RALEIGH, N.C. — The North Carolina National Guard’s Cyber Security Response Force concluded its five-day, live-fire cybersecurity exercise, Operation Tobacco Road, on Aug. 21, 2026, at the Raleigh State Emergency Operations Center.
The training event brought together 64 information technology and cybersecurity professionals representing the public sector, K-12 education, higher education institutions, and local critical infrastructure organizations.
Operating within U.S. Cyber Command’s Persistent Cyber Training Environment, participants engaged in rigorous blue team (defensive) versus red team (adversary emulation) scenarios designed to replicate real-world enterprise threats.
In addition to technical network defense operations, the exercise featured a multi-agency tabletop exercise on Aug. 19, focusing on executive decision-making, information sharing, and coordinated response procedures during major cyber incidents affecting civilian and governmental infrastructure.
Highlighting regional interoperability, cyber operators from the 135th Cyber Security Company, 125th Cyber Protection Battalion, joined forces with a member of the South Carolina Army National Guard Defensive Cyberspace Operations Element. Demonstrating technical proficiency under pressure, the combined team secured first place in the exercise's Hack the Box capture-the-flag competition. The event underscored the vital operational partnership between North Carolina and South Carolina National Guard cyber units.
The CSRF is scheduled to host the next iteration of Operation Tobacco Road from Oct. 5 to 9, 2026, continuing its mission to fortify state, local, and regional cyber resilience.