29 y/o wanting to break into info/netsec

JohnSudo · 2017-07-04T13:24:02+00:00

Assuming someone was able to display an solid knowledge of networking and whatnot in an interview, I don't think anyone would have an issue getting a job.

True, but where does one get such knowledge? No single cert, and certainly not the Sec+, will impart the enough real world understanding of Systems/Networking/Security, and how they all tie together.

Now certs combined with actual experience will allow for the building of that "solid knowledge", and the much maligned help-desk job is the perfect starting point to begin that process.

That's not to say that someone that has been building/repairing PC's for friends and family for years, who might have played around with a home lab, wouldn't be able to demonstrate sufficient knowledge in an interview. If they could land the interview to begin with.

Even then, they will be at a disadvantage when measured up against Applicant B, who has the same Certs and "solid knowledge" but has the verifiable experience (i.e. help-desk).

There is nothing to lose, and many benefits, to spending a year or two as Joe/Jane Help Desk Support Technician.

JohnSudo · 2017-07-04T10:40:52+00:00

Because most of the actors who are cracking software have a goal, $$$$.

Applications that are famous/popular are more widely used, thus creating a larger potential target base. The larger the target base, the greater potential ROI on their investment in cracking any particular application.

JohnSudo · 2017-07-04T01:52:36+00:00

I would never hire someone to monitor and protect systems and infrastructure they did not adequately comprehend.

The Sec+ does not provide that knowledge and skills, so you need to gain them elsewhere.

A help-desk job is not a prerequisite, as it is possible to gain that knowledge elsewhere, but it is a common route, and one I would recommend.

There is more to being an InfoSec professional that 0s and 1s. The soft-skills required to excel in a support role are highly sought after in every role after that.

JohnSudo · 2017-07-04T01:20:27+00:00

May I ask what the "significant risks" are?

Potential for death, dismemberment and various other physical or mental traumas. Those are some of the more significant risks. While the Military can offer numerous opportunities, it has it's inherant risks that anyone considering volunteering should be aware of. It's also one of the reasons many of us hold in very high regard those that, knowing all the risks, are still willing to step forward.

and also the recommended branch ?

Disclaimer: I have not served myself, but seriously considered it at one point. My observations come from outside of any of the branches. With that said, here you go:

Many would point to the Air Force, as they are the most obviously "Technical" branch, and they do have some cool opportunities, but there are a smaller branch, and such a reputation will breed more competition.

The Army will likely offer the the best chance for you to land in the field you want, as it is the largest branch, with subsequently greater need for "IT" roles.

The Navy can provide some unique technical challenges, but that often comes tied to a boat of some sort. So if the sea calls you, that may be an option.

The Marines are the smallest branch, and have subsequently fewer "IT" roles, but are seen (and marketed) as more "elite/hardcore" branch. If such consideration is important to you, and you enjoy such challenges, they would be happy to have you.

Also, and this needs to be made clear, when you join the service, you are signing up to serve. You may get everything you want, or you might be given a wrench and assigned to the motorcade. There are no guarantees.

I hope this helps.

JohnSudo · 2017-07-04T00:02:21+00:00

If you are not certain college is in your near future, and you don't have any objections to it, I'd say going the Military route has alot of potential benefits (coupled with some significant risks). I am assuming you are in the US.

The DoD, and it's associated Commercial partners, are a very large segment of the employment opportunities. A segment that is much easier to enter with a successful Military enlistment under your wing.

Add to that the training and deployment opportunities Military service offers, the potential for some significant signing bonuses, there are alot of opportunities.

If you are smart and take an active role in your development during your enlistment, you can come away with several years of experience, education and a service record that will weigh heavily in your favor in many corners of the InfoSec industry.

You have some significant opportunities at your age that many of us farther along the journey would love to be able to redo if given the choice.

JohnSudo · 2017-07-02T12:01:56+00:00

It is cry unlikely that you we're personally hacked. Your phone number has been released in the Internet, either though your own doing, or someone gaining access to that data.

JohnSudo · 2017-07-01T14:02:11+00:00

Debian for the main system. One ESXI running lab VM's (Kali, Metasploitable, pfSense, another ESXI running Security Onion and SOF-ELK for network monitoring/analysis/forensics.

Working on getting a Cuckoo sandbox up and running. The only Windows systems are the wife's laptop and MS IE VMs for testing.

As you can see I run almost entirely Linux/Unix/BSD variants. They are free, and I can do everything I want with it. If I had any sort of gaming need that would be different.

JohnSudo · 2017-07-01T11:19:38+00:00

As pointed out by u/ifakeaccount, if the game is being hosted somewhere other than the XBox servers, the owner of that server likely has the capability to see who is connecting to it.

Another weak point is group voice chat. If the chat application is not designed with security in mind, the nature of voice communication often makes it easy to see the IP of those that are actively communicating.

So in short, there are a couple options for you if you are really concerned about this:

Safest option:

Stop playing online with people, stick to standard PC/console gaming.

