Tribe of Hackers Red Team

37Tinker Secor

“Spend most of your time hunting for a job by going to local meetups and conferences. Join some reputable online groups as well.”

Twitter: @TinkerSec

Tinker is a full-scope penetration tester with experience in testing and bypassing the security of logical, physical, and social environments. He has conducted social engineering operations as part of red team engagements in the United States, Canada, and Europe. Tinker has built up, managed, and trained red team and penetration testing teams. Prior to this, Tinker served in the SOC trenches as an intrusion detection analyst. Prior to that, he served in the United States Marine Corps.

How did you get your start on a red team?

A burly man named Bubbles approached me after a meeting of the Dallas Hackers Association. I had given some talks in the local community concerning how I had approached kinetic attacks and defenses in the U.S. Marine Corps and technical talks on how I had trapped Chinese malware for analysis. He said I had the right mind-set for being on a red team and wanted to know if I wanted to be on his team. He promised me training and guidance. I told him no. I was working on a blue team and had just started a project that I wanted to see through. Six months later, I finished that project, and he reapproached me. This time I said yes.

I went through the interview process and was offered the job. They ...