This year seemed to fly by, but looking back a lot has happened. This is a summary of what I did in 2018.

Tackling the OSCP

If there’s one thing I’m going to struggle with recording on the internet… it’s that I’ve struggled with the OSCP exam three times. With each attempt I have gotten better and better, but I still need to try harder. Looking back, there’s more I need to do in the PWK course. The labs have so much to offer and I have only scratched the surface. On my last attempt, I broke into 14 machines, honestly it should be much higher than that.

Converge Detroit

A local conference and one of my favorite to volunteer at, Converge was in May this year and I had a blast. Between working security, catching a few talks, going to grab food with #misec friend’s; the networking is always the best part of the conference. Meeting new people, testing new skills at the CTF, seeing great talks and supporting those who are talking or presenting for the first time are just some of the ways I was able to engage with such a great community.

GrrCON

Speaking of fun local conferences, GrrCON is the other Michigan based infosec conference. This was the first conference I attended 4 years ago, and every year gets better. I know more of the staff, so I get out of my shell more often… which means it’s easier to network with more awesome people. There’s always someone to learn from at events like this. Not to mention that going to Zs afterwards makes everything great. I’ve got some great twitter pics from hanging at that bar after the talks ended.

Another awesome point to my GrrCON experience was being able to help Johnny Long with the Kali Dojo. It’s an honor to get to work alongside him and for Offsec. My proudest moment was being able to help people who had questions during the training and I was able to answer and get them back on track.

RuCTFe

My last post on this blog was also about the RuCTFe. #misec had a team this year and I had the privilege to lead them. Our team did pretty well. Found a couple flags, got a shout out from the organizers, and had the earliest start time compared to years past. However our biggest chance to improve next year will be to improve communication and team work.

Security+

After struggling with the OSCP, I set my sights on a more generalized certification. On the last day of the year, I passed the Sec+ exam! This took 2 months of studying, although I did take some time for holidays and family.

Overall this year was a massive learning experience, I spent a lot of time studying, with #misec, and not as much time at conferences as I have in the past. In 2019, I’d like to pass the OSCP and get certified for Kali. Some other goals are to read more, play with HTB and other labs, and try to be more active with this blog.