Introductions

Hi Everyone,

I'm really excited to be a part of this new community! I'm currently serving as a Sergeant in the Band of the Coldstream Guards but I've been spending the past year or two learning all about cyber security as I look to leave the army next June.  I came across Immersive Labs after a meet up at the Waterloo Cyber Club, which I discovered through TechVets.  Clem Cravens gave a fascinating introduction to Immersive Labs at the event and I've been hooked ever since.  If you'd like to learn more about my journey then have a read of From Military Musician to Cybersecurity Consultant: How Immersive Labs Prepared Andy for His New Career .

Equally, I'd love to learn more about other people's experiences and any particularly good labs they've enjoyed.  Also happy to help if anyone is new to Immersive Labs and wants a bit of help getting started!

Outside of Immersive Labs I'm a massive cycling fan and think libraries are amazing as I'm an avid reader of pretty much everything and anything!

Looking forward to getting to know you all!

Andy.

Hi, I'm Jesse. I'm currently a cybersecurity analyst and love the chance to learn and grow, especially within my field. I've been in the field for around 3 years now and I hope to continue to be far into the future. I tend to keep to myself online, but I love that this has been created and I think it will grow into a great resource for all Immersive Lab's customers. I look forward to seeing that process happen.

Outside of work, I still very much enjoy the chance to learn and like tackling puzzles, games, and playing guitar.

Ok, introduction time.

I'm Viktor, married with kids, living near Zürich, Switzerland. Boring, right? Not so fast... 

I was born, in the same year, the FTP protocol was invented. However, I did not learn about its existence for another 25 years or so... My first computer was a Commodore 64, for which I was saving every red penny I got for birthdays and similar events, as well as working in my spare time (vaction jobs). I can't even tell, why I was fascinated by computers from a very young age, but the fascination has never diminished.

Today I'm a senior engineer at Swisscom, responsible for network and security topics in a VoIP environment. My career-path was not straightforward, because my interest for computers actually prevented me from studying information technology on university level. Sounds strange? Not really - at the time I was so focussed on computers, that I completely ignored all other topics such as e.g. biology, history, french etc. that one SHOULD have learned at the time to get approved to a university. So I went into banking, from where I got into the IT department of that bank (assembling computers etc.), somehow landed at EUnet (the first pan-european internet provider), where I was confronted with lots of new stuff such as Unix and networking. Then I was thrown into a technical security role and just a few years later I was the head of IT at a small financial company.

After being diagnosed with cancer and recovering from it I decided, to work less and enjoy life more. So I'm not a manager anymore - I went back to engineering. More fun, less responsibility. And I'm having a great deal of fun solving labs on the Immersive Labs platform.

In my spare time I'm currently experimenting with GenAI (who isn't?) and trying not to fall into the "Netflix-and-Chill" trap. Often unsuccessfully. I also like to organize stuff. Parties, Events, Travel. I sometimes actually enjoy the oganization more than the actual event.

While most people usually say, they like travelling, I'm a little more specific: I like to travel in the USA. So far it's been 21 trips to the USA and I still have a huge bucket-list of things I want to see. I also actively participate in specific USA-travel-forums online and like the exchange with others on this topic.

Cheers,
Viktor

Spider Rock in Canyon de Chelly (taken with an iPhone :-))

Hi Awesome People,

I'm Steven, your friendly neighborhood Technical Product Manager with a serious passion for all things tech (think CCIE, Networking, Security, FreeBSD, Linux, Software Development—the whole geeky shebang!). I like