Our Core Team
Christos Xenakis
TEAM CAPTAIN
Prof. Christos Xenakis is a faculty member of the Department of Digital Systems of the University of Piraeus, Greece, and a member of the Systems Security Laboratory. He is also a steering committee member of the European Cyber Security Challenge (ECSC) and the leader of the Hellenic Cyber Security Team. He is a member of the editorial board of four Thomson Reuters indexed journals: a) Computers & Security Journal of the Elsevier publishing, b) Computer Communications Journal of the Elsevier publishing, c) IET Information Security of the Institute of Engineering and Technology and d) The Computer Journal of the Oxford University Press. His research interests are in the field of systems, networks and applications security. He has authored more than 100 papers in peer-reviewed journals and international conferences.
Apostolis Zarras
TEAM VICE CAPTAIN
Dr. Apostolis Zarras is a research associate at the University of Piraeus and the Foundation for Research and Technology – Hellas. Previously, he was a faculty member at the Delft University of Technology and Maastricht University and, before that, a postdoctoral researcher at the Technical University of Munich. He received his Ph.D. degree in IT Security from the Ruhr-University Bochum. He also holds a M.Sc. and a B.Sc. degree in Computer Science from the University of Crete. His research interests primarily revolve around systems, networks, and web security. Overall, his work is dedicated to advancing the field of Cybersecurity and safeguarding users and systems against potential cyber threats.
Stella Tsitsoula
Communications & Sponsorship manager
Stella Tsitsoula is a communications consultant specialized in the technology and cyber security industry. She works with multinational organizations, Greek businesses and universities, communicating emerging technologies, cyber security awareness, risks and strategy development.
Since 2017 she is the communication manager of the National Cyber Security Team participating in the Pan-European Cyber Security Competition organized by the European Cyber Security Agency ENISA and a member of the organizing committee.
Since 2020, she has been a member of the Cyber Security Forum Initiative (CSFI), a non-profit organization based in Washington, DC, whose mission is to raise awareness and guide the general public on cyber security issues through partnerships and training.
Stella is also a co-founder of the Greek Chapter of the European non-profit organization Women4Cyber a women’s cybersecurity community (an initiative of European Cybersecurity Organization –ECSO).
In 2023 she founded the Hellenic Institute of Cybersecurity, a civil non-profit company with the purpose of supporting, highlighting, promoting high-tech issues and issues related to the security of digital information and digital information systems, in physical facilities and on the internet.
Stella participates in numerous conferences as a public speaker, advocating important initiatives and actions for cybersecurity awareness in the society.
Stella has a background in journalism, having worked for some of the largest Greek ICT publications. For more than 25 years she has held senior management positions with extensive experience in the media and communications industry. She has a degree in Computer Systems Engineering; a Master’s in Public Relations Management, is studying in an MBA program and is a Certified Lead Auditor ISO 9001:2015.
Panagiotis Bellonias
Team Coach
Panagiotis Bellonias is a highly skilled cybersecurity professional with a passion for competitive hacking. As a member and ex-captain of the Hellenic Cyber Security team, he honed his skills in cryptography and has since gone on to achieve success in various competitions. He is a member of Zer0Tolerance, a top 50 CTF team globally, and has participated in various cybersecurity competitions, including the International Cyber Security Challenge where he achieved first place as a member of Team Europe. Panagiotis has a strong background in research, having worked as a researcher at Bournemouth University, where he developed his skills in network analysis, software development, and online investigations. Today, he is applying his expertise as a security specialist in the Netherlands, where he conducts security assessments for a wide range of clients in the industrial market.
Alexia Konstantinidi
Team Coach
Alexia Konstantinidi is a cybersecurity professional who is passionate about CTF’s and the gamified learning they offer, as an approach to bringing more talented folks into the cybersecurity realm. Being a member and ex-captain of the Hellenic Cyber Security team, she is driven to support the team further as a coach. In her free time, she participates in CTF competitions with Th3Os, focusing in forensics and malware analysis challenges, as well dives into subjects such as electronics and hardware hacking. Alexia has also been a member and ex- team captain of Team Europe, achieving first place in the International Cyber Security Challenge in 2022 and 2023. Today, Alexia works as a Digital Forensics and Incident response specialist in London, investigating and responding to cyber-attacks, supporting client companies from various industries daily.
Michalis Takaronis
Technical manager
Michalis Takaronis is a research assistant in the SSL team at the University of Piraeus, specializing in vulnerability assessment and exploitation development. He actively participates in various university research projects, particularly those related to hosting and content creation for Capture the Flag competitions. In his free time, he participates in online CTF competitions, but also takes pleasure in crafting challenging scenarios across different fields of cybersecurity.
Athanasios Grammatopoulos
Scientific Manager
Athanasios Vasileios Grammatopoulos is a Cybersecurity Researcher. His research focuses on the fields of Cybersecurity Training, Vulnerabilities Detection and Secure Password-less Authentication. He received his second MSc from the Digital Systems Dept. of University of Piraeus on Digital Systems Security. He received his Electrical and Computer Engineering Diploma and MSc at the Technical University of Crete.
Katerina Psychogyiou
Support Team
Associate Research Assistant in the System Security Laboratory of the University of Piraeus. Katerina holds a Bachelor’s Degree in Physics from the National and Kapodistrian University of Athens and is pursuing a Master’s Degree in Digital Systems Security from the Department of Digital Systems at the University of Piraeus. Currently, she actively participates in various university research projects and specialises in Project Management.