Never give up

5 December 2018 - Reading time: 2 minutes

Today was a fascinating day at BlackHat Europe. So many people from all over the world, are smart, knowledgeable and inquisitive. So many inspiring conversations. I should probably note a great interest in Spirent security solutions and services (well-known and well-deserved by the way). We had an ICS hacking challenge at our stand and that also raised a few eyebrows. Many people decided to come and try but without much luck. Well, you can't call ICS security a "pentesting mainstream", and I know really well that it requires specialist knowledge. Not too many companies are doing it and especially doing it with confidence. A majority of people were saying: "yea, you know, generally I am very good with security, but this is SCADA, it is complicated so I cannot do it". Fine. There was one case, however, which, in my opinion, was really unique. A couple of guys from a small pentesting company in Croatia came to our stand, tried classic this-and-that and said: "you know what, we never did ICS pentesting before, but we absolutely love this challenge and (I am quoting) we will not go home until we solve it". They were there for almost an hour, googling the subject on the fly, trying different scenarios, and step-by-step slowly they came to the solution. On their way, they wrote a few pieces of bespoke code and went through many trial-and-error attempts. I must confess, I was really impressed. Impressed by their determination, not giving up, applying all they know in an entirely new field, experimenting and finally being able to nail the challenge. It was just brilliant. I think such an attitude is an absolute key to being successful in the security testing business (and, honestly speaking: probably in life). Life is fantastic and brings us so many great opportunities which can make us better. Opportunities which can make our horizon broader. Do not miss them! Have an endless curiosity, never stop until you try everything possible and impossible, get out of your comfort zone and experience something new. Don't be afraid to make mistakes - well, this is how we, humans, learn about things. If you have your knowledge and determination multiplied by courage - truly, for you there will be no limits!