Security
Defender-style previewThe security side of what I am building: a free Security+ study tool, hands-on TryHackMe work toward a SOC track, and this portfolio's own posture in a Defender-style view.
A free CompTIA Security+ study tool, built after passing it
Security+ does not really test whether you read the material. It tests whether you can pick the right term out of four that all sound correct, with a clock running. So this drills that specific skill: the lookalike terms, the control grid, the protocol swaps, and the risk math. React and TypeScript on Azure Static Web Apps, same stack as this portal.
- Confusion Pairs: 16 lookalike term sets and 64 scenarios, drilled without telling you which pair you are on
- The 1.1 control grid as a two-axis drill, category and function, no partial credit
- Secure protocol swaps you type from memory, no multiple choice to recognize
- Risk math with numbers generated fresh each round, so only the formula helps
- 220 original questions covering all 28 published exam objectives
- A timed exam sim drawn to the real domain weighting and scored per domain
Hands-on · TryHackMeWorking the SOC track, one room at a time
Certs prove you can pass a test. These are the hours behind them: 54 rooms finished and written up, every one with its own set of notes. Next path is SOC Level 1, because alert triage, SIEM, endpoint and network forensics. The path that maps to the roles I am aiming at, rather than the offensive track.
Pre Security
31/31 roomsComplete, with the path completion certificate. Networking fundamentals, how the web works, computer and OS basics, attacks and defenses.
Cyber Security 101
22/55 rooms · 5/14 sectionsLinux Fundamentals, Windows and Active Directory, Command Line and Networking all finished end to end. Networking included Wireshark, tcpdump and Nmap.
Practice rooms
1/1 roomsCommitted: a git-history forensics room, recommended by the platform after finishing the Command Line module.
Every finished room has its own write-up in my notes, which is the point: the room teaches it once, the write-up is what makes it stick. Cert target: TryHackMe SEC1. Ambassador cert voucher goes here. Redeemable through June 2027.
Mock score, but the story behind it is real: privacy-by-default content sync now, backend guardrails before the AI goes live.
Identity and access
In progressEntra ID, RBAC, least privilege, and AZ-104 identity objectives are active study areas.
Data protection
ConfiguredPublic-safe content allowlist, phone-number scrub requirement, and explicit vault denylist.
Application security
PlannedPhase 3 keeps Azure OpenAI secrets server-side in Azure Functions, then moves toward managed identity.
Monitoring
PlannedFuture Cloudflare Web Analytics or Azure-native telemetry with no invasive tracking.
Recommendations
- Enable multi-factor authentication on the account that owns this subscription.
- Store backend secrets in Azure Key Vault and reach them with a managed identity.
- Add rate limiting and input validation to the chatbot Function before it goes public.
- Turn on Microsoft Defender for Cloud and work the secure-score findings.
Security lab backlog 6 labs
Microsoft Sentinel SIEM
PlannedIngest Entra sign-in logs, write KQL detections for impossible-travel and MFA fatigue, and surface them on a workbook.
Conditional Access gauntlet
PlannedStand up a set of CA policies, then try to break in from a non-compliant device to prove each one actually blocks.
Entra PIM + access reviews
PlannedMove admin roles to just-in-time activation and run access reviews to show least privilege holding over time.
Defender for Cloud secure score
In progressDeploy a deliberately misconfigured workload, then remediate the findings and track the secure score climbing.
Key Vault + managed identity
PlannedPull every secret out of app config into Key Vault, authenticate with managed identity, and rotate keys with zero downtime.
Honeypot VM + alerting
PlannedExpose a decoy box from the VM blade and wire an alert that fires on first unauthorized touch. Ties the labs together.