#LifeAtWebroot

Girl Scouts and OpenText empower future leaders of tomorrow with cyber resilience

The transition to a digital-first world enables us to connect, work and live in a realm where information is available at our fingertips. The children of today will be working in an environment of tomorrow that is shaped by hyperconnectivity. Operating in this...

World Backup Day reminds us all just how precious our data is

Think of all the important files sitting on your computer right now. If your computer crashed tomorrow, would you be able to retrieve your important files? Would your business suffer as a result? As more and more of our daily activities incorporate digital and online...

3 Reasons We Forget Small & Midsized Businesses are Major Targets for Ransomware

The ransomware attacks that make headlines and steer conversations among cybersecurity professionals usually involve major ransoms, huge corporations and notorious hacking groups. Kia Motors, Accenture, Acer, JBS…these companies were some of the largest to be...

How Ransomware Sneaks In

Ransomware has officially made the mainstream. Dramatic headlines announce the latest attacks and news outlets highlight the staggeringly high ransoms businesses pay to retrieve their stolen data. And it’s no wonder why – ransomware attacks are on the rise and the...

An MSP and SMB guide to disaster preparation, recovery and remediation

Introduction It’s important for a business to be prepared with an exercised business continuity and disaster recovery (BC/DR) plan plan before its hit with ransomware so that it can resume operations as quickly as possible. Key steps and solutions should be followed...

Podcast: Cyber resilience in a remote work world

The global pandemic that began to send us packing from our offices in March of last year upended our established way of working overnight. We’re still feeling the effects. Many office workers have yet to return to the office in the volumes they worked in pre-pandemic....

5 Tips to get Better Efficacy out of Your IT Security Stack

If you’re an admin, service provider, security executive, or are otherwise affiliated with the world of IT solutions, then you know that one of the biggest challenges to overcome is efficacy. Especially in terms of cybersecurity, efficacy is something of an amorphous...

How Cryptocurrency and Cybercrime Trends Influence One Another

Typically, when cryptocurrency values change, one would expect to see changes in crypto-related cybercrime. In particular, trends in Bitcoin values tend to be the bellwether you can use to predict how other currencies’ values will shift, and there are usually...

Employee Spotlight: The Human Faces Behind Artificial Intelligence

Webroot BrightCloud® Threat Intelligence relies on the collective power of millions of devices working together. But what sometimes gets lost is the actual humans behind bringing this technology to market. In this Employee Spotlight, we talk to Account Development Executive, Jordan Gray, who works with C-level executives to integrate threat intelligence solutions within their environments.

What brought you to Webroot?

In 2018, I was looking for a career change away from insurance. After doing some extensive research into the market, I decided that the tech industry, particularly in Ireland, was right for me as more and more tech companies start setting up offices here. After initially setting up a call with a recruiter to discuss a role at Webroot, I fell in love with the product and company vision. The rest is history!

What is your role in the company?

My main role requires me to conduct high level discovery calls and sessions to BANT qualify C-Level and VPs before passing qualified opportunities onto our Sales Director to discuss integration and pricing in detail.

Have you ever had any close calls with malicious actors?

Thankfully, I never had any close calls with real malicious actors. However, about six months into my role at Webroot, I was successfully phished by our IT department who were sending out simulated phishing emails at the time. They sent me a delivery notice from a courier that was sending me a parcel and I clicked the link without checking. Nonetheless, I brushed up on my security awareness training afterwards! Lesson learned from me.

What are the top three malicious actors you think people should be concerned about?

Coronavirus scams are spreading nearly as fast as the virus itself. As of Jan. 3, the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) had logged more than 298,000 consumer complaints related to COVID-19 stimulus payments, 68 percent of them involving fraud or identity theft. They’ve also shut down hundreds of suspected phishing sites, which promise vaccines and other aid. That being said, our Tier-1 URL filtering can really help organizations block access to malicious sites keeping them and their customers safe.

Malware is the second big threat facing businesses. It encompasses a variety of cyber threats, such as trojans and viruses. It’s a general term for malicious code that hackers create to gain access to networks, steal data or destroy data on computers. Malware usually comes from malicious website downloads, spam emails or from connecting to other infected machines or devices. Businesses can stay safe by using Webroot’s industry leading endpoint protection.

Ransomware is one of the most common cyber-attacks, hitting thousands of businesses every year. They’ve grown more common recently, as they are one of the most lucrative forms of attacks. According to Forbes, ransomware payments have more than doubled in the last 12 months.

How have malicious threats evolved since the early days of the internet to now?

Cyber threats are evolving every day. Hackers are constantly looking for new ways to exploit individuals and organizations. It’s becoming easier for even amateur hackers to access high-level malicious software, with the availability of ransomware as a service (RaaS).  This allows highly skilled cyber criminals to create malware and sell it off to other cyber criminals, making a profit without the risk of deploying the malware themselves.

How have our defenses evolved to match the growing threats that malicious actors represent?

Webroot is currently using 6th Generation machine learning (ML), which uses complex neural networks that allow the machine to more accurately and autonomously identify relevant patterns and concepts within continually growing amounts of telemetry from Webroot customers.

What specifically is Webroot doing with regards to its threat intelligence platform to combat these increasingly sophisticated attacks?

Webroot’s threat Intelligence platform continues to improve every day. We have a uniquely diverse customer base, from consumer to small and midsize businesses and all the way up to the enterprise. So, we see every type of online threat. Also, we have started to work closer with our partners to identify how we can solve industry problems such as the cloud access security broker (CASB) market and become leaders within these market segments.

Where do you think the future of threat intelligence is headed? 

The market is still growing. Research suggests threat intelligence could be a $13 billion market by 2023. Organizations of all sizes are starting to use threat intelligence. I personally think cybersecurity will move from reactive to proactive. Threat intelligence will effectively predict and prevent attacks at the earliest stage, and sooner or later, underpin the whole concept of proactive cybersecurity and organizational risk.

What else are you into besides threat intelligence?

I am a big football fan, or soccer as the guys in the U.S. would say. In my free time, you’d find me watching Manchester United play while having a Guinness or spending time going on road trips with my girls when COVID and the weather permits. 