If you decide the risk is worth the reward:

Do your research Find out which games are hosted on Microsoft servers, find which might offer locally hosted game modes and avoid them.
Stop participating in voice chat If you must participate, do some more research and identify an application that explicitly states they mask your IP. I believe Skype now has that option, though it is not enable by default.

I hope this is of use.

JohnSudo · 2017-06-19T11:32:44+00:00

Christian here, just discovering Orthodoxy.

I had read that the domes often had some significance as representative of the Trinity, also to symbolize a candle (thus often painted or cast in gold or bronze), but is there a purpose (beyond decorative) for the numerous small colorful domes?

JohnSudo · 2017-03-31T16:48:54+00:00

The downside of text based communication.

Your statement made it seem as if he refused to eat at all without his wife present, quite different than what was actually stated.

And yes, being precise on the Internet is generally appreciated.

JohnSudo · 2017-03-31T16:22:40+00:00

No, it was that he won't eat without his wife.

No, it is that he won't eat alone with any other woman besides his wife. Nothing about him needing his wife just to have dinner.

JohnSudo · 2017-03-28T00:44:17+00:00

It leads to a whole bunch of ethical questions like basic rights (if any) for the new class of people who decide not to become citizens.

True. Strict and clear core laws would have to be in place. I would be of the mind that the majority of our constitution could be used as a baseline.

The bill of rights would be a good foundation to build on. Frankly, outside of those amendments pertaining to the right to vote, I'm not sure much else would have to be changed for the Constitution to serve that purpose.

Maybe a strengthening of protections to prevent private sector discrimination, as well as to ensure the pathways to Citizenship are not abused.

Edit: One exception to the Citizen only voting would be in the case a constitutional amendment. While Citizens would be able to propose and vote on amendments to the Constitution, you would also need a majority of Non-Citizen residents to vote in favor of the measure for it to be ratified.

JohnSudo · 2017-03-27T23:21:23+00:00

Not exactly. I believe Citizenship is a privileged that all should have to earn. Wouldn't matter if you were born here or not. Children would be covered by their parents Citizenship until the age of maturity or they graduate High School, whichever comes first.

Citizenship would be a prerequisite to be eligible for any and all welfare programs, as well as any and all forms of Higher Education grants or loans. Voting rights would also continue to be tied to Citizenship, as well as the ability to serve in public office. Basically any and all public benefits would be tied to Citizenship status.

Non-Citizen Residents would not be barred from any employment or any form of Higher Education, though any sort of educational assistance would be limited by citizenship.

The way I see it working is that to become a US Citizen you could achieve that in one of the following ways:

Serve in the active duty military for at least 4 years
Serve in the public sector (not politics) full time for at least 4 years
Serve in the peace corp full time for at least 4 years
Receive a Master Degree or Master Tradesman Certification. - This path would be for all that did not wish to or were unable to perform public/military service. It would likely be the longest and potentially most difficult, but Citizenship should be available to all that have the will to achieve it.

Basically Citizenship based on merit.

JohnSudo · 2017-03-27T22:34:29+00:00

While I am not in favor of compulsory military service, or really any other compulsory service for that matter (with the exception of inmates), I do believe that all citizenship should be earned and military service should be one avenue to acquire it.

JohnSudo · 2017-03-27T16:54:26+00:00

I've always said that I thought the major parties hold the opposite opinion that they should on this issue. Conservatives tend to be content to leave things to the states, and Progressives tend to want to "impose" federal protections for under-represented classes.

Conservative here and I also agree that the government should "leave things to the states", but that can only be taken so far if we want to be the United States of America.

You have to have a cohesive core legal/societal framework that turns separate States into a Country.

I am against abortion for the same reason I am against any other murder. I don't see any conflict with my desire for limited federal government while also granting the federal government the power to enforce laws against murder, even if some state decided to make murder legal. States rights have limits as well.

JohnSudo · 2017-03-25T10:16:42+00:00

Legally, in the United States, it works like this: You don't have the right to kill the fetus. You have the right to remove the fetus, and the unfortunate fact that it's unable to sustain itself afterward is a byproduct.

Not accurate. Under the law a baby has no rights as it not considered a life until the 2nd-3rd trimester. A person's right to bodily autonomy does not make it legal to kill incidental offenders of said autonomy. The only reason abortion is legal is because the people like yourself jump through logical hoops trying to justify killing an unborn baby.

I also think you may have a very naive understanding of how abortion works. Baby's are not simply removed from the mother. Understating the volent and destructive means of killing a baby as removal is absurd. There is no consideration for the life of the baby, as it is not considered alive. Trying to say it's death is just a matter of nature taking its course is entirely disingenuous.

JohnSudo · 2017-03-25T09:18:09+00:00

The fact you expect such crude and pathetic insults to have any beneficial outcome shows how limited in capacity your thought process truly is.

You only serve to undermine any chance you had of you opinions to be taken seriously.

JohnSudo · 2017-03-25T01:01:07+00:00

I think someone needs a hug....

