Cyberworkplace is a great place to meet like-minded people

student cyberworkplace
Justin Perdok, Former student & ambassador of Cyberworkplace

Please introduce yourself.

My name is Justin, 25 years old. In 2015 I got my ‘System/Network Administrator’ degree at Da Vinci College Dordrecht. I’m an IT Geek, Ethical Hacker, DevOps Nut, PowerShell Fanatic, and lover of beers.

When did you join Cyberworkplace? What was your motivation?

I joined Cyberworkplace in April 2019 and became an ambassador in January 2020. I wanted to increase my knowledge of the cybersecurity landscape with like-minded people.

What did you like about Cyberworkplace?

I really enjoyed the atmosphere and the people. Where all are here to learn and to help each other.

What have you learned at Cyberworkplace?

The ‘Python for Noobs’ course really helped me. I would usually fall back to a programming/scripting language I already knew even if it might not have been the best choice for that project.

What is your most favorite moment at Cyberworkplace?

I really enjoyed the day at Stationsplein where we ran an awareness campaign in cooperation with the Municipality of Rotterdam.

Describe Cyberworkplace with three words.

Fun. Informative. Teamwork.

What are you currently up to?

I currently work for the Dutch Red Team at Orange Cyberdefense. Here I do technical and physical penetration testing. I also have a couple of side projects where I’m automating the creation and maintenance of some cloud infrastructure used for training and lab environments as Infrastructure as Code with Terraform and Ansible. In my off time preparing for my OSCP certification and I sometimes partake in bug bounties.

Would you recommend Cyberworkplace to your friends?

I would definitely recommend it to everyone interested in security but don’t know where or how to start. Cyberworkplace is a great place to meet like-minded people and help you get your feet wet.

Is there anything else that you would like to add?

I would like to thank everyone at Cyberworkplace for making it possible. For everyone who is on the fence about joining, I would simply say, just do it.

Join Cyberworkplace here

CyberHeroes CTF. Join the challenge!

Cyberworkplace provide free cybersecurity training and coaching to tech-savvy youngsters such as gamers, hackers, and students, who lack practical experience in their study programs. We help them develop the skills they need for the 21st-century cybersecurity labor market and link them to leading (IT) security companies and organizations for internships and more. Learn more about us here.

cyberheroes ctf

In cooperation with the Dutch Police (Gamechangers) we offer you a CTF in which you can do various hacking challenges, from beginner to advanced. Challenge yourself and test your hacking skills by following the steps below:

  • In order to get access to the CTF, send a mail to info@cyberworkplace.tech including your full name, email and date of birth. We will handle your data in accordance to our Privacy Statement
  • Once you receive an email from us including the credentials, register yourself at https://ctf.cyberworkplace.tech/ as a player. Make sure you use the same email that you used in the registration form.
  • In order to access the challenges, you should create an unofficial team (required for individual players as well). Challenges are divided in 3 groups: Warmup, Superhero and Competitive. Each group consist of six challenges.

IMPORTANT! By registering, you agree not to use automated tools in order to solve the challenges.

The highest possible score is 2400 points.

If you are stuck, have any questions or suggestions, please do not hesitate to contact us.

Are you gamer/hacker or a tech savvy dropout? Do you want to meet like minded people and learn how to hack? Join Cyberworkplace! Find out more here

Credits to Radically Open Security for developing the CTF and Daniel Abrahams, Cyberworkplace volunteer for the CTF maintenance.

Cyberworkplace welcomes a new intern

We are super happy to welcome in our team Dylan Baalbergen, as our new intern! Dylan is a first-year Human Resource Management student at Leiden University College. He wants to expand his knowledge in human resources, by learning as much as possible here at Cyberworkplace. During his internship, he will be helping us with drawing up a recruiting model for students, volunteers, and interns, but also a program to better bind them. Dylan is the first intern at Cyberworkplace who is going to work on the abovementioned assignments, thus we are very excited to have him into our team and support/guide him along the way.

intern
Dylan Baalbergen, Cyberworkplace intern

Immediately, interest strikes, when during his very first Cyberworkplace workshop he feels nostalgic hearing about programming, as he also used to study IT. He is at the right place to gain some valuable skills, and to put those to good use.

See the entire team of Cyberworkplace here.

Online course on Splunk

From April 24 to May 15, Cyberworkplace and UMBRiO, an award-winning Splunk Elite Partner in The Netherlands, organize the “Introduction to Splunk” course. Splunk is software that indexes, manages, and enables you to search for data from any application, server, or network device in real-time. Organizations across the globe rely on Splunk to modernize and strengthen their cyber defenses. For Cyberworkplace, Splunk is a great addition to its ambitious ethical hacking curriculum.

