#AFEXTechDiary 1: To be a Security and DevOps Engineer, Be Willing to Fail.
With the rise of cyber security attacks in Nigeria, there is little to wonder about the importance of the role of cyber security engineers/ teams?
In this article, we shine the spotlight on our whip-smart Xpert, Praise, who has over 4 years of experience in the cyber security space and provides security guidance and protection on AFEX’s systems, network applications, and data. Keep reading to learn more about his experience in the tech world so far.
Tell us about your career path and getting into tech?
My journey into the world of cyber security has been quite straightforward. I studied Management Function Systems in school. Right after I graduated, before my service year, I got a job in Information Security.
I’ve always been drawn to cyber security and improving vulnerabilities in IT infrastructure, so it was easy for me to kickstart a career in the field.
I worked as tech support for Microsoft for four months and delved into the role of an official security engineer before I got the call to join AFEX as a Security DevOps Engineer.
What aspect of tech excites you?
Security engineering. It is all-encompassing.
It sets the right foundation for the hard skills required to get ahead in the industry. With Security, you have a bit of knowledge from every other field in IT. From networking skills to coding skills to system architecture to how a network works. Basically, everything needs to come into play for you to do your part.
Who would win in a fight: Gates, Musk, Cook, Bezos, or that kid at Facebook?
They are all old men. I don’t think it would be a fun fight to watch.
Tell us about what you’re working on now and what your biggest challenge is?
In a world where cyber security is becoming a pressing issue, the biggest challenge is ensuring that your systems are secure.
As much as there are people out there trying to circumvent processes and take advantage of any loopholes that may exist in our applications, I spend every day trying to build the best defensive strategy to protect our organization against cyber security attacks.
What is it like being a Security and DevOps engineer at AFEX?
In three words, it is fun.
It was a new experience for me when I joined because AFEX has a unique framework of operations and most of the infrastructure is located on the cloud. I had to remove my mindset from the traditional way of operations. It was a learning curve for me.
What skills should someone in your role look out for?
Be willing to fail. For security or most IT roles, it’s okay to fail. It’s fine to not know. It’s fine to make mistakes and learn your lessons. Be willing to learn.
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Stay tuned to the memoirs of our Tech Xperts as they reveal their experiences and drop some deep, expert knowledge in the tech space. Watch out for the next part in our next post. Follow us on Twitter or LinkedIn to stay in the loop.
