Cyber Training Updates
May - June 2026
Highlights: What’s New?
- The application window for the Skilling Academy’s Incident Response Pathway Session 1 is now open! The application window will close when the course reaches 30 participants, so apply now!
CISA’s Federal Cyber Defense Skilling Academy (Skilling Academy) provides widely recognized, 100% virtual, cybersecurity training for full-time federal employees, promoting collaboration and interactive learning in order to protect, defend, respond and reduce risk to our nation's critical infrastructure from cyber threats.
- In FY26, the Skilling Academy is offering full-time, virtual, and instructor-led training courses that provide students with baseline tasks, knowledge, and skills of various cyber work roles. Each pathway focuses on a specific cyber work role and at the end of the course, students will receive a voucher to take the accompanying certification exam.
Eligibility: All full-time United States federal employees, in any job series and any grade or grade equivalent for non-General Schedule (GS) employees, are eligible to apply to CISA's Federal Cyber Defense Skilling Academy. Selected participants within the Skilling Academy must retain their full-time employment status in the federal government for the duration of the course to maintain eligibility. Government contractors are not permitted to participate.
Participation in the Skilling Academy is prioritized for individuals from Departments and Agencies within the Federal Civilian Executive Branch. Applications from other federal government entities are welcome and will be considered based on course availability and program requirements.
Upcoming FY26 Skilling Academy Pathway Courses
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Pathway Title & Session Number
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Length
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Course Start & End Date
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Applications Close Date*
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Incident Response – Session 1
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4 weeks
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5/18/2026 - 6/15/2026
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5/8/2026 (5 pm ET)
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Systems Security Analysis Pathway – Session 2
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4 weeks
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6/1/2026 – 6/29/2026
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5/15/2026 (5 pm ET)
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Defensive Cybersecurity – Session 1
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12 weeks
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6/1/2026 – 8/25/2026
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5/8/2026 (5 pm ET)
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Incident Response – Session 2
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4 weeks
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7/13/2026 – 8/7/2026
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6/19/2026 (5 pm ET)
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*The application window will close when each course reaches 30 applicants, which may be sooner than the application close date.
For more information, additional course dates, and instructions on how to apply, visit the Federal Cyber Defense Skilling Academy site or send an email to skillingacademy@cisa.dhs.gov.
This series provides training assistance to cyber incident responders to help them prepare for, identify, assess, mitigate and report cyber events. This series includes 100-level one-hour webinars for a general audience and 200-level virtual training courses with cyber range lab activities where participants can learn and practice investigation, remediation, and incident response skills. Government employees and contractors at all levels - federal, state, local, tribal, and territorial, as well as educational and critical infrastructure partners, are welcome to register for these training events. For more information, email cyberinsights@cisa.dhs.gov.
To learn more or register visit: Incident Response Training | CISA
Eligible Audience: Open to government employees and supporting contractors at all levels – federal, state, local, tribal, and territorial, as well as educational and critical infrastructure partners.
This training series provides training assistance to cyber practitioners so they can enable secure systems by strengthening their cyber defenses against vulnerabilities, weaknesses, and threats. This series includes 100-level one-hour webinars for a general audience and 200-level virtual training courses with cyber range lab activities. Government employees and contractors at all levels - federal, state, local, tribal, and territorial, as well as educational and critical infrastructure partners, are welcome to register for these training events. For more information, email cyberinsights@cisa.dhs.gov.
To learn more or register visit: Incident Response Training | CISA
Eligible Audience: Open to government employees and supporting contractors at all levels – federal, state, local, tribal, and territorial, as well as educational and critical infrastructure partners.
These trainings provide instructor-led, hands-on CDM Dashboard training for Federal Civilian Executive Branch (FCEB) employees and contractors in a cyber virtual learning environment (CVLE). The virtual and in-person training events enhance the dynamic CDM approach to fortifying the cybersecurity of government networks and systems. These courses are designed for personnel at agencies participating in the CDM program who monitor, manage, or oversee controls on their information systems such as ISSOs, CDM POCs, ISSMs and those reporting metrics.
These CDM trainings enable participating FCEB agencies to improve their networks and defend against cyber adversaries. The CDM training provides detailed class discussion with real world simulated computer labs using a CVLE. The training will teach participants the basics of CDM and how to use the CDM Dashboard capabilities to help mitigate agency threats. We will also offer various CDM resources and external references.
Currently, the courses use version ES 6.6 of the CDM Dashboard within the CVLE. The current content focuses on the most recent version of the dashboard, including FISMA Automation, HVA reporting, CyHy (Cyber Hygiene) and SCuBA (Secure Cloud Business Applications), and other dashboard capabilities. Current CDM courses are offered at the 100-level (Introductory) and 200-level (Intermediate).
To learn more or register visit: Continuous Diagnostics and Mitigation Training | CISA
Eligible Audience: Open to federal employees and supporting contractors.
This no-cost ICS cybersecurity training is designed for critical infrastructure owners and operators. Its primary goal is to help reduce cybersecurity risks across critical infrastructure sectors while strengthening collaboration between CISA and the private sector.
Participants register through the Virtual Learning Portal (VLP), where online courses become available immediately upon enrollment. Online course durations range from 2 to 20 hours. In-person training is delivered by the Idaho National Laboratory (INL) in Idaho Falls, Idaho, and typically runs Monday through Thursday of the scheduled program week.
Visit to view the training calendar, course offerings, and detailed descriptions, including objectives and formats:
*The ICS300 online course is a prerequisite for attending the in-person ICS301 training hosted by CISA at the Idaho National Laboratory. This ICS300 course focuses on many of the hands-on skills needed to protect and secure Industrial Control Systems and Operational Technology networks. The ICS401 course is available either online (ICS401V) or in-person (ICS401L).
To learn more or sign up, visit: ICS Training Calendar
Eligible Audience: Primary audience is critical infrastructure partners, however, federal, state, local, tribal, and territorial government employees with critical infrastructure responsibilities are also eligible.
The President’s Cup Game of the Month May challenge, "The ModFather," is now live. Participants can sign up and compete to:
- Gain hands on experience in network operations and software development and become familiar with President’s Cup challenge environment.
- Build hands-on experience aligned to key NICE work roles.
- Work through a realistic scenario under mission-driven constraints.
Eligible Audience: Open to the public.
Are you interested in exploring additional training opportunities to help you grow and develop in the cybersecurity field? The National Initiative for Cybersecurity Careers and Studies (NICCS) Education & Training Catalog contains thousands of virtual and in-person courses for cybersecurity professionals of all skill levels. These courses are mapped to the NICE Workforce Framework for Cybersecurity (NICE Framework), which can help you select courses that build the knowledge and skills you need to be successful in a variety of different cybersecurity career paths.
Visit the Education & Training Catalog today and use the interactive map and filters to search for courses that will increase your expertise, prepare you to earn a cybersecurity certification, and help you transition to a new career or position.
Questions or feedback regarding the cybersecurity courses listed in the Catalog? Please email NICCS@cisa.dhs.gov.
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For additional information about ongoing cyber training, contact us at cybertraining@cisa.dhs.gov.
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