Penetration Tester

Senior Penetration Tester — Vanguard Security Solutions

Denver, CO | October 2022 – Present

• Executed 45 comprehensive network and web application penetration tests for enterprise clients, identifying 120+ high-severity vulnerabilities and securing critical customer database assets.
• Developed 14 custom Python scripts to automate threat intelligence gathering and active reconnaissance, reducing initial discovery phase duration from 4 days down to 6 hours per assessment.
• Led 5 red team emulation campaigns mimicking advanced persistent threat (APT) actor techniques, which improved the client's internal security detection rate by 34% over a 12-month period.
• Authored 45 detailed technical report deliverables detailing security gaps, remediation steps, and proof-of-concept exploits, presenting findings to stakeholders to achieve 100% patch alignment.

Associate Penetration Tester — Apex Digital Protection

Boulder, CO | June 2020 – September 2022

• Conducted weekly vulnerability scans on 350+ network endpoints using Nessus and Qualys, successfully remediating 82% of vulnerabilities within SLA timeframes with zero production downtime.
• Performed manual security reviews of 20 custom web applications, identifying critical SQL injection and cross-site scripting (XSS) bugs, reducing post-release exploit reports by 38%.
• Simulated 8 email phishing campaigns targeting 1,500+ employees, raising organizational cybersecurity awareness and reducing user link-click rates from 18% to 3% in under 6 months.
• Coordinated with 3 engineering teams to implement secure coding practices and API gateway filters, resolving 15 legacy security architectural vulnerabilities across production environments.

Penetration testing, Vulnerability assessment, Red teaming, Web application security, Network exploitation, Social engineering, Burp Suite, Metasploit, Nmap, Wireshark, Nessus, Qualys, Python, Bash, SQL injection, XSS, Active Directory security, OWASP Top 10, Kali Linux, AWS security

Automated Reconnaissance Framework

Role: Lead Developer / Security Researcher

Tools: Python, Bash, Nmap API, Shodan API, PostgreSQL

Developed a modular scanning tool that indexed active services across 1,200 public-facing IP addresses, identifying 14 critical open ports and reducing recon time by 48%.

Active Directory Domain Escalation Lab

Role: Security Specialist

Tools: Active Directory, BloodHound, Mimikatz, PowerShell

Simulated 12 complex domain compromise paths to audit credential vulnerability structures, enabling the remediation of 5 high-risk configuration paths in enterprise environments.

• Offensive Security Certified Professional (OSCP) (2022)
• Certified Information Systems Security Professional (CISSP) (2025)

• Languages: English (Native), German (Conversational)
• Volunteer Work: Cybersecurity mentor for regional high school cybersecurity league (2023-present)
• Availability: 3 weeks notice