Employee Spotlight: From Building Code to Building Teams

Webroot is a dynamic team of hard-working individuals with diverse backgrounds. One of those hard-working individuals is Ben Jackson, Senior Manager of Software Development, Engineering. Ben started off building pages in HTML. Now he leads high-performing teams and helps develop architectures from his home in the UK. We sat down with Ben to find out how he got into software and where he sees the biggest growth opportunities.

What were you doing before working at Webroot?

I worked at a Smart Meter manufacturer in the UK on their manufacturing systems and had a short stint at a big UK retailer called Next working on their retail website.

What brought you to Webroot?

The opportunity to work on some really cool tech, and the people and culture really attracted me.

What is your role in the company?

I am a Senior Software Development Manager for the Sky Services and Efficacy tools.

How did you get into software development?

I took a shine to it from an early age when I was trying to find something to do for a career back at school. I started with the most basic HTML web page in my spare time by copying the code from a textbook into notepad and saving it as an html file to see it run. I have never looked back.

What are the primary coding languages you specialize in?

Microsoft .net framework technologies with languages such as C#. I can use Visual Basic but I’m not a huge fan, and also Java.

What are the advantages of those languages and how do they manifest themselves in your work?

C# is in the core of what we do as a team. All our applications are in the Microsoft .net framework stack, and through the use of .net core in a lot of our new projects, we can run our code on any operating system, making it very easy to deploy, such as in Linux or Docker containers.

What parts of your job require you to think outside of strictly writing code, for example, system architecture, use cases, etc.?

Most of my job requires me to think outside of writing code, especially working with other engineering teams, product management, and helping design the architecture of some of our decoupled systems.

What are your proudest accomplishments as a software engineer?

I have contributed to and led numerous software projects in my career that I am very proud of, but my proudest achievements are in building teams that work together to deliver something special and noteworthy in terms of how the team collaborated together, especially my current team.

Where do you think the future of software development is headed?

It is tricky to say as direction changes all the time and people have such differing opinions, but I feel it will certainly be the continuation of the cloud (Amazon Web Services, Microsoft Azure and Google Cloud) being king. The management of the infrastructure to run applications will further be detached from the developer so that they will just be writing the code and handing it over to the cloud to deploy, scale and manage for you automatically. Serverless architectures will become more of the norm, I think.

War Games or The Matrix?

War Games! It was released the year before I was born, but I have grown up with it through watching re-runs.

What else do you like to do besides coding?

I am a big football (soccer) and sports fan and try to watch as much as I can. I used to play 11-a-side football as a goalkeeper every Saturday for a local team until my recent retirement to spend more time with my two children, who are my biggest focus now outside of work.

Any personal details or stories you’d like to share?

I once appeared on a Portuguese news channel while at a friend’s stag (bachelor party). I was dressed as a pirate, doing the iconic scene from the film Titanic at the front of a fishing boat as it came into the harbor. For some reason, a news crew interviewed us and ran it on the early evening news with the Titanic theme song by Celine Dion playing in the background. I have no idea why they found us so interesting!

Want to find out about job opportunities at Webroot? Visit our careers page.

Employee Spotlight: Nurul Mohd-Reza, Customer Retention Specialist

Nurul Mohd-Reza knows how to empathize with the customers she serves. Her work with marginalized groups as a college student, she says, helped prepare her for when the pandemic turned many of her customers’ businesses upside down last March.

Here she discusses what she’s learned after just 10 months in the industry and provides some advice for those looking to dive headfirst into something new.

Tell us a little bit about your career background. How did you get to where you are today?

I started working at Webroot back in January, so my time here hasn’t been long. For most of my collegiate career I worked in the Division of Student Affairs at CU Boulder, focusing specifically on leadership and development. I served as a student advisor to university officials and local businesses. And so, as time went on, I became very interested in the dynamic between people and business. From there, I knew I wanted to dive deeper into this realm but was unsure on how to get started. So after college I began working in healthcare operations.

I believe what got me interested in this career path was when I attended Denver Start Up Week, which was a phenomenal experience. It opened my eyes to the unfamiliar world of customer success. Seeing how companies used technology and data to proactively understand their customer persona, and on top of that, scale engagements to fit their customer’s needs was truly insane. I thought what better way of molding my interests than being on the front lines serving as an advocate between people and product.

And how did you land at Webroot specifically?

It’s a funny story. I had come across this position and halfway through filling out the application I thought I might not be well-equipped for the role, so I actually ended up not finishing the application. And then a recruiter reached out to me and said they were interested in starting a conversation. It was unconventional, but I’m very grateful she reached out because it gave me an opportunity to explain my transition and why I wanted to make that jump into tech. 

From there, I ended up interviewing here at Webroot and it was a great experience overall. Being early on in my career, I knew I wanted to work in an environment that obviously fostered growth, professionally and personally. After speaking with my current boss, I was very optimistic about the trajectory of Webroot, as well as the vision for Customer Success and this team specifically.

What are your core responsibilities as a customer retention specialist?

I would say my time is split between two main responsibilities. My primary role is to oversee the renewal process for a subset of SMBC contracts projected for the quarter. On the other hand, we are a customer facing role. So handling business customer inquiries as they arise. This involves everything from advising customers on certain buying decisions to providing in-product guides.

However, we are starting to shift our focus on how to effectively connect with customers throughout their lifecycle. Previously, we’ve concentrated on the renewal period which is 90 days before expiration. Now, we’re starting to expand our scope and engage with customers to create those smooth onboarding workflows, as well as push early-on adoption of the product. 

At the end of the day, it’s really about strategy—how do we effectively educate and guide the customer to build depth behind the product in hopes of retaining that relationship for the long haul.

What would you say has been the most significant challenge of your career so far?

I think one of the most significant challenges was switching to an industry I’d never worked in before. The learning curve was steep in terms of familiarizing myself with the products we offer, our workflow with all the various systems we use, and the dynamic relationships between our various partners.

