Use The Swartz is a little project of mine. I have been in this industry and although there are numerous resources for beginners to get into cybersecurity, many of them are disorganized or even worst: paid boot camps and costly courses.

I wanted to throw my hat in the ring and help beginners moving into cybersecurity learn some of the basics and even better, learn how to acquire the tools necessary to build their knowledge and their careers.

Here you'll find personal musings on the industry at large, tutorials for those just getting their feet wet all the way to those deeply immersed, and different things I have learned in my journey in this industry. As a wise Infantry Captain once told my ROTC class, "You do not have the time to make all the mistakes in the world by yourself; start learning from others."

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About Me

I’m Josh, and I work as a Vulnerability Analyst in the federal space. I caught the cybersecurity bug in 2018, and since then, I've been passionate about helping others learn and grow in this exciting field. My role involves identifying and fixing security vulnerabilities using tools like Nessus, Tenable, Splunk, and many others. One of my proudest achievements was leading a project to build a vulnerability management program from the ground up, enabling our team to identify and quickly reduce critical vulnerabilities that we previously had no visibility on.

My journey into cybersecurity started with an introductory course on ethical hacking, which opened my eyes to the fascinating and ever-changing world of cyber threats. During my time as the President of the Cybersecurity Club at the University of North Georgia (Go Cyber Hawks!), I developed training plans and workshops from scratch, organized events, and helped other students prepare for the industry by attending conferences and competing in events such as the National Cyber League and the Southeastern Collegiate Cyber Defense Challenge.

Participating in these competitions taught me valuable lessons in teamwork, problem-solving, and resilience. Even though our team didn't win, the experience was invaluable and fueled my determination to improve.

I currently hold CompTIA's Security+ and Cybersecurity Analyst+ (CySA+) certifications. After completing my Graduate Certificate in Cybersecurity at the University of North Georgia, I plan to start preparing for the GIAC Certified Incident Handler (GCIH) exam.