Hello and Welcome to D4NSIX! Created this blog to help inform average Janes & Joes (and educate up-and-coming cyber professionals) on the world of CYBER. Long story short I have been indoctrinated into the cyber realm, helping understand the hackers and their methods. Investigating PUPs(Potentially unwanted programs) all the way to malicious programs that end users might encounter at home or in the workplace. And now I cant look at a computer the same way...

I am about 3 years into IT and 1.5 years into my Cyber career and like McDonald's, I’m loving it😅! Yea, I said it...The DMV is THE contracting area. I started on my first contract doing Identity Management and derived credentialing for DHS. Learning how PIV/CAC cards work in secured environments, how they’re issued, NIST requirements, issuance software testing/implementation and more. Spending 2 years there helped hone my skills in task management, product testing, presenting, and understanding how credentialing works in the daily life of government/private sector personnel. At the same time, I was also working on my digital forensics master’s degree from George Mason (’21), focusing on evidence handling, pen testing, malware analysis, memory analysis and more.

With that new shiny degree and two years of experience in Identity Management and Product Testing, I pivoted into the next phase of my career: Incident Response and Digital Forensics with the Marine Corps. In the interview I asked straight up "Are you looking for someone that has all the boxes? Or someone that can grow?". And it worked, because sometimes you wont check all the boxes and that's ok if they can accept that then show them the risk was worth it! This opportunity truly enlightened me about the immense responsibilities and expectations that come with being an incident responder. It emphasized the paramount importance of attention to detail and the criticality of every passing minute following a major incident. During my tenure, I accomplished several notable achievements, earning three CompTIA certifications—Sec+, CYSA, and CASP+—which further solidified my expertise and growing knowledge in the field. Additionally, I had the privilege of teaching a comprehensive forensics course, imparting my knowledge to other co-workers on the team. Moreover, my time with the Marines(as a contractor, cough cough) exposed me to a wide variety of diverse cases, unique individuals, and invaluable hands-on experience. Shout out to Cask, hope you all are doing well .♥

Now in 2023 for the last 8 months, I have been working for a new Government Org, hired to do the exact same thing but with a new twist! Setting up a forensic program from the ground up, purchasing equipment, writing SOPs, and assisting in cyber investigations when I can. And to add to the workload of life I wanted to create this new website to act as an informational repository for Cyber things I’ve learned along the way, and the personal projects I’ve completed!

So sit back and enjoy, hope you learn something new!

P.S. D= Digital 4NSIX= Forensics 🤯