Fresh Faces in Cybersecurity: Athena "Atcha" Abe

In my weekly article series "Fresh Faces in Cybersecurity", I interview high potential?#cybersecurity?job seekers, highlighting their impressive backgrounds, varied passions, and long-term career interests. My goal is to help them break into cybersecurity by showcasing their skills, talents, and potential to cybersecurity hiring managers, recruiters, and leaders.

Today's interview is with Athena Abe , a technical Support Specialist at PAR Technology and technology content creator. Athena currently resides in San Diego, CA USA and is looking to land her first full-time role in cybersecurity. ????

Hi Atcha! You have a very interesting background. Can you tell me more about it?

I grew up in the Philippines and graduated with a Bachelor's Degree in Computer Science with High Honors (Magna Cum Laude). I have worked as a Social Media Specialist, Application Analyst, Technical Community Manager, and currently working as a Technical Support Specialist and KCS Coach for a Restaurant Technology company.

I am also a seasoned public speaker and I share my knowledge to tech companies and universities in the Philippines about the fundamentals of Web Development, Web Design, Information Security, Database Systems, and Automation.

What are you most proud of in your life or career so far??Can you highlight a specific project or accomplishment that you are particularly proud of?

I am proud of my perseverance to learn more in tech and to be able to share the knowledge to the community through speaking engagements. Not only does it help me learn, but it also encourages more people to pursue tech and explore the different fields to start their career and journey.

A specific project that I am proud of is my virtual Peer Mentoring Sessions during the pandemic. Our university was helping out of school youth by assigning the students to create video tutorials for them but I have thought to have it live and make more than one session to share what was taught to us. This gave me an opportunity to reach out to the community and their support helped me to reach more aspiring tech professional at present.

That's awesome. So tell me, what draws you to cybersecurity?

When I was in my third year of college, I had an Information Security course and we had an exercise for the fastest student to decrypt a message. It was a difficult exercise and when I did not made it I thought I was going to fail the program. When I received my grade, I got a 99 (A) and it gave me courage to persevere and got me interested to take more challenges and risks. Cybersecurity made me feel that way and as a Technical Support Specialist, I feel fulfilled when I am able to help people resolve their issues. I aspire to be a Cybersecurity Analyst although I am open to any opportunity that would help me grow and also help people pursue a career in this field.

What do you wish hiring managers knew about you? What talents and strengths would you bring to their teams? What makes you a good team member??

I persevere in virtue and diligence. I take ownership of my actions and I encourage people to believe in what they're capable of. A company that practices what it preaches is also a reflection of my performance and I value that a lot.

What advice would you give to aspiring cybersecurity professionals who are just starting their journey in the field?

Never doubt yourself. It is overwhelming to start a career in cybersecurity but immersing yourself to learn different fields in it and to identify what you're mostly interested in can help you not only pursue what you want but build a passion that lasts.

Thank you for your time today, Atcha! Best of luck to you in your cybersecurity journey! ????

Naomi Buckwalter, CCISO CISSP CISM, is the Executive Director and Founder of Cybersecurity Gatebreakers Foundation, a 501(c)3 nonprofit dedicated to closing the demand gap in cybersecurity hiring. She is also the author of the LinkedIn course: “Training today for tomorrow's solutions - Building the Next Generation of Cybersecurity Professionals”. Naomi has over 20 years' experience in IT and Security and has held roles in Application Security, Software Engineering, Security Architecture, Security Engineering, Cloud Security, and Security Executive Leadership. As a cybersecurity career adviser and mentor for people around the world, her passion is helping people, particularly women, get into cybersecurity. Naomi has two Masters degrees from Villanova University and a Bachelors of Engineering degree from Stevens Institute of Technology. In her spare time, Naomi enjoys playing, coaching, and officiating volleyball.