In Customer Success, it’s not simply about securing renewals. The process involves having to solve roadblocks in order to help a customer achieve their goal. We have to work with a range of departments to solve issues the customer is facing—whether it be from a product standpoint or a billing redundancy. So being able to learn each player’s role and then manage those relationships was obviously a challenge to begin with. It’s exciting, though. It keeps you on your feet and you get to meet a lot of new people from diverse backgrounds. 

Another obvious challenge was COVID-19. I had only been working in the office for about two months when the pandemic hit. Learning how to onboard remotely was new and something I had to juggle with most definitely.

What skills do you feel have carried over well from your work in public affairs?

I believe Customer Success is focused on building relationships with our customers—which to my advantage was a valuable skill I carried over from my work in public affairs. In this role, it’s very important to enjoy solving problems and addressing issues head-on. You have to be incredibly flexible and create some sense of fluidity in the midst of a growing que of customer requests.

In my previous role, I worked with marginalized communities to combat an array of social issues. So learning how to communicate with empathy, while also moving with focus and intent was crucial and very much transcends into my current role now.

Do you have a favorite part of the job after 10 months with the company?

I’m optimistic about being able to refine the customer journey. I believe the beauty behind Customer Success is it’s still an unknown territory. Everywhere you look, companies have a different way and methodology on how they interact with the customer. Not to mention, the type of technology and automation coming into play is fascinating.

In addition to that, our team is fairly new, which gives us a range of autonomy to create the structure and the formatting that we believe will best deliver value to our customers throughout their lifecycle. Although we are now part of a 15,000-person organization, it still feels like a start-up environment. We are constantly working to strategize and envision how we want the customer experience to evolve. To me, it’s very exciting to be at the intersection of all these moving parts. 

Any advice for someone in your same situation, looking to cross over into the tech industry?

Well, given my experience, I’d say don’t doubt your capabilities. No experience is wasted experience. Even if you might not be the absolute perfect fit for a position, you have a breadth of skills you’ve developed over the past couple of years that will help mold you into whatever new role you’re interested in.

I believe one of the best pieces of advice I was ever given was don’t close a door on yourself before the opportunity even presents itself. By saying you can’t do this, or you don’t have the skills for that, you’ve already blocked out all these great possibilities. So be open to new experiences and don’t hold back.

To see what positions are available for you at OpenText, visit our careers page here.

Celebrating Women in STEM for National Coding Week and IT Pro Day

Women of Webroot and Carbonite talk about what drew them to the field and their advice for others looking to break into STEM.

The lack of representative diversity in tech has been long acknowledged and well-studied

Organizations and non-profit groups like National Center for Women & Information Technology (NCWIT), Girls Who Code and She++ do excellent work to help address the issue. CIO, a digital magazine for tech business leaders, maintains a helpful hub of resources “dedicated to uplifting women in tech, pushing inclusivity in the workplace and closing the diversity gap.”

Unfortunately, despite this wealth of organizations dedicated to researching and addressing the problem, meaningful progress has been harder to come by. (And if you’re not convinced this is a problem, consider this: a study of 500 U.S.-based companies found that racial and gender diversity was associated with increased sales revenue, market share and relative profits.)

CIO reports that women in tech remain underpaid, underrepresented and more likely to be discriminated against. Despite holding 57 percent of professional positions in the U.S., women hold only 26 percent of positions in tech. Half of all women in STEM fields report experiencing workplace discrimination. The percentage of female computer scientists is actually falling in America.

September 14 kicks off National Coding Week and the third Tuesday of September (September 15 this calendar year) is National IT Professionals day. In celebration, we’ve asked some of the female IT professionals within our organization about representation in IT, what drew them to the field and advice for other women interested in STEM.

What led you to a career in STEM?

“After starting my career as a web design and developer, I became more involved in the web development which led me to where I am today, a principal UI engineer. I’ve always had a passion for making flat designs come to life and find it very exciting when I see my work go live.” – Christiane Evans, Principal UI Engineer

What makes you proud to be a woman in STEM?

“Realizing there are no wrong questions and no one knows everything, I resolved to challenge myself to learn something new every day. If being a woman in tech makes me different, then I am proud to be different. So, I say follow your passion. That passion and talent will take you miles, and don’t let anyone tell you otherwise.” – Kirupha Balasubramian, Sr. Devops Engineer

What advice would you give to women looking to join a STEM field?

“Be curious. Don’t be afraid to ask questions. Challenge yourself to solve problems. Never stop learning; continue learning new technologies to buil your skills and toolset. Put in the hard work, know your work inside out and you’ll feel confident in your abilities.” – Krystie Shetye, Director of Software Development

What would you say is one of the greatest challenges for women working in STEM?

“Working in engineering is its own constant learning curve. I think women should look for support everywhere we can to assure ourselves. We can and should do whatever we want to – no matter the barriers. Technology changes so fast, we have to constantly adapt. Though that’s part of the reason I love it here and why I love engineering as a career.” – Mingyan Qu, VP of Quality Engineering

Putting our values to work

The skills gap in cybersecurity is real and a detriment to businesses of all sizes. We believe there’s room enough for everyone in STEM, and the industry needs all the help it can get.

Webroot and its parent company OpenText are committed to diversity in hiring. In its 2020 Corporate Citizenship Report, OpenText reaffirmed its support of the 30% Club and committed to the goal of 30% of board seats and executive roles to be held by women by 2022.

To see what positions are available for you at OpenText, visit our careers page here.

Employee Spotlight: Chat with Alia AlaaEldin Adly

According to a report from hired.com, the demand for security engineers is up 132%. Additionally, the need for engineers who specialize in data analytics and machine learning has increased by 38% and 27%, respectively. Given recent trends in cybersecurity, it’s no wonder, and demand at Webroot is no exception. To be successful, our software engineers have to stay ahead of AI and machine learning trends so they can explore, work, grow, and effectively evolve tech in the cybersecurity industry.  

We talked to Alia AlaaElDin Adly, a software engineer based in Linz, Austria. In her role, Alia is constantly looking for new technology, testing platforms, and developing the new solutions to stay ahead of modern threats.  

