As part of the MENA ISC 2017, a Hackathon competition took place and students of more than 10 Universities across KSA (Saudi Arabia) participated. This time, amongst other elements usually included on echoCiTy-F, custom made models of signature buildings of the city of Riyadh were constructed. Along with other challenges on information systems and infrastructure elements, aspects of the custom made buildings could also be controlled like the elevator and lights of the Kingdom Tower and lights of the Burj Rafal tower. The top four point scoring teams were awarded with prizes of 50,000 to 20,000 SAR and certificates of participation.

Echothrust Solutions created from scratch, a smart city model, the echoCiTy-F, which represents vital infrastructure components of a smart city - including ICS and SCADA systems for transportation, energy, communications and construction. The gameplay was visible to the players and public through computer generated visualisations. Amongst other challenges, hackers tried to obtain control of a model train, its rail tracks and the train passage bars, the lights and ventilation of a train tunnel, the airport's communication tower, a power plant and a nuclear plant, wind turbines and more. echoCTF's gameplay was designed to assess students knowledge and skills and educate them on cyber security and ethical hacking. The team with the highest points at the end won the competition, taking home the prize of AED 20,000 and certificates of participation.