Hello, World!

Welcome to my University of Kentucky Information Communication Technology Internship blog!  The purpose of this site is to document my experience as an Information Communication Technology intern and discuss things I've learned through this experience.

While the grading period is technically June 11-August 6, I began working as an intern since late March of 2015.  I was accepted for an internship with Lexington-based technology company as a Security Analyst Intern.

My interview process was unorthodox.  I took a class with UK Computer Science Professor Dr. Ken Calvert in 2013, Network Security, and I met a guy in that course that was an intern at a technology security company.  I was intrigued by the many stories he would tell me during class of the fun things he got to do, and get paid to do!  Earlier this year my friend reached out to me and let me know that his company was looking for interns to join their security team.

I sent him a resume and was called for an interview.  My interview was a luncheon at a local pizza restaurant, where the entire security team and I sat at a table and discussed security related topics for an hour or so over lunch.  I was rather nervous, but my friend had prepared me beforehand by giving me a list of topics that would be discussed as part of the interview.  I answered their questions to the best of my ability, and within a week I had an offer!

Perhaps that isn't so unorthodox, after all.  Most jobs that I've had came about by knowing someone that could help me get a foot in the door.  I suppose you could say that this job had a lot to do with networking.

Networking.

That's a joke, but I digress.  I didn't have a tremendous amount of security knowledge going into the internship, but they re-assured me that all they required of me was motivation and potential.  If I could learn, they could teach me.

Thus, since starting with this company I've learned a tremendous amount about the Information Security industry.  I've learned to use network discovery tools, vulnerability scanners, write reports, and even aspects of social engineering!

You may have noticed, but I've decided not talk specifically about the company.  One thing I've learned about the corporate world is that they're not incredibly fond of unofficial mouth-pieces.  That's not to say that I've been forbidden to discuss details of my internship as part of the ICT 596 course, but let's just suffice it to say the following (and then just move on):

• I'm an intern for a company that offers technology solutions.
• I work in a department that conducts information security assessments.  We consult clients on how to protect their information assets.
• There is a steep learning curve for this industry, and a lot to learn.  Although I've already been here for a few months, I am still very much in training. 

Instead of focusing on irrelevant specifics about the company for which I work,  I will instead try to talk more about some topics, processes and tools that I encounter everyday as part of my internship.  I look forward to documenting this learning experience so that others might be able to determine if security is something they, too, are interested in.