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Comment by sjra | Hacker News Reader

Finished this a while ago - it was great fun, and I learned a lot.

I understand Square/Matasano ran it to hire people at the time - could anyone tell me if having completed it means I can be considered able to do a job in the field, and someone worth hiring? Or is the CTF just an introduction to the field? I have been doing a lot of learning since, and understand there is a vast (and endlessly fascinating) amount to learn beyond what's in the CTF - but what level do I need to be at before I consider applying for jobs? I remember reading that Matasano used to send candidates books to read and learn from as part of the interview process (which just sounds like my dream company) - as someone who would happily learn whatever it takes during the interview process and on the job, what level do I need to be at before I even consider applying?

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Yes, if you can finish Microcorruption and you're interested in software security, you should consider applying for software security jobs. Most software security practitioners can't understand, let alone write, assembly language for any platform.

Thanks tptacek, I'm really glad to hear that! (The first part, not the second!) That's really enough? I find it hard to believe, as that is not at all what I see in job ads, and everyone I follow and read and learn from seems to know so much. I was even going to hold off trying Jailbreak until I'd done more learning and practising. But will take heart from what you said and see what I can find. Thanks again (and for Microcorruption) - looking forward to Jailbreak!

I'm an ex-Matasanoite and completely agree with 'tptacek. If you can complete Microcorruption, you certainly don't know all you need to know, but you absolutely have the skills you need to learn anything you don't already know.

Do you have any advice for breaking into the field? I'm nearing the completion of a CS master and want to get into security. I completed Microcorruption a half year ago and loved it. I'm also mostly through Cryptopals, but I don't know anything about what the field looks like in practice. What kind of job openings (or titles) should I be looking for?

If you've got the crypto challenges through set 5 and finished Microcorruption, there isn't a software security job that you should not consider applying for. I'd bone up on web application security just so you can have an easier time clearing interviews.

Two job titles that come to mind:

* Penetration Tester

* Security Engineer

Those should bring up quite a few results.

Thanks - I do believe I can learn anything given enough time, just didn't think there were employers who would give me that time, so I was going to go away and study by myself and practise for another year or so before applying. Maybe I have more to offer at this point than I thought.

I wish I knew that back in 2014. I still did not feel that I had the credential after completing the CTF within a month (it did not help that a few completed it within a week-end!). It did plant a seed that maybe, I could and should apply for a (software) security job. I eventually did recently and the outcome was positive.

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