In 2007, I was a curious teenager with a fascination for computers and an Internet connection.
I was already way too comfortable with Windows (and how to fix all the problems). I played around with I was already way too comfortable with Windows (and how to fix all the problems). I played around with hex editors. I downloaded and ran Backtrack in a VM because I knew it was the “hacker’s distro.” I didn’t know how to use them properly, but I was also afraid of getting in trouble. All I knew is that I wanted to keep doing fun things with computers after I graduated high school.
So, at the age of 17, I dual enrolled at a community college that had a Cisco Networking Academy.
The reason? I didn’t care about the degree. I just wanted to know how the Internet worked. “How would a hacker even access something that isn’t a website?” I wondered.
And thus, a blue teamer was born.
Several years later, I got my first job through a classmate who trusted me. We worked for a school that had up to 8th grade. Several months after I was hired, our web filter notified us of an attempt to download a well-known password cracking utility.
It was an 8th grader during tech period. He was curious, and just wanted to prank his best friend.
I remember my colleague and I pulling some administration folks aside and saying, “Listen. This kid’s not dangerous, he’s curious. He just needs to be taught where the ethical boundaries are.” So the tech instructor started finding ways to include “digital citizenship” as part of the curriculum.
And thus, a potential red teamer was born.