Problems are released midnight EST. First person with a solution globally gets 100 points, second person gets 99, etc. So you have to be one of the first solvers globally to get any points.
If you feel the global challenge is out of reach, you can setup a private leaderboard for you and anyone you give the 'join code' to, localizing competition and points to your own circle of "AoC" friends: http://adventofcode.com/2017/leaderboard/private