Japan this weekend hosted its first-ever, government-sanctioned hacking contest, inviting tech-savvy residents to help the country ward off future cyber attacks. 

Until now, Japan has discouraged hacking competitions over concerns that such events would actually encourage cyber crime, Japan's national broadcast station NHK reported today.  But in recent months, Japan has faced a number of cyber attacks, including a January attack on the Japanese Ministry that resulted in the theft of 3,000 classified documents. 

The hacks came after Japan purchased the Senkaku/Diaoyu islands, which China also claims to own, so the cyber attacks are believed to have originated in China, according to Voice of America.  As a result, Japan is looking for some tech-savvy individuals to help it fight off the growing cyber threat. 

Sunday's contest had two teams of programmers solve 24 problems in a set time by stealing computer data and deciphering codes, NHK said.  The winning group, a team of IT security firm workers from Tokyo, answered 17 problems. 

"Hacking techniques are getting more complicated and sophisticated," Mashahiro Uemura from Japan's Economy Ministry office for IT Security Policy, told NHK. " We need this kind of contest to fight back and survive." 

Similar contests have been held in the U.S., Europe, and other parts of Asia, Uemura said, adding that the Japanese event was held in an effort to address the nation's shortage of cyber-security specialists. 

In early January, the Japanese Agriculture, Forestry, and Fisheries Ministry was hit by a remotely operated Trojan, which snagged documents reportedly related to the Trans-Pacific Partnership multilateral trade pact negotiations.  According to the Japan Daily Press, draft statements from former Japanese Prime Minister Yoshihiko Noda and President Barack Obama were among those files taken. 

Working in tandem with the trojan was a connection bouncer called "HTran," which Dell's SecureWorks believes was created by a Chinese hacker aiming to conceal the location of command and control servers and "redirect TCP traffic destined for one host to an alternate host." 

In a continued effort to block cyber attacks, the Japanese hacker competition will be held again next year, organized by a private group, NHK reported. 

For more from Stephanie, follow her on Twitter @smlotPCMag. 

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