non-profits to tackle real-world cybersecurity challenges in a safe, controlled environment.
This two-week event provides participants with practical, scenario-based exercises that simulate cyber incidents impacting Critical Infrastructure. By fostering teamwork, improving response capabilities, and promoting knowledge-sharing, Cyber Tatanka equips attendees with the tools and relationships needed to safeguard our communities from emerging threats.
The Name: Tatanka
The Lakota word Tatanka refers to the bison (often translated as "big beast" or specifically the male buffalo), which held profound cultural, spiritual, and practical significance for the Plains tribes like the Lakota. It was not just an animal but the very essence of their existence, providing food, clothing, shelter, tools, and even spiritual guidance through ceremonies and symbols of self-sacrifice.
Similarly, critical infrastructure in modern society encompasses the essential assets, systems, and networks (across 16 key sectors like energy, water, transportation, and communications) that underpin daily life, the economy, and national security, acting as the invisible backbone that sustains everything from healthcare to commerce.
In essence, Tatanka was the "critical infrastructure" of the plains world a singular, life-sustaining force much like how today's interconnected systems form an ecosystem where failure in one strand unravels the whole.
The Training
Cyber Tatanka combines academic preparation with dynamic, hands-on experience. Participants engage in comprehensive training that includes:
Academic Preparation
Before the live exercise, participants complete preparatory coursework designed to establish foundational knowledge and ensure all team members are ready for the challenges ahead.
Hands-On Learning
The event features realistic, scenario-driven challenges that test both technical skills and the coordination of incident response efforts. Participants work in teams to identify, respond to, and recover from cybersecurity incidents of varying complexity.
Collaborative Environment
Training sessions foster collaboration between diverse groups including industry professionals, military personnel, international partners, government agencies, and non-profits, creating valuable partnerships and knowledge-sharing opportunities.
The Range
Our Virtual Training Environment (VTE) provides a safe, controlled space where participants can practice defensive cybersecurity skills without risk to production systems.
Virtual Training Environment
The VTE simulates real-world critical infrastructure systems and networks, allowing participants to experience authentic cyber incidents and practice response procedures in a risk-free environment.
Realistic Scenarios
Exercises are designed to mirror actual threats facing critical infrastructure, including advanced persistent threats, ransomware attacks, supply chain compromises, insider threats, and coordinated multi-vector attacks.
Location
Kiewit Hall, College of Engineering
University of Nebraska-Lincoln, City Campus
The Challenge
Objective
Enhance the ability of participants to identify, respond to, and recover from cybersecurity incidents of varying complexity. Build stronger communication channels and partnerships to support Nebraska Emergency Management and protect Critical Infrastructure and Key Resources (CIKR).
Cyber Tatanka is addressing many cyber security challenges that we face as a state and as a nation including:
Addressing Interdependencies Among Critical Infrastructure Sectors
Cyber Tatanka simulates realistic cyber attack scenarios that require cross-sector collaboration. Participants are grouped into teams based on 12 critical infrastructure sectors, including energy, finance, and healthcare. During the second week, teams respond to "live-fire" exercises involving coordinated attacks on interconnected IT environments. These scenarios force participants to coordinate incident response plans across sector boundaries. For example, energy providers work with financial institutions to mitigate cascading failures. This hands-on approach uses simulations mapped to the MITRE ATT&CK framework to identify gaps in interdependent systems. The exercise builds networks that participants can leverage during real-world crises.
Key outcomes include:
- Enhanced resilience through shared recovery processes
- Minimized downtime in simulated multi-sector disruptions
- Practical experience coordinating across organizational boundaries
Bridging International Gaps in Cyber Cooperation
In 2025 Cyber Tatanka assembled over 200 participants from the U.S., Chile, Tanzania, the Czech Republic, and other allied nations. The unclassified, scalable virtual environment is accessible via web browsers, enabling joint operations without logistical barriers.
International military partners, such as those from the Czech Armed Forces under the State Partnership Program, collaborate with U.S. National Guard units. Together, they work on scenario-driven defenses against global threats, sharing investigation techniques and response strategies in real-time simulations.
This collaboration fosters unified cyber norms and builds lasting partnerships. Participants learn to "speak the same language" on incident handling.
Key outcomes include:
- Improved cross-border readiness
- Proactive global threat mitigation
- Enduring international partnerships
Breaking Down Barriers Between Public and Private Sectors
Cyber Tatanka integrates public entities (Nebraska National Guard, federal agencies) with private sector leaders (Nebraska Public Power District, Union Bank & Trust, Bryan Health) in mixed teams. Daily simulations break down information silos through shared access to tools, processes, and attack scenarios.
