Welcome to my personal blog! 👋
Hey there, welcome to my corner of the internet! If you ever come across my site or blog, I’m pretty sure you are either a friend or a potential employer. If none of the two, well, I don’t know since my webpage doesn’t have any SEO yet. Whether you stumbled upon my site intentionally or by happy accident, a warm thank you for taking the time to explore my simple blog site. 😄
Let me kick off this blogging journey with a quick intro about myself and why I decided to launch this my personal site and blog.
About Me
I’m Christopher, but most folks call me “Chris” or “Tope” (pronounced as “to-peh”). While I currently call Melbourne home for the moment, my roots trace back to the Philippines. I’ve been soaking up the Aussie life for over two years now, initially making the journey down under to pursue my Masters in Cyber Security at RMIT. Recently, I was granted a 5-year post-study visa, giving me the opportunity to work and live Down Under for the foreseeable future. Australia has been an amazing experience so far – the food, the people, culture, just everything about it feels different and leaves a mark on me (LEGEND!).
Professional Journey
My professional journey spans five fruitful years, all within the cybersecurity realm. I’ve had the privilege of working with esteemed tech giants like Trend Micro, Verizon, and currently, I’m with Mosse Security.
In my previous roles, I specialized in Digital Forensics and Incident Response, aiding customers and companies in fortifying their security posture and navigating through security incidents. I’ve been on the frontlines, serving as an incident responder and consultant for various incidents, including ransomware outbreaks, virus infections, and many more - e.g ~2-3 ransomware cases a week during my stint at Trend Micro, while having a chance to improve my customer service skills.
Now, I’ve ventured into the realm of red teaming, particularly web application pentesting. My foray into pentesting began with an internship opportunity during my Masters, which opened my eyes to a whole new side of cybersecurity. This shift has enriched my understanding on attack scenarios and techniques and bolstered my skill set for future challenges.
Currently, I’m on the lookout for my next adventure, whether it’s in blue teaming or red teaming. So, if you’ve got an exciting opportunity that aligns with my expertise, I’m all ears. 😄 Feel free to reach out via email for my resume or check out my personal website at chriszbga.
Hobbies and Interests
On my free time, you’ll find me indulging in my passions. I’m an avid gamer 🎮, with Dota being my go-to game. I also enjoy shooting hoops ⛹️♂️ and exploring whatever piques my curiosity, be it tech-related or otherwise.
Last year, I created a mini-lab setup at home. I purchased a mini-PC from Amazon with the intention of experimenting and expanding my personal knowledge. This setup primarily utilized Proxmox for virtualization, supplemented by Portainer for managing containers, Tailscale VPN so I can connect remotely, a file server, and a few virtual machines for various purposes. Perhaps down the line, I’ll document and share this setup in a blog post. 🤞
Recently, I’ve been dabbling in web development, crafting a simple website for my family’s lending business, featuring a simple dashboard for customer accounts and transactions. It is an application with frontend, backend, and database (MongoDB) which I find quite challenging and rewarding. Plus, it’s bound to enhance my skills in web application pentesting – a win-win situation! It is still currently a work in progess.
Additionally, I just created a personal library on cybersecurity which contain topics, how-tos and general information on multiple cybersecurity domains, including but not limited to dfir and pentesting. It is published here: chriszbga - library.
Oh yeah, I am into prototyping and dabbling in Arduino projects also since I have a background on Electronics Engineering, like the Hydroponics I developed for my family’s lettuce 🥬 farm back in the Philippines. Along with my brother, we planned on the hardware prototype which fits the need - adding some sensors like pH, temperature, and a few motors for automation.
These are just a few examples of my hobbies/interests. While I wouldn’t label myself as a total nerd, I’m beginning to see why some folks might think otherwise. 😅
About This Site and Blog
The creation of my personal site stemmed from a realization during my job hunt – having a personal website could be a game-changer. So, I created my personal portfolio site earlier this year.
As I look into profolio templates and personal websites I noticed that most them come with a blog section. That got me thinking – why not leverage this opportunity to not only complete my personal site but also refine my writing skills? Of course, I won’t shy away from using AI tools to iron out any pesky grammar or spelling mistakes. 😅 And voila, here we are – a blog page on my site.
Initially, this blog is more of a personal endeavor, a space for me to document my experiences, share cybersecurity insights, or simply engage in some freewriting. It’s a journey of self-reflection, both personally and professionally.
So, if you’ve made it this far, thank you for lending me a moment of your time. I hope you find something valuable on my future posts if you’ll ever visit again.
That’s a wrap for now. Once again, welcome and salamat (thank you)! 👋
Note: Edited and paraphrased by ChatGPT. Though, story, points and views are mine. 😆