"For nearly 20 years, we at The Hacker News have mostly told scary stories about cyberspace — big hacks, broken systems, and new threats." — The Hacker News
The Cybersecurity Stars Awards 2026 — a new program to spotlight unseen work
The Hacker News has launched the Cybersecurity Stars Awards 2026, a global recognition program that aims to make visible the teams, leaders, and products whose defensive work often goes unnoticed. Submissions are now open through the awards portal at https://awards.thehackernews.com/. The program is positioned to recognize meaningful contributions across innovation, execution, and real‑world impact, and to give nominees a platform to showcase that work.
Award categories — four paths to recognition
- Cybersecurity Product / Service: Covers cloud, endpoint, identity, threat detection, application, and data protection. Applicants may choose the closest fit or request a new category.
- Cybersecurity Industry Solution: For solutions built for specific industries such as finance, healthcare, government, or critical infrastructure, with clear impact.
- Cybersecurity Company: For organizations showing strong leadership, growth, and consistent execution.
- Cybersecurity Professional / Team: For individuals and teams driving innovation, resilience, and measurable impact.
How to apply — the submission steps and support
The Hacker News has outlined a concise application process designed to let entrants focus on describing their work. Interested parties must create an account on the Awards Portal, purchase nomination credits, select the most relevant category or categories, and complete a nomination form detailing their work, impact, and innovation. Entries must be submitted before the stated deadline. For questions or support, the announced contact address is awards@thehackernews.com.
Key dates and the review standard
The program sets clear timing for entry and outcome: the submission deadline is May 15, 2026, and winners will be announced on May 26, 2026. According to The Hacker News, each submission will be evaluated through a structured and impartial review process designed to maintain fairness and integrity.
How CISOs and senior security leaders, practitioners and engineers, and enterprise buyers are likely to engage
- CISOs and senior security leaders: With The Hacker News' stated audience reach, these leaders may use award recognition as an indicator of solutions and teams that have earned visibility among peers who evaluate and deploy security technology.
- Practitioners and engineers: Individuals and teams that build defenses are explicitly eligible under the Cybersecurity Professional / Team category and can use the nomination process to document measurable impact and innovation.
- Enterprise buyers: The Hacker News positions its awards as providing visibility among people who select and procure security tools; enterprise buyers may look to winners as sources of vetted products, services, or vendors when making acquisition decisions.
The Cybersecurity Stars Awards 2026 makes an explicit play for credibility: The Hacker News ties its recognition to the publication’s reputation for independent reporting and to an impartial review process meant to preserve trust. With the May 15 submission deadline approaching, organizations, products, and professionals that want to be noticed have a narrow window to apply. More information and the portal are available at the awards site; inquiries can be directed to awards@thehackernews.com.