What is your favorite part of working as a software engineer?

I enjoy exploring new technology and frameworks, specially figuring out problems by hand. Software engineers don’t always receive all the requirements up front, so we need to develop strategies and work on tasks without having all the pieces necessary to execute. For example, take the testing framework SpecFlow. We had to do a lot of research, have numerous brainstorming sessions, and rework the project outline to create a viable structure that would fit the needs of our APIs. It’s a fun challenge.

What does a week as a software engineer look like?

It really depends on the task at hand. Some tasks take a day or two, and others can take quite a bit longer. In planning, most tasks are designed to be completed in a maximum of two days, but, when you meet an unexpected obstacle and need to find a workaround, the task needs more time. Also, you have to factor in how much research or prototyping a task may require. One thing I can say about working at Webroot is that I am learning a lot. It’s like a rollercoaster ride: ups and downs, lefts and rights, spirals, and just when you think you’re done, even more spirals!

What have you learned / what skills have you built in this role?

When I started, I had pretty bad documentation habits. You hear a lot about the importance of documentation in school, but some lessons don’t really sink in until you have to face them in a real-world setting. I would say I still need to work on it, but my documentation has really improved! I am also getting better at having a proper project structure, and I’m really enjoying all the new tools and technologies I get to learn, like the Specflow framework and Xamarin forms.

What is your greatest accomplishment in your career at Webroot so far?

I work on the Unity API team based in Linz, Austria. The Webroot® Unity API is a platform that enables admins to dig deeper into the services and information Webroot offers. It’s a really useful tool for a lot of our customers, and I helped build out a automation testing framework to create smoke and regression tests for the API. Also, I managed and organized the end-of-year spotlight video that showcased what our team had accomplished.

What brought you to Webroot after your last job?

I was already in Austria completing my masters when I applied for the job. During the interview process, I liked how Webroot felt like a family. Everyone was so friendly and welcoming the day I started. Instead of making me feel like a nervous newcomer, they brought me in and helped me feel involved and important right away. And it has stayed that way.

Best career advice you’ve received?

To always be flexible and not limit yourself. You have to be curious not only about the world around you, but what you can do in it. If you keep your options open, you’re more likely to discover new strengths, and new (and exciting!) challenges to overcome.

What is your favorite thing to do in Linz?

I enjoy walking around in the city center and along the Danube River. I also like to go cycling, climbing, and running. During spring and summer, I usually bike to work and I like going to the lake to play beach racket. Of course, I love traveling and visiting new cities and countries! I feel very lucky that Webroot’s Linz office is in such a good location, which makes quick day trips and weekend travel really easy.

Get to Know Manager of Software Development, Fred Yip

With job growth projected to surge 24% over the next seven years, software engineering is one of the most demanded professional fields in the U.S. Exceptionally competitive pay and the chance to pursue careers across many industries are just a few benefits of being a software engineer.

We explore how software engineers working in cybersecurity face unique challenges and opportunities in our sit down with Fred Yip, Manager of Software Development in Webroot’s San Diego office.

Besides this sunny San Diego weather, what gets you out of bed and into the office?

I’m surrounded everyday by smart people who want to do their best to solve customer problems. There is a lot to do, but the work is very engaging and rewarding. My favorite part of the job is working closely with my team to deliver products to our customers. We work in a startup-like environment. Everyone wears many hats: as software developer, as tester, DevOps engineer, and customer support. 

There are many industries that demand your talent, what drew you to cybersecurity?

Cyberattacks are a rising trend. I used to work for an enterprise serving Fortune 500 companies. Knowing that cyberattacks affect everybody, I saw an opportunity to bring my skillset to Webroot. We extend our product to small and mid-sized businesses as well as consumers, which gives me the satisfaction of building a top-notch technology for anyone who needs it, whether it be a doctor’s office, coffee shop, or someone walking down the street.

What does a week of life at Webroot look like for you? 

A typical week for a manager is not much different than that of a team member. We do software development, testing, and deployment of product features as a team. I help design and implement the cloud infrastructure that supports our software components as microservices. In addition, I look out for the well-being of each team member in terms of technical, personal, and career development. 

What skills and traits do you look when hiring software engineers?

As an engineer, you have to be a team player, not self-focused. I look for a lot of integrity and honesty about what they are doing and what they know and don’t know. An eager attitude toward learning is important because it allows them to solve problems and contribute to the team. When they bring their best character and performance, they help to build a strong team. As long as someone has some relevant experience, they can always learn the technical skills. And an ability to learn new things quickly is another thing I always look for in a potential team member.  

Are there any outside activities that you and your team are involved in?

We attended a coding challenge at UC San Diego earlier this year, where we host students for a friendly competition. It was very high energy and there was a lot of participation. It was a fun challenge beyond just writing code. You could actually see the code working against others and the top winner was recognized after we gave out prizes. I always tell candidates to participate in the event, it’s a way to motivate them to join our team!

Check out Highlights from the UCSD Coding Challenge

Will You Ace Your Cybersecurity Internship?

Cybersecurity has become the hot industry – tips and tricks on how to get the most out of your cybersecurity internship (and land a job after graduation). 

Students today are faced with grueling course loads, pressure to get real-world experience and a looming competitive job market. The need for hands-on knowledge and a developed resume is crucial, making internships a necessity. However, once you nail your interview and land your position, how do you prepare and make the most out of the opportunity?

The goal of an internship is to prepare you for your future career. While earning a college degree in computer science is quite an accomplishment, in the cybersecurity field, a theoretical knowledge and your required coding and science classes just aren’t enough. It’s critical to supplement those courses with real experience tackling a variety of threats in the cyber landscape, not only to gain new skills, but also understand what it’s really like to work in cybersecurity to decide if that career path is right for you.

Learn how Webroot is building a cybersecurity talent pipeline through our annual Coding Challenge.

According to a recent Wall Street Journal article, companies and government organizations are beginning to lock in contracts with cybersecurity job candidates younger than ever before–during junior, sometimes even sophomore year. Often, these early recruits are individuals who interned for the company in the past and proved themselves as an invaluable member of the team; securing a good position and acing your internship have never been more crucial to future career success. There’s no better feeling than having job security heading back to college for your senior year or being able to focus your electives on skills that will immediately translate to skills you’ll need for your upcoming role.

