I wish I’d gone into the infosec industry sooner – people are friendly, every day you get to change someone’s life for the better, and I feel true achievement at the end of each week.
Jade Wenban is the Managing Director of the AntiSocial Engineer Limited. She shares her cyber security story with us and dispels common myths about the sector being a tech-focused ‘man’s game’.
How did you get into the cyber security industry?
The cyber security industry was quite daunting to me before I joined! My partner is a social engineer who ran a small infosec company and I got to understand the basics by listening and attending events together. Joining infosec was a complete career change, but I slowly picked up the essentials. I’d always had an interest in technology but I’d assumed there would be barriers, essential qualifications and reasons why I couldn’t be part of it.
My partner handled the techie stuff and at that time the business was young – really it was just a hobby that paid well! Thinking on my feet, I knew I wouldn’t be able to add much in the way of tech – I knew nothing about hacking! But I did know how to organise my partner…
I began making changes that were needed for the business which showed an instant return and improvement. Bills were paid on time, the calendar started to be used, business development and planning began. I introduced SMShing as Service, as it seemed daft that people had phishing assessments but no-one tested for SMShing messages.Based on the results, after a month I became Managing Director, and we have not looked back since.
What would you say to women looking to get into cyber security?
Women I speak to often seem surprised by my career path, but many more women should play a role in the industry. At school, the careers advice rhetoric was that men should do the “typical” male jobs and women should become hairdressers, beauty therapists or play with flowers!
After joining The AntiSocial Engineer Limited, I wish I’d gone into the infosec industry sooner – people are friendly, every day you get to change someone’s life for the better, and I feel true achievement at the end of each week.
Visit their website and check out all Jade’s incredible changes to The AntiSocial Engineer for yourself.