In this safe, controlled setting, participants openly discuss unsecured systems and remediation tactics. They build a network of contacts for ongoing dialogue. For example, civilian insights inform military responses to insider threats and ransomware attacks.
Key outcomes include:
- Stronger public-private partnerships
- Immediate implementation of collaborative strategies
- Enhanced community-wide incident response
- Reduced hesitation in sharing sensitive threat intelligence
Addressing the Shortage of Skilled Cybersecurity Professionals
Cyber Tatanka offers two weeks of immersive training, starting with classroom sessions on frameworks and progressing to adaptive "live-fire" simulations. This structure equips participants including students and novices with practical skills in malware detection, eradication, and recovery.
In 2025, university students networked with seasoned professionals for the first time. Platforms like Cloud Range allow real-time difficulty adjustments for all experience levels, simulating high-stress scenarios to build "muscle memory."
Key outcomes include:
- Faster threat remediation times
- A pipeline of trained defenders across sectors
- Scalable, no-risk practice that unites diverse perspectives
Our Impact
5th
Year of Excellence
100mil +
People Served by Participating Organizations
$0
No Cost to Participants
Strengthening Nebraska's Cybersecurity
Cyber Tatanka plays a vital role in protecting Nebraska's critical infrastructure by building a network of trained cybersecurity professionals, fostering collaboration between public and private sectors, improving incident response capabilities across organizations, supporting Nebraska Emergency Management objectives, and creating lasting partnerships that benefit the entire community.
Benefits to Participants
This unique opportunity provides attendees with practical, hands-on experience with real-world scenarios, professional networking opportunities, enhanced technical and coordination skills, tools and knowledge to better protect their organizations, and relationships that support ongoing security improvements.
How Cyber Tatanka Reduces Breach Costs
The IBM 2025 Cost of a Data Breach Report highlights how faster breach identification and containment contributed to a global average cost drop to $4.4 million, while U.S. costs climbed to $10.22 million due to prolonged multi-environment breaches. Cyber Tatanka directly mitigates these exposures by delivering hands-on, collaborative training that builds skills for rapid detection, response, and resilience across critical infrastructure sectors. By simulating real-world threats in a controlled virtual environment Tatanka accelerates defender readiness, aligning with the report's emphasis on proactive measures to curb escalating expenses.
Tatanka's core structure groups over 200 participants from military, civilian, public, private, and international sectors into cross-functional teams. These teams engage in daily escalating "live-fire" simulations mapped to the MITRE ATT&CK framework.
The exercises train participants to detect and remediate incidents in IT environments that mimic enterprise networking infrastructure. In practice scenarios, response times are shortened from days to hours.
This approach mirrors the IBM-identified driver of global cost reductions. Quicker containment (under 200 days versus the 276-day average for multi-environment breaches) can save millions. Cyber range training like Tatanka's has been shown to enhance incident response efficiency, directly reducing breach-related downtime and recovery expenses.
Broader ROI: Building Workforce Resilience and Partnerships
Tatanka's inclusion of novices, students, and international allies (e.g., from Chile and the Czech Republic) tackles workforce gaps, creating a pipeline of skilled defenders who implement learned strategies immediately (e.g., coordinated defenses that shorten overall breach lifecycles). Outcomes include measurable ROI, such as minimized downtime and enhanced brand trust post-incident, as participants form lasting networks for threat sharing. Ultimately, by proactively addressing the report's cost drivers, events like Tatanka lower breach probabilities and severities, potentially saving organizations millions while bolstering national critical infrastructure against evolving threats.
Our Partners
Cyber Tatanka brings together a diverse coalition of organizations committed to strengthening cybersecurity for critical infrastructure.
Who Participates
Industry Professionals, Military Personnel, International Partners, Government Agencies, Non-Profit Organizations, and Academic Institutions all come together for this collaborative training experience.
Become a Sponsor
Support Nebraska's premier cybersecurity training event and help strengthen the security posture of critical infrastructure across the state.
Why Sponsor Cyber Tatanka?
Demonstrate your commitment to cybersecurity and community protection, gain visibility among key decision-makers in critical infrastructure sectors, support workforce development in cybersecurity, network with industry leaders, government agencies, and military partners, and contribute to Nebraska's cyber resilience. Ready to Support Our Mission? Contact us at info@csneb.org to discuss sponsorship opportunities.
Individual Donors
Support the event with a tax-deductible donation of any amount.
Your donation will be processed through Cyber Strong Nebraska in support of the event.
Contact Us
Have questions about Cyber Tatanka? Want to participate or learn more? Get in touch with us.
© 2026 Cyber Strong Nebraska. All rights reserved.
Website: cybertatanka.org | Email: info@csneb.org