Misha Yalavarthy has opened up to us and told us all about her journey as a professional in technology. She shares what it’s like being a Security engineer at Cloudflare, the biggest challenges she faces in her job and gives out major advice for anyone pursuing the same profession from an insider perspective.
No day is ever the same
Regarding her job and daily responsibilities, Misha tells us that, as part of the Detection and Response team, they’re responsible for developing tools that enable them to detect malicious activity in their enterprise and customer facing environments. Misha’s particular focus is on the infrastructure, applications, and services that touch customer traffic and data.
If you thought that a Security engineer’s job was boring, think again. Misha revealed that a day in her job is never the same, and to expect the unexpected.
I may start my day on project work and committed items, but on any given day, an unexpected Security issue can come up. So I’ve found that it’s important to learn how to re-prioritize your time and be flexible. It is crucial to be able to think quickly on your feet.
What excites her in her role as a Security engineer is having to stay up-to-date on the latest Security developments, which is something that she also considers challenging and rewarding. Despite her days having a surprise factor, Misha’s job is also about keeping her quarterly goals in check, as well as her ongoing team projects, company-wide initiatives and the Women in Engineering group.
As a co-lead of the Women in Engineering group and a member of our Inclusion Council, I am surrounded by a community that is dedicated to supporting the professional development of women at Cloudflare and advocating for diversity and equality. I’m also a member of Greencloud, which is focused on making Cloudflare more sustainable.
Treading the unknown and working as a unit
At Cloudflare, Security teams have to start with cultivating supportive relationships with the other business units of the company. Misha’s Security team doesn’t want to be a roadblock or build processes that make it seem cumbersome to work with them. “Luckily at Cloudflare, Security is at the top of everyone’s mind.”, she says.
Because of our interdisciplinary approach to solving problems, I am able to provide direct feedback to product management and engineering on how to improve our products. This ultimately helps to build better and more empathetic products.
For Misha’s team, their main goal is to be able to keep a balance between allowing for the business to move at a fast pace, while also advocating for stronger Security practices.
One of their challenges is treading carefully into areas that are unknown to them. Misha tells us that exploring new areas can ignite security risks they weren’t aware of, so it’s their responsibility to prioritize and realign on where their time can be spent to have the biggest impact.
Conventional paths are not the only way to get into the tech market
This is not news nowadays, but Misha’s testimonial is just another example of how one can get a job in the tech industry even if they’ve had an unconventional journey.
My path was a bit unconventional. I graduated with a Bachelors in Biology, with minors in Global Health and Computer Science before going on to get my Masters degree in Computer Science and Engineering. During my undergrad, I was fortunate enough to travel to Jordan for a summer internship through the World Health Organization and the UNRWA. During my time there, I learned about mobile malware and how it was used to spy on unknowing citizens. That is what got me interested in learning more about Security and the role it plays in society.
Misha says that understanding the role Security plays in society is not just about a conversation about technology, but rather an involvement of law, ethics, privacy, health of the internet and even democracy.
As to what you do need to become a Security engineer, there’s no magic formula. As Misha points out, each individual is unique and has his/her own strengths and perspectives. However, some common traits for a great Security leader are “a strong sense of curiosity, patience, and discipline to focus on and learn a subject inside and out”.
The ability to comprehend and apply new information relatively quickly is a useful skill given the speed at which our industry moves. (…) being okay with delayed gratification and maintaining optimism help because positive change from effective Security initiatives tends to come to fruition over the long term. While Security engineering is a specialization, the skills of a generalized engineer can also be advantageous to bring to a security engineer role.
A word of advice
Consistently build the technical skills that will position you to be a strong engineer. However, don’t forget to look up and keep the bigger picture in mind.
One of the things that help Misha understand how Security fits in the broader scope is volunteering and finding opportunities that allow her to get exposure to other parts of Cloudflare. “Security teams don’t work in a vacuum and success can be just as much about relationships as it is about your technical maturity.”. This much is extremely important when working in any company, as you rarely work alone. It’s important to keep in mind that you’re part of a bigger purpose and that in order for the work to flow in unison throughout the whole organisation, you need to have this broad sense of perspective.
All too often it can seem like the barrier to entry in our industry is very high. Figure out what your strengths are and remember that your perspective is valuable. When I first began my career in Security about 6 years ago, I remember seeing a stat that only 4% of Security professionals were women. Personally, I found that very motivating to stay in the industry and change the culture. Now I think that number is around 20%.
Do you want to join Cloudflare too?
As the world recovers from the pandemic, I am proud to work at a company that’s focused on securely connecting people to what matters to them — such as vaccines (Project Fair Shot). Not only does Cloudflare aim to push the industry forward through continuous adoption of the latest technologies, but does so in a way that prioritizes the long-term health and privacy of the internet.
If solving difficult problems at a large scale is something that sounds interesting to you, check out the more than 30 job opportunities that Cloudflare has at the moment. They are currently hiring for the areas of Security, Data, Product Management, Programming and more.
Matching You with Your Future!
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