Hi, I’m Mohithaa. Most people call me Maggie. I have a Master’s in Cyber Forensics and Security, and most of what I know about defending systems, I learned by actually doing it: in competitions, on live machines, and with a red team actively trying to get in. Turns out, “please don’t break the server” is a surprisingly effective way to learn cybersecurity.
This site is where I write that down. It covers what I’ve learned, what I’ve built, and how I work through security problems.
Why security
I think what pulled me toward cybersecurity was the fact that there usually isn’t a giant flashing sign telling you what went wrong. You have to notice the weird thing, ask why it’s weird, and then keep digging until the pieces start making sense. Sometimes it’s a configuration. Sometimes it’s a log you almost ignored. Sometimes it’s something that makes you go, “Okay… why is that happening?”
That’s the part I enjoy: figuring out what happened, why it happened, and what can be done about it. The problem changes, the environment changes, and the way you approach it has to change too. I like that there isn’t always one obvious path to the answer.
COVID made that interest feel a lot more real to me. When groceries, school, work, furniture shopping (basically everything) moved online, it became pretty obvious how much of everyday life depends on systems we don’t usually think twice about. Behind all of that are people, data, and systems that need to be protected. That made security feel less like just a technical problem and more like something that actually affects people I care about.
I’ve always been a little obsessed with details. That probably explains why I like fashion design too, since a small detail that most people wouldn’t notice can completely change how a piece looks. Security feels surprisingly similar. The thing everyone else overlooks can sometimes be the thing worth investigating.
Education
My undergraduate degree is in Computer Science with a specialization in Cyber Security. That’s where I built my foundation in cryptography, network security, incident response, and malware analysis.
I went on to complete my MAS in Cyber Forensics and Security at Illinois Tech in May 2026 with a 3.90 GPA. There I went deeper into vulnerability analysis, digital evidence, and Zero Trust Architecture, which ended up shaping my research.
Learning by competing
A lot of my practical experience came through competing with CyberHawks, an 860-member Illinois Tech’s cybersecurity community, where I also served as Executive Treasurer. That meant handling budgets, tooling, and sponsorships, but also writing playbooks and training other members before competitions. Turns out, explaining something to someone else is the fastest way to find out if you actually understand it.
In these competitions, you’re handed an environment you didn’t build, given a bunch of services that absolutely need to stay alive, and then told that someone is actively trying to break them. Very educational. Slightly stressful. Extremely useful.
Across these competitions, I worked on Windows Server and Linux systems, a MikroTik router, and a Palo Alto firewall. The work involved hardening systems, locking down access, and responding to incidents as they happened.
- CCDC: We placed 3rd in our state qualifier, which sent us to the Midwest wildcard round. We placed 4th there and earned a spot at regionals.
- NCAE: I was team lead, and we placed 2nd at regionals.
- CPTC: This one flipped the perspective. As a penetration testing competition, it put us on the attacking side, and we placed 3rd at the Great Lakes Regional in 2025.
Each competition has its own page with the full story.
Research and projects
I co-authored a book chapter, A Rethink of Network Security Through Zero Trust Architecture, published by IGI Global in 2026 in Examining Vulnerabilities and Adversarial Exploitations of AI and LLMs.
That interest carried into a project where I designed a Zero Trust architecture for a healthcare organization after a breach. I traced each step of the attack chain (lateral movement, privilege escalation, and undetected exfiltration) back to the control gap that allowed it, then defined the controls to close each gap.
What I’m working on now
- Preparing for CompTIA Security+ (SY0-701)
- Writing up the topics I’m learning, starting with how LLMNR Poisoning works (coming soon)
Where I’m headed
I want to start my career on the defensive side of cybersecurity, particularly in security operations, threat detection, incident response, and risk and security analysis. That’s where I’ve built the most hands-on experience, through CCDC and NCAE.
At the same time, I don’t want to limit myself to one side of security. CPTC gave me my first real experience looking at systems from an attacker’s perspective, and it made me want to keep developing that side of my skill set as well. Long term, I’d like to grow toward offensive security and penetration testing while carrying the defensive perspective I’ve built along the way.
Basically, I’m looking for opportunities where I can put that experience to work. I want to keep deepening what I know about how systems get defended and how they get broken, and I want to do it on a team where I’m learning every day.
Outside of security
When I’m not working on security, I’m probably dancing, which is less of a hobby and more of a personality trait at this point. I’ve been dancing hip-hop for years and have performed professionally, so yes, apparently I like both debugging systems and counting eight-counts.
Let’s connect
If you’re hiring for a security role, want to talk cybersecurity, or just want to learn a dance choreography, you can find me on LinkedIn.