My Exhilarating InfoSec Journey
Being an information security evangelist, I have been preaching and practicing security for more than a decade. Security is my bread and butter and I love it! I started with consulting roles, where I would use my skills to suggest solutions and improvements. Later, I transitioned to internal security teams which gave me a clear and concise perspective on how organizations manage security risk.
In my opinion, the Information Security Expert can be anyone who has a curiosity towards aspects of technology. You need to build on that curiosity and spend a lot of time understanding the inner working of these technologies. Information security is a multi-speciality domain and hence specialists are very common. You can be an expert in a specific area of Information Security, for instance a Malware Analyst (an expert in areas such as Dissecting Malicious software and Reverse engineering) or an Application Security person (an expert in application security, code review, or DevSecOps processes).
I have donned multiple hats in security, application, audit, threat intel and now the most fancy one DevSecOps. I am currently working as a Security Solutions Architect with IBM India Software Labs (ISL). When I look back, I find myself to be really fortunate to be in the hot space of technology. I loved the way technology was shaping up in the lives of the internet boom. Cyber security happened to me by luck first and now is my passion.
Apart from working at IBM, I lend support to pro-bono organisations and work with multiple open-source security communities like OWASP (Open Web Application Security Project), InfoSec Girls, WoSec, to name a few. I have been leading the efforts for diversity for a while now. It gives me immense satisfaction to see these budding women grow their careers in the security space and have skilled hundreds of security professionals like me. Closer to home at IBM, I am part of Global Women in Security and Excellence committee.
#IBMSTEM4GIRLS - Teaching Python and Scratch
Security’s greatest feature is its community. People are so collaborative and supportive, I can vouch no other industry has such amazing folks. I have been globe-trotting extensively for conferences and have met super smart and amazing people in all reaches of the world. The credit goes to the supportive community we have. My journey as an information security champion has been a surreal experience that leaves me fulfilled.
And the best part of my job? No day is ever the same. Each day, there is something new to learn. We have to keep up with technologies and understand new attacks and prepare defences for those attacks. Practical exposure to how organizations deal with information security challenges helped me the most in the domain. I foresee a bright future ahead for everyone in this field. There’s no better time for women to join us in the security field!
Trained over 200 girls at St. Theresa’s College, Kerala
Provided training to over 170 students at OWASP Seasides, Goa