Be Eager and Ready to Learn 

While pursuing a major in cybersecurity provides the background necessary for your internship, you won’t know it all. You should walk into your internship everyday ready to learn the ins and outs of the field and be eager to take on new experiences. Say “yes” to everything.

According to William W. Dyer, director of the Corporate Affiliates Program for the Jacobs School of Engineering at the University of California San Diego, “Students study theories, case studies and learn both fundamental and advanced coding, but are not able to work on threats and breaches in real-time. They have structured work with a finite ending (quarters are 10 weeks long), whereas hacks and threats can happen at any time and require immediate response and solutions.”

A simple way to learn (and network) is to reach out to a few professionals who are working on a project you’re interested in or skilled in an area you’d like to further develop. Grabbing a quick coffee with someone who has been working in the cybersecurity field will allow you to gain valuable insights and real-world anecdotes. Not only will these people be able to mentor you, but they could even be a reference when the time comes for you to apply for jobs after graduation. 

Be Up-To-Date on All Things Cybersecurity 

Before your first day, it’s important to be well versed in the latest cybersecurity news, trends and data breaches. Taking the initiative to keep up on the latest in the industry and to provide an educated opinion on these issues will not only set you apart from other interns, but it will impress your managers and allow you to have a deeper understanding of your tasks and assignments. Every security incident is an opportunity to learn and ask questions that will serve you well later.

When pressed for what cybersecurity students should do to prepare for a future career in the space, Fred Yip, manager of software development at Webroot said, “Follow cybersecurity news and podcasts to understand what problems the industry is facing.” 

Listening to a security podcast on your morning commute or setting up simple Google alerts for topics such as, ‘data breach,’ or ‘cybersecurity,’ will keep you up to date on the conversations happening in the space. Lots of great discussions happen on professional LinkedIn forums and Twitter too.

Continue to Grow in Cybersecurity, Even After Your Internship Ends

Once your internship has concluded, it is important to keep growing and honing your arsenal, especially that crucial developer knowledge. According to Dyer, “We encourage our students to participate in any and all extracurricular activities that enhance their skills.” Taking online tutorial courses or participating in hackathons or coding challenges are a great way to put your new skills to the test.

That said, continuing to challenge yourself in school and taking coding and cybersecurity classes is also important. Classes that are focused around operating systems, network security, digital forensics or a variety of computer programming languages like C++, Javascript, Python are all courses that will serve you in your future career. Finding the link between class and real-world is the key to a successful career. 

Also continue following industry news and engaging with professionals through social channels. The network you create during your college years with classmates, professors and folks you meet during your internships will be instrumental in securing future opportunities. Check in with your internship managers, what’s their take on the latest data breach, acquisition or trend?

In today’s competitive job market, setting yourself apart through quality work is important and can be the key to a future at that company. While the classroom provides you with the concepts necessary to succeed, real-world experience will not only help you decide if a career in cybersecurity is something you want to continue to pursue, but you will gain invaluable knowledge and begin to grow your professional network that will be so crucial upon graduation. It is important to connect with colleagues and other interns, keep up with cybersecurity news, engage with professionals and accept as many opportunities as possible to learn about your chosen career path, allowing you to get the most out of your internship.

A Chat with Kelvin Murray: Senior Threat Research Analyst

In a constantly evolving cyber landscape, it’s no simple task to keep up with every new threat that could potentially harm customers. Webroot Senior Threat Research Analyst Kelvin Murray highlighted the volume of threats he and his peers are faced with in our latest conversation. From finding new threats to answering questions from the press, Kelvin has become a trusted voice in the cybersecurity industry.

What is your favorite part of working as a Senior Threat Research Analyst? 

My favorite part about being a threat researcher is both the thrill of learning about new threats and the satisfaction of knowing that our work directly protects our customers. 

What does a week as a Senior Threat Research Analyst look like? 

My week is all about looking at threat information. Combing through this information helps us find meaningful patterns to make informed analysis and predictions, and to initiate customer protections. It roughly breaks down into three categories. The first would be “top down” customer data like metadata. The data we glean from our customers is very important and a big part of what we do. The interlinking of all our data and the assistance of powerful machine learning is a great benefit to us.  

Next would be “whole file” information, or static file analysis and file testing. This is a slow process but there are times when the absolute certainty and granular detail that this kind of file analysis provides is essential. This isn’t usually part of my week, but I work with some great specialists in this regard.  

Last would be news and reports on the threat landscape in general. Risks anywhere are risks everywhere. Keeping up to date with the latest threats is a big part of what I do. I work with a variety of internal teams and try to advise stakeholders, and sometimes media, on current threats and how Webroot fits in. Twitter is a great tool for staying in the know, but without making a list to filter out the useful bits from the other stuff I follow, I wouldn’t get any work done! 

What skills have you built in this role? 

Customer support taught me a lot in terms of the client, company culture, and dealing with customer requests. By the time I was in business support I was learning the newer console system and more corporate terms. Training on the job was very useful for my move to threat, where I also picked up advanced malware removal (AMR), which is the most hands on you can get with malware and the pain it causes customers. All of that knowledge is now useful to me in my public facing role where I prepare webinars, presentations, interviews, blogs, and press answers about threats in general. 

What is your greatest accomplishment in your career at Webroot so far? 

Learning the no-hands trick on the scooter we have in the office. And of course my promotion to Senior Threat Research Analyst. I have had a lot of different roles in my time here, but I’m glad I went down the path I did in terms of employment. There’s never a dull moment when you are researching criminal news and trends, and surprises are always guaranteed. 

What brought you to Webroot? 

I like to say divine providence. But really I had been travelling around Asia for a few months prior to this job. When I got back home I was totally broke and needed a job. A headhunter called me up out of the blue, and the rest is history.   

Are you involved in anything at Webroot outside of your day to day work? 

