*********************** Personal Learning Plan *********************** .. contents:: Table of Contents ---------- Introduction -------------- | The personal learning plan is used to periodically update the teachers on the progress of work. As it has become a very large document around the end of the semester, I've decided to divide into three different parts -- which held side by side can be used to view the progress made over the semester. Part 1 (first update) ---------------------- .. toctree:: :maxdepth: 2 pdr1 Part 2 (middle) ------------------- .. toctree:: :maxdepth: 2 plp2 Part 3 (last) --------------- .. toctree:: :maxdepth: 2 plp3 General --------- | This page expands into my personal learning plan, detailing the first few weeks of my new curriculum. Created in 2021 september, this page was built by the use of a template provided by the university - these aren't subjects I'd personally include in such document persay. Future Vision ------------- | I’d like to work in the Cyber Security field in the future. Currently, however, I am not sure as to which domain within Cyber Security I would like to specialize in. It’s been a passion of mine since I was a young teenager, and I’m open to learning about any subject related to Cyber as a whole. This makes it difficult for me to have an idea as to how my future is supposed to look like. Specialization ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ | From the offered options that the Fontys university of Applied Sciences 7th semester minor Cyber Security provides, I find the current the following the most interesting(in no particular order): - Forensics - Blue-teaming - Red-teaming Learning focus ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ | Digital forensics is a topic I’m very interested in learning more - I want to learn more about this subject, it’s something I feel inexperienced in whereas I feel I can independently learn more about blue teaming and red teaming due to already having built experience doing these things. Job after degree ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ | I can see myself starting in a blue team position - hopefully as a junior or medior in a Security Operation Center. As to what part of the blue team I like to keep my options open - the engineering side of a Security Operation Center interests me more than a monitoring or analyst position. After 5 years of work experience ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ | After 5 years of experience I aim to also expand into red teaming, I believe with blue teaming experience this would be the next interesting step. Perhaps, if ambitious enough, I will be working on zero-days at this point. Master program ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ | Something I see myself doing when I’m older and trying to fulfil a position that requires a master; which likely would be in a scientific field - something I don’t see myself doing for a while. T-shaped professional ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ | For Cyber Security, I consider my T to be wide and deep. It is deep because of my experience and knowledge of networking systems. And it is wide due to my practical experience with both blue and red teaming. I’ve participated in a lot of HackTheBox machines and I’ve cracked multiple of them. I have experience working in a Security Operation Center during my internship at Tu/E as a SoC analyst/engineer. I’ve also set up & maintained secure networks in medium size enterprise environment as an IT engineer. Strengths & weaknesses ^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^ | Within IT: - Strengths: - Accuracy - Drive to test out systems - Knowledgeable over general tools - Hands-on experience with items within the scope - Weaknesses: - Electrical systems (no interest) - Embedded systems (also no interests) | Communication & organization - Strengths: - Good at presenting - Simplifying to laymen - Keeping relevant parties in the loop - Weaknesses: - Not following a plan after 2-3~ months | Personal qualities - Strengths: - Taking initiative - Claiming responsibility - Taking ownership over relevant systems or processes - Working independently - Weaknesses: - Stubborn --------- Vacancy analysis ---------------- Tasks & responsibilities ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ | I want to become an all round full stack Security professional capable of both red and blue teaming. I want to use my blue team experience as a basis to further my red teaming experience. In terms of responsibilities I can see myself becoming the chief of a security operation center one day - which in itself is a great responsibility. Additionally, forensics is also a subject I’m very interested in learning more about. Though I feel uncertain about this subject, as it seems it can become very complicated - in which I’m not sure my interest will remain the same after reaching the intense technical side of Forensics (i.e. signal intelligence through pcaps, dumping ram data and analyzing this). Required technical security knowledge & skills ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ | In order to effectively Blue Team one needs to be experienced in the networking domain, being able to set up a working Security Operation Center that can perform network based analysis for example, as well as the hardening of client machines. | Red teaming involves penetration testing, this means having experience with various pentest tools such as Burpsuite, Metasploit Framework, etc. expert knowledge over various OWASP techniques is also required. | Forensics would include expert knowledge over the use of various networking tools such as Wireshark. The forensics specialist can decipher the contents of a machine and, for example, read its RAM out and understand the binaries of and has a good understanding of assembly. Required non-technical security knowledge & skills ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ | A blue teamer needs to be someone who is comfortable with setting up compliance, adhering to said compliance and communicating it effectively - perhaps even training people to become compliant. | A red teamer is someone who performs a penetration test either on a client or they are doing it inhouse. Before the penetration test starts, depending on the company, the red teamer needs to communicate in a very detailed manner about the target of said pentest, the scope of his limitations. | All of these roles require a high level of communication; whatever technical problem has been encountered will need to be translated to someone not in the profession who can understand, for example the management team of a company. Reading is also a large part of the profession. Examples of communicational and organizational required ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ | Blue teaming you usually work in projects with multiple team members; you need to be able to work in a modern environment where methodologies such as agile and scrum are most likely used. | Red teaming you need to be able to take initiative. It also leans more towards the legal side of the job, and is somewhat more political than the other roles. | Forensics requires you to be able to defend your findings in court. About required presentational and organizational skills ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ | Depending on the type of occupation within the Cyber Security sector you may either be talking to professionals in the field, higher-ups or management, and or both parties. To management you would need to present your findings, you would share knowledge to professionals in the field about your results. You would discuss these results with your colleagues.