During the Cyberworkplace course, students learn how to search and navigate in Splunk, how to use Splunk’s commands, create reports, dashboards, and alerts and use the interactive Pivot tool. The second part of the course focuses on Splunk Enterprise Security where students learn how to monitor, detect, investigate, and respond to threats with analytics-driven SIEM solutions.

Splunk Enterprise Security Posture dashboard. Source: Splunk.com

The innovative Cyberworkplace/Splunk course is lead by security architect Mark Brinkman, who is responsible for New implementations and usage of Splunk platforms at UMBRiO. In addition, interesting guest speakers from the UMBRiO network will share their knowledge from practice.

Because COVID-19, the course will be offered remotely. Read more about it here.

In February this year, UMBRiO and Cyberworkplace joined forces in a unique collaboration. UMBRiO is happy to support Cyberworkplace’s mission and helps by offering lessons and internships. Read more about the partnership here.

About UMBRiO

UMBRiO is a Dutch company that analyzes and manages machine data and IT service management processes to develop successful value cases together. They create added value for companies in the areas of efficiency (in processes), safety (security is their top priority), and security (of a stable and controlled daily operation). They work with Splunk that can make huge amounts of machine data quickly searchable for Business Analytics, Operational & Security Intelligence, and various IoT applications.

Cyberworkplace enabled me to transition from a student to a young professional

Tsvetelina Shabanska, Former student & ambassador of Cyberworkplace

Please introduce yourself.

My name is Tsvetelina or just Lina. I am from Bulgaria, 23 years old. In January this year, I graduated from M.Sc. in Crisis in Security Management at Leiden University, and I am still completing M.Sc. in Cybersecurity in Bulgaria. My interest falls in the field of security and technology, more specifically in information security and lately privacy. Apart from that, I also like horse riding and yoga.

When did you join Cyberworkplace? What was your motivation?

I joined Cyberworkplace back in February 2019. My main motivation was to learn some more technical skills and to find a group of like-minded people that are just as passionate about computers and security. Also, I wanted to make the transition between a non-technical career path to one involved more into ICT, and I thought Cyberworkplace was a good place to start.

What did you like about Cyberworkplace?

There are so many great things about Cyberworkplace. I really liked the fact that we had space and the environment to develop our tech skills in a more informal setting, but also the responsibility to do so in our own way. In that sense, it’s very different from school or university. Cyberworkplace has always provided the resources and logistics for students to learn, but also it depends on people’s own motivation and effort to succeed.
Also, you get introduced to many organizations and companies from various fields of work within cybersecurity, so you can really find what you like specifically.

What have you learned at Cyberworkplace?

Many things. From coding, through digital forensics, lock picking and building an escape room! Another very important skill I managed to master during my time there was to provide feedback and peer-to-peer learning, which is also very important when a young adult is entering the workforce.
Further, I had the possibility to follow courses and presentations in Dutch. For an international like me, it’s very important to learn the technical terminology in the country that you’re working in, so CWP also provided me with the opportunity to do so.

What is your most favorite moment at Cyberworkplace?

The CyberHeroes project we had last year. We had the chance to meet not only different organizations and people from all around the world, but also to play not one, but two CTFs.

What are you currently up to?

I am currently working as a Tester at Cybersprint to which I got introduced via Cyberworkplace. Also, I am doing an internship in the cybersecurity section of an international organization.
Besides, I am following a course for certification in the IT Security Administration that was also provided by one of Cyberworkplace’s partners, SECO Institute.

Describe Cyberworkplace with three words.

Learn. Fun. Collaborate.

Would you recommend Cyberworkplace to your friends?

I definitely recommend it to all my friends and connections. Very often I hear people say, “Oh, I find cybersecurity very interesting, but I am not very technical. ” or “I want to do it, but I don’t know where to start.”. Cyberworkplace is a great start. You have people with different interests and skill levels, which are willing to spend time with you and help you find what you like and what potentially you are good at.
Furthermore, from a networking perspective, Cyberworkplace, its ambassadors, board and partnering organizations are always willing to support your future goals.

Is there anything else that you would like to add?

I would like to thank everyone involved in Cyberworkplace and its projects: from organizers, supporters, to the students. Everybody there has enabled me to transition from a student to a young professional, and from a non-technical to a (more) technical person.
I also hope that I will be able to contribute to CWP and its mission in the future, so more young people like myself can find how cool cyber is.

Join Cyberworkplace here