Meeting the Team
Thinking retrospectively about The Leahy Center and what I have learned and accomplished makes me realize how valuable this experience really is. From day one, it was clear that the people at The Leahy Center strive not only to increase their knowledge about cybersecurity and networking but also to learn more about their peers and coworkers. It seems like everyone is working towards the same goal: continue to teach younger generations how to operate in a security operation center (SOC) so it can thrive even when those working in the industry now are gone.
First Tasks
The first task I performed as a security technician intern allowed me to understand how my major is actually applicable in the workplace. I was interested in clearing up confusion about what exactly I would be doing with my major post-graduation. Having to write reports about the different factors in a security operations center (SOC) and how they function together allowed me to see how the workplace functions. It also allowed me to understand how teams, like the Analyst Team and Engineer Team, work together towards one large goal.
Second Task
The second task delegated to us security technicians was building and configuring an Elastic Stack. This was to understand how The Leahy Center is monitoring its network. I worked in a group for this task with two other peers. This was hands down one of the most informational experiences I have obtained for my major. Obviously working in a group on this task meant we had to collaborate. This was difficult because none of us worked overlapping shifts. I saw the value of documentation through this experience. It’s hard to imagine that everyone in your team will always be able to focus completely on a singular task. Having to explicitly document where I had left off in the configuration process of the Elastic Stack allowed me to practice a skill I will have to utilize in a real workplace.
Takeaways
Ultimately between these tasks, I feel like I have obtained lots of new knowledge about the field, what takes place at security operation centers, and how people in this field interact with one another. I have a great supervisor that is able to provide more guidance if necessary, and I am surrounded by people that are practicing the same skills as I am, allowing for much-needed collaboration. I think this internship will continue to teach me valuable skills that are applicable to my life after graduation and for that, I am extremely grateful.
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Written by Jacob Mayotte ‘24 // Computer Networking & Cybersecurity