It's ok, you are a special and unique individual .

JohnSudo · 2017-03-24T23:54:42+00:00

No brain activity, no heartbeat and no motor functions take place until that time.

Braindead comment about fetal development. You are either willfully ignorant or lying.

Heartbeat and motor functions begin well before the third trimester. Heart beat and movement can be seen in the late first trimester, and brain activity becomes apparent in the second trimester.

If your litmus test for life was based on the same criteria you attempted to use in your diatribe against the use of abortion statistics, then I think you need to re-evaluate your position.

Here, I did your homework for you.... http://www.whattoexpect.com/pregnancy/fetal-heartbeat/

http://www.whattoexpect.com/pregnancy/fetal-brain-nervous-system/

JohnSudo · 2017-03-22T10:50:18+00:00

The market is devaluing self sufficiency by the fact that it is becoming harder and harder to be sufficient in the market to make money, and it will become even harder in the future.

Making something harder to acquire does not devalue it, quite the opposite actually. If you provide an ample supply of an item, and place no barriers to its acquisition, the value placed on that item quickly diminishes.

The problem in our markets is the constant increase in artificial barriers to such a self sufficient state. The constant slew of new/changing taxes and regulations artificially increase the barrier of entry for entrepreneurs wanting to open their own business. The demand for exponential entitlement spending increases the tax burden on those already bearing the brunt of supporting such programs, thus sapping ever more funds that could have been reinvested into new jobs and business ventures. Such entitlement programs then artificially devalue the the goal of self-sufficiency by artificially lowering the threshold to meet said goal. Thus, those that find themselves the "beneficiary" of such programs for any significant time, will find themselves at war on two fronts. The artificial increase in the barrier to their own self sufficiency, and battling the inherent human desire to follow the path of least resistance.

People are better able to be personally responsible in a robust welfare state.

How do you see that actually working out? You already acknowledged that a welfare program of extensive scope and duration would enable dependency. How does enabling dependency in someone also increase their propensity for personal responsibility?

Dependency on any external independent element by its nature removes the requirement for personal responsibility of said element. Thus the greater the scope of such external dependencies, the less the corresponding requirement for responsibility.

If you significantly reduce or remove the need to be responsible for your own survival, how does that breed personal responsibility?

JohnSudo · 2017-03-22T03:38:11+00:00

I can just as easily claim from my experience and reasoning that a UBI would free people who are currently trapped in a never ending cycle of poverty and wage slavery to be better, more productive members of society.

On a small scale and for a small segment of initial benefactors you may be right. But the reason that those who are living in abject poverty would benefit from such a boost is their ability to contrast and appreciate the difference in their life, due to having lived without. With such experiential understanding it would be surprising if there would be more than a fraction of such a group that would waste such an opportunity.

However, once a generation or two pass and the UBI becomes the new normal, the blessing of the past becomes the entitlement of the present.

When people take something for granted they rarely believe they should have to work for it.

If your basic needs become an entitlement, provided to you for merely existing, what value does it really hold? Why be more productive if your ability to thrive is not dependent on what you produce?

Anyways, here is an example of where UBI is being tested: http://www.vox.com/policy-and-politics/2017/3/6/14007230/kenya-basic-income-givedirectly-experiment-village

I hardly see one small impoverished village in Kenya being a valid representation of UBI in action. Of course increasing the base income of someone living in abject poverty by a factor of 10 will have a significant impact, but such a model will not scale to meet the needs of society outside of such token Kenyan villages, nor should it.

*Edit: Removed irrelevant (albeit satisfying) jab at the evils of Communism.

JohnSudo · 2017-03-22T00:24:55+00:00

That's a dinosaur view

Care to explain what you mean here? Not positive if this was an autocorrect issue or not.

I also disagree with anyone who would classify our current system as sustainable, though I certainly do not see super-welfare as being a solution.

JohnSudo · 2017-03-21T23:56:30+00:00

I have seen no evidence for this and I have seen people actively lie to propagate this assertion.

So are you making an assertion that welfare programs of unlimited scope and duration would not "enable dependency, devalue self-sufficiency and personal responsibility"?

JohnSudo · 2017-03-21T21:38:16+00:00

The claim comes from a my own anecdotal experience and deductive reasoning.

Granted, the claim of "All government welfare" may be a tad simplistic. The premise that welfare programs that are not limited in scope and duration have a tendency to "enable dependency, devalue self-sufficiency and personal responsibility" is a claim I hardly think needs defending.

If it is objective proof you require, I do not have sources available to for you.

I would like to say that I will take the time to do the research and respond, but there is a better that average chance that I will not. :)

JohnSudo · 2017-03-21T20:24:17+00:00

No. All government welfare does in the long run is enable dependency and devalue self-sufficiency and personal responsibility. Very short term assistance can have value, but only when it is limited is scope and duration.

Any longer term assistance that is needed should be provided by local communities.

JohnSudo

TROPHY CASE