Listening, singing and (badly) dancing to music. Dublin is a fantastic place for bands and artists to visit given its proximity to the UK and Europe and the general enthusiasm of concert goers. I do worry that a lot of venues, especially nightclubs, are getting shut down and turned into hotels though. I sing in a choir based out of Trinity College.  

Favorite memory on the job? 

Heading to (the now closed) Mabos social events with my team. The Mabos collective ran workshops and social and cultural events in a run-down warehouse that they lovingly (and voluntarily) converted down in Dublin’s docklands. Funnily enough, that building is now Airbnb’s European headquarters. 

What is your favorite thing about working at Webroot? 

The people that I get to work with. I have made many great friendships in the office and still see previous colleagues socially, even those from five or six years ago.  

What is the hardest thing about being a Senior Threat Research Analyst? 

Prioritizing my time. I can try my hand at a few different areas at work, but if I don’t focus enough on any one thing then nothing gets done. I find everything interesting and that curiosity can get in the way sometimes! 

What is your favorite thing to do in Dublin?  

Trying new restaurants and heading out to gigs. I’d be a millionaire if I didn’t eat out at lunchtime so much. Dublin is full of great places. I like all kinds of gigs from dance to soul to traditional. The Button Factory is one of the coolest venues we have. 

How did you get into the technology field? 

I first become interested in technology through messing with my aunt’s Mac back in the early 90s. There were a lot of cool games on her black and white laptop she brought home from a compucentre she worked in, but the one that sticks in my memory was Shufflepuck Café. My dad always had some crazy pre-Windows machines lying around. Things with cartridges or orange text screens running Norton commander. 

 To learn more about life at Webroot, visit https://www.webroot.com/blog/category/life-at-webroot/

Webroot Spotlight: Michael Balloni, Senior Manager of Software Development

No one can say that Senior Software Manager Michael Balloni isn’t a team player. Because Michael is constantly tasked with tackling multiple advanced technical projects at once, he relies on his top-notch engineering team to prioritize and keep projects moving while he orchestrates the collective.  

Loyal to the end, Michael Balloni has seen a promising career as a software developer under the tutelage of Webroot CTO, Hal Lonas. This is the second company he’s worked at with Hal, and he’s found the Webroot culture of innovation and teamwork unparalleled.

What are some projects you are currently working on and how do you prioritize them?

I’m on the DNS team and we’re currently improving the security and scalability of the product. The team strives to provide DNS protection in all networking situations: in the office, home, coffee shop, airport, you name it. With any project, prioritization is key. You have to pick your battles, and work with the product manager to stay informed of business trends and needs. We also have bi-weekly “sprint planning” where our team goes over what we had set out to do in the previous two weeks and decides what to finish it in the next two weeks, and what new work to take on.

How do you promote technical leadership?

Technical leadership involves staying up to date on our industry and technical craft, then sharing that information with the broader team. It also involves staying current on the development of the products and steering in that direction as needed. Most of the time, there’s no need to change direction but sometimes there is, and can be tough to identify. I’ve learned that getting clarification and input should happen before prescribing a fix to what may not be a problem at all.

What is your greatest accomplishment in your career at Webroot so far?

There was a misunderstanding between a development team and their management. Management did not think the development team had a plan to move forward with a pressing need in an area, and created their own plan for getting it across the goal line. Unaware of this, development went ahead and made their own plan for solving the problem. I put together a meeting for development and later met with the product manager from the team’s management. We took everyone’s perspective into account, and both teams proceeded informed and respected from there. It helped me hone my cross-team management skills a lot.

What brought you to Webroot after your last job?

I had fun working with Webroot’s CTO Hal Lonas in the 2000s at a previous company. He’s such a clear-headed individual. He really listens to your ideas and excels at communication. He was able to teach me about prioritizing pretty early on. He taught me to identify if something isn’t going to work early and to know where to focus. We luckily haven’t had many projects where that has happened here, but it’s a good skill to have. There’s a reason he’s a CTO—he’s technical, but also a people person for sure.

How did you get into the technology field?

When I was a little kid I used to work on these electronic kits that would come with wires and springs. It was a circuit board with different electronic pieces like restrictors and capacitors. I would wire them together to make circuits that all did different things. In high school, I would build loudspeakers and amplifiers, I was always attracted to tech in that way.

What is your favorite thing about working at Webroot?

Everybody says it, but it’s the people. Everyone is sharp, hardworking, and friendly. We have a good thing here. It’s an environment of good intentions and backing each other up. Simply put, this is a great place to work!

Check out career opportunities at Webroot here: www.webroot.com/careers

Webroot Culture: Serena Peruzzi Shares Her Side

Today we chat with Web Analyst Manager Serena Peruzzi. Serena constantly filters through the web to analyze content. Sometimes her position requires looking through difficult material, but other times you can find her traveling, organizing company events, and even gardening!  

See how Serena helps build Webroot’s company culture in this Employee Spotlight.

How did you get into the technology field? 

During my undergrad in Translation and Interpreting 10 years ago, I came to realize how big a role automation and machine translation were going to play in my field. Thus, I decided to beat the trend to the punch and focus my research on Google Translate for my thesis; further on, I completed a master’s degree in Translation Technology, which mixed together traditional translation with state-of-the art localization technologies, and included leveraging on Machine Learning and language pattern recognitions to build automated translation engines. Google Translate pretty much rules the multilingual content scene for the general public, making content in more than 100 languages immediately accessible to the global audience with just one click. Also, a lot of crowdsourced content, for example travel or business reviews on the web, is also localized using machine translation technologies to maximize international reach. Additionally, many large corporations already leverage on customized enterprise machine translation engines to translate manuals and other documentation. There are already technologies allowing to converse in multiple languages in real-time, so there’s virtually no language barriers than cannot be overcome anymore; of course, provided you have an internet connection 

What does a week as a Web Analyst Manager look like? 

