My internship at Ordina: Katerina Stavrinoudis

Katerina is a university student who studies Computer Science. She assessed vulnerabilities of our internal network as her internship assignment.

Firstly please tell us about your background.

I am half Greek and half Belgian and grew up in Greece. I moved to Belgium 5 years ago to get in touch with my second culture, study and work. If all goes well, I will graduate this summer from UCLL in Applied Computer Science with a minor in Systems and Networks. In my free time I enjoy learning more about cyber security.

What made you choose Ordina?

I wanted to find an internship in the security field. On the internet I stumbled upon the Security & Privacy Unit of Ordina. The description seemed good so I gave it a try. My first interview was with the Resource Manager, Anne-Mie Truyen. Before the start, I was a bit stressed and didn’t know what to expect because it was my first interview. But from the first minute of the interview, it went away immediately. Anne-Mie was very friendly and the whole conversation was enjoyable. It was a very good first impression. My next interview was with Emmanouil Perselis and Tim Cools, my mentors. Once again, it was a very fun interview. Not at all how I expected interviews to be. I thought to myself, if happy employees is not a sign of a good working environment then what is? On top of that, the projects they proposed were very interesting so my decision to work with Ordina was very easy.

How has your time been at Ordina?

I quite enjoyed my time at Ordina. Of course I would have enjoyed it more if I could work at the offices. Working at home didn’t allow me to fully experience the working atmosphere, but I am really grateful for the small opportunities I got to experience. I couldn’t wait for the next Lunch & Learn meeting, the weekly update emails, the scrum meetings and the group chat messages within the Security & Privacy Unit. They all confirmed continuously the friendly atmosphere in the team and in the company. During the presentations I had to give for my project, I always got a lot of feedback from my mentors and Mark Vandenwauver the Business Unit Manager. Anne-Mie also let me follow a training on how to give interviews and gave me lots of feedback as well. They were always available to answer my questions and always willing to help with extra things I asked. I really appreciate the time they all spent to teach me things and I am glad my journey in Ordina will continue as a Security & Privacy Consultant.

What do you think about your career?

I knew for a long time that I want to contribute in cyber security and privacy field. I consider those two are basic things everyone in the world involves, and I want to do my part in making the world safer. The field though is very broad and I still have to learn a lot about it to know which aspect interests me the most and where I can be the most helpful. My main task during my internship was to do a vulnerability assessment of the Ordina Belgium network. It allowed me to gain experience on the defensive side (Blue team) of cyber security. It was really educational and interesting, but I still want to keep my options open and try different things. I would like to also gain experience on the attacking side (Red team).

Finally, please share some advice for potential Ordina interns!

The advice I have to give is to just be genuine. Honesty is something that is very appreciated in Ordina. Dare to ask questions because no one thinks you are bad at your job if you don’t know something and need help. Dare to say your opinion because feedback is very welcome here. And don’t be afraid to make a mistake. Ordina is a very understanding place and it really sees their employees and interns as a part of team and treat them like ones.

If you are interested in working for Ordina or would like to know more about our services for your company, don’t hesitate to contact us.