My internship at Ordina: Thomas Hayen

Thomas is a university student who has ambition in red teaming. He had an internship at Ordina Security & Privacy unit for three months.

Firstly please tell us about your background.

I am 23 years of age and am currently studying Cloud & Cybersecurity in Thomas More. For a long time, I have been interested in security with a specific fascination in penetration testing and red teaming exercises in general. I am always trying to sharpen my skills on platforms such as HackTheBox and TryHackMe as well as studying for courses which spark my curiosity.

What made you choose Ordina?

While searching for an internship, I came across Ordina and their Security & Privacy unit. During the first meeting, the Resource Manager Anne-Mie told me a lot about working in the unit, and I had a great feeling about doing an internship within Ordina. During the second meeting, colleagues including my mentor Emmanouil proposed some internship assignments which included Web Application Penetration Testing and Vulnerability Management. They asked my personal preference to which I instantly responded with the Web Application Penetration Testing assignment. This was a topic in which I see myself proceed professionally and which, of course, interests me the most.

How has your time been at Ordina?

I am really enjoying it. I feel that I am being entrusted with a lot of tasks which give me confidence in my own doing. From the start, I have felt welcome in the group, Emmanouil and all the rest have made sure of that! When I had any questions, they would be answered within minutes. A shame that COVID-19 made it impossible to work from the office as I would have wanted to meet more people face to face within the Security & Privacy unit!

What do you think about your career?

As a cybersecurity student I have always been interested in ways to protect people from ‘bad actors’ but in a different manner than most. The most fascinating, for me, is by viewing it through the eyes of the ‘bad actor’. That is why I would see myself progress in the field of penetration testing and red teaming exercises in a whole. Such as doing social engineering assessments, phishing test at vast corporations, test public facing websites/applications, etc. From a motivational point of view, I see myself broadening in this field the most.

Finally, please share some advice for potential Ordina interns!

Ordina, more specific the Security & Privacy unit, is an outstanding place to do your internship, expect a lot of friendly, helpful, and interesting people who all are eager to help you. If you have an interest in cybersecurity and would like to work with driven and sharp minds, you should contact to the team to look at the possible internships. It will be worth your while!

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.