I typically have a few one-on-one calls with all remote Web Analysts on a weekly or bi-weekly basis, and two team meetings per week, one with the US and one with Sydney. We discuss top issues, upcoming tool updates and feature releases, and use the wisdom of the crowd to find a solution to difficult cases. We use a collaborative Kanban board to track the topics we discuss, so that we can always go back to them or track progress on resolutions. Finally, I work on a number of projects related to training, quality assessments, classification approvals, new implementations, case escalations from the team, and documentation. I also have a few gardening tasks to take care of, keeping the Webroot Threat plants alive is quite an arduous task!  

What have you learned / what skills have you built in this role? 

Customer care, URL threat analysis, and all aspects of people management are among the key skills I learned in the role. It also helped me keep up my passion for foreign languages, especially Spanish and Japanese, since I need to analyze web content from all over the world. 

What is the hardest thing about being a Web Analyst Manager? 

Explaining what a Web Analyst does is quite an arduous task, partially because it is a very complex and multi-faceted role involving analyzing large amounts of online content, but also because it involves, to some extent, evaluating content that may be disturbing or violent in nature, and it can be a difficult sell at times. 

What is your greatest accomplishment in your career at Webroot so far? 

Having helped build a global team of brilliant and enthusiastic minds is perhaps what makes me most proud of being a part of Webroot. The Web Analysts are first and foremost masters of languages and cultures; collectively we speak 12 different languages. The more languages you know, the more confidence you have in analyzing online content from all over the world, bringing different perspectives to the mix. Also, we have another element in common: we all want to make the internet a little safer for our user base. Because of that, building the team has always been an incredibly fun experience. It allows candidates to bring up their unique backgrounds and passions for different cultures and the IT security world in their interviews. 

Does your work allow you to travel a lot? Where are some of the coolest places you have travelled?  

I’ve travelled to San Diego, Colorado and Sydney with Webroot. While I enjoyed all my trips, I do have a weak spot for Australia. I am a big fan of water sports, and Australia offers the best sceneries for surfing and diving. It also hosts some of the most amazing animals I’ve ever seen. I’ll admit that my encounter with a group of Huntsmen in Sydney, despite being harmless spiders, had me run away fast. But when I first met Quokkas (smiling furry animals), they literally melted my heart 

Best career advice you’ve received? 

There’s a saying in Ireland which can be used as an antidote when things don’t go your way, “What’s for you won’t pass you.” I felt particularly close to it when I couldn’t attain a role in the past, as it ultimately led me to a different, extremely satisfactory role surrounded by amazing people. 

Are you involved in anything at Webroot outside of your day to day work? 

Aside from gardening, I’ve given a hand with organizing team-building and social events for Dublin in the past, including Christmas parties, Health Day, mini-golf and bubble football tournaments, and escape room challenges. Since the team is spread across three offices, team events vary based on group size and local amenities. In Ireland, we typically go out for a nice meal once a month, and order in food for celebrations; additionally, there are regular pub sessions with other Webroot teams. We also have office-wide team building activities on a quarterly basis, and/or when we have visitors on-site.  

Favorite memory on the job? 

St Patrick’s Day in the office, when I was in Support, was also a truly fun day. On our lunch break we went to Temple Bar, the very core of St Patrick’s celebrations, hid amongst the mayhem of thousands of party-goers celebrating, and then pinged the US team to spot us on the live street camera, just like in a game of “Where’s Waldo.” 

To learn more about life at Webroot, visit https://www.webroot.com/blog/category/life-at-webroot/

A Chat with Kiran Kumar: Webroot Product Director

The process of bringing a cybersecurity product to market can be long and tedious, but Kiran Kumar, Product Director at Webroot, loves to oversee all the moving parts. It keeps him on his toes and immersed in the ever-changing world of security technology.

We sat down to chat with Kumar about his #LifeAtWebroot, heard how he got to where he is today, and why he’s loved every minute of his journey.

Tell us about your role as a Product Director.

I’m the product director for our network portfolio of products. This includes Webroot DNS Protection, FlowScape, and our next-gen security solution. I’m also responsible for the overall solutions platform, the next-gen solution we are working on.

What does a typical week look like for you? 

My typical week ranges from working with customers on concept validation or case studies, to presenting at events. I’ll help customers with damage control, provide assurance of the product, or pitch Webroot solutions. I would say that at least 40-50% of my job is working with the engineering team on the next product release. The key is to stay on top of everything and keep my eyes and ears open because it’s the product director’s responsibility to make things happen. You must be able to collect information from different stakeholders, bring it all together, and prioritize. Sometimes no one reports to you, but you still have to bridge the gaps and constantly negotiate, make decisive trade-off decisions, get buy-ins, etc. That’s the key to being a strong product director. I spend time with a lot of people both inside and outside: marketing, sales, sales engineering, customer success, public relations, analyst relations, you name it. It’s a matter of constantly juggling and prioritizing.

What is your favorite part of working as a Product Director?

I enjoy being able to make a difference. Also, the satisfaction of building relationships with all these different groups of people and rallying them to achieve a common goal is really satisfying. You have to take everyone else’s opinion, along with your own, and figure out the best the direction to move in. All of that starts with the product. It’s a key part of every organization. I love seeing all the work that goes into bringing a product to market. The ability to make an impact and visibility into projects is tremendous.

What have you learned in this role? 

I think one of the biggest pieces of advice that I can give, and that I’m continuing to work on myself, is that building relationships is absolutely critical to success. You have to use negotiation skills, persuasion tactics, and figure out how to rally the whole troop. I’d say that’s critical in many areas of business. Also, you need to constantly have a sense of curiosity and willingness to challenge yourself. Good enough is not good enough. Ask questions and take ownership of things. One great thing about Webroot is that everyone is open to questions and collaborating to find answers.

What is the hardest thing about being a Product Director?

The most challenging thing about the job is staying levelheaded. Every day you need to be flexible and willing to adapt because a hundred different things will be thrown your way and you need to be prepared to handle it. You can’t be flustered. Another challenge is figuring out how to work quickly. One of the hardest things is working through problems and getting them solved in the time that I want — quickly.

Is this what you expected to be doing in your career?

After graduating from college, I never expected that I would be a product director, but I was at the right place at the right time. I started at a technology consulting company and was placed at a security company. I started doing business analysis, and that’s still a part of my job, but product management is more inclusive of business analysis, product management, market research – everything this position entails. I didn’t like programming as much. I couldn’t sit behind a computer all day – that’s just not my personality. Now I’ve been in the industry about 16 years, and I have to say I have had the best time working at Webroot.

What makes working at Webroot so amazing? 

One benefit to being located in our smaller San Diego office, besides the weather, beach, and beer, is I’ve been able to see it grow. We have about 90 people in this office and I know everyone. The people at Webroot are really friendly and helpful, so it’s easy to feel welcomed. The Webroot culture is very open and not hierarchical. Since I’ve been here I’ve been able to talk to anyone, including any executive. I am super passionate about the products I support and the audiences we help – SMB/MSP.

Best career advice you’ve received? How have you seen that advice playing out in your own career? 

For someone who’s starting fresh and getting into product management, I would say to be open, be flexible, and constantly seek to challenge yourself. Soak in as much as you can. For people more senior, I would say to continue with relationship building and be mindful of how you can make the biggest impact. This position isn’t about having an MBA and writing up numbers. It is very technology focused and it’s all about being able to adapt and able to provide solutions, not just numbers.

What’s your favorite patio? (Place to go when it’s nice outside, place to get a drink.)

There’s a really nice brewery close to the office called Ballast Point. The team goes there a lot. But my favorite food is Mexican and I love hole-in-the-wall places. There’s one restaurant in the Torrey Pines area called Berto’s that’s awesome. It’s not fancy, but their veggie burrito keeps me coming back.

To learn more about life at Webroot, visit https://www.webroot.com/blog/category/life-at-webroot/.


Building a Cybersecurity Talent Pipeline One Coding Challenge at a Time

Like many technology companies, Webroot is constantly on the hunt for a diverse pool of engineering and technical cybersecurity talent. According to Jon Oltsik, senior principal analyst with Enterprise Security Group, a cybersecurity skills deficit holds the top position for problematic skills in ESG’s annual survey of IT professionals. In fact, the percentage of organizations reporting this problem has jumped more than 10 percent in just three years.

Here are the results from the last 4 years’ surveys:

  • 2018-2019: 53% of organizations report a problematic shortage of cybersecurity skills
  • 2017-2018: 51% of organizations report a problematic shortage of cybersecurity skills
  • 2016-2017: 45% of organizations report a problematic shortage of cybersecurity skills
  • 2015-2016: 42% of organizations report a problematic shortage of cybersecurity skills

The time has come for the private sector to take action to help develop the talent pipeline.

Start with real-world simulations

At Webroot, this need for more cybersecurity talent sprouted a partnership with the University of California San Diego Jacobs School of Engineering, which has culminated in an annual Coding Challenge. 

The Challenge—presented in the form of a game—is a way for Webroot to impart real-world skills like problem solving, coding, and creative technical thinking onto the students. 

The goal of the game is to be the best in the room. For the competitive students, that translated to beating everyone above them on the leaderboard. To do so, the students had to write code to control three characters to capture ghosts:

  • A hunter, who worked to reduce ghost stamina,
  • A ghost catcher, who trapped and released ghosts,
  • A support character who focused on stunning the competition and observing the playing field as a whole.

But, as Daniel Kusper, senior QA engineer at Webroot points out, “it also provides an amazing opportunity for students to ask [industry experts] any and all questions they may have about cybersecurity and software engineering.”

In addition to honing skills like creative thinking and problem solving, students get a glimpse of real-world life for engineers and developers.

Xingyao Wu, a computer science student, said that this type of problem doesn’t have a single, specific right answer. You need creativity to come up with a solution.

“I learned how to solve this problem by thinking outside the box to create new rules or algorithms instead of just following the normal ideas.” 

The advantage of real-world practice was not lost on Chris Mayton, another computer science major, either. Chris shared,“In my opinion, what you learn in class is more isolated from the real world; the data is clean and the environment is ready for you to start coding. With hackathons or coding challenges, you have to apply the concepts learned in class—which are big-picture—to real-world situations.” 

Ryan Willett, a current Webroot engineering intern, may have put it best. “You need room for personal growth in the computer science field. Few classes give you the liberty to try to fail boundlessly. And there is a lot to be learned in failing. Events like the Coding Challenge help students realize that, sometimes, you’ll start down a route on a project that is very bad. You may have to throw away all your code and start again. Sometimes that’s just what you have to do to get to a workable solution.”

Given the large range and variety of technical employees that volunteered their time, the students got a diverse overview of a day-in-the-life of an engineer. Some students already had a good idea of why they’re interested in the field. Computer science and mathematics double major Guanxin Li said she“joined computer science because [she] felt like it’s really cool to build something with a couple lines of code. That’s so powerful.” 

All levels of experience are encouraged to apply and students ranged from college freshmen to second-year masters students.

Value in internships

The winners of the event are invited to apply for internship positions at Webroot’s San Diego office. Some of the rock star students from past events have even become full-time employees. These internships provide valuable experience for those who are still figuring out where they want to focus, or what industries to explore further.

Fred Yip, manager of software development and intern manager at Webroot, challenges his interns “to solve real-world problems, and to join the team by participating in the scrum and developer sprints just like full-time employees.”

Will one Coding Challenge solve the industry’s skills shortage? No. But it is a start. And I see many other cybersecurity and tech companies taking small steps that will have an impact on our future workforce. Webroot is also seeking more partnership opportunities with other universities to host learning events, and is even looking to extend its internship program globally.

We should all be excited about the next generation of talent and what they will bring to the industry. Who knows; one of the Coding Challenge participants might someday solve a present-day cybersecurity conundrum. 

Advice to students from students

“I learned you really have to focus on small ideas first before implementing something more advanced. When we started, we tried to think about implementing everything at once. But then, where do we start? Think about it as a layer by layer at a time. Build it up.” – Leo Sack, computer science major

“Design what you want to implement before you start implementing. Thinking through the strategies of what each of your ghostbusters should do. Work through each problem step by step. And be patient, definitely be patient.” – Edward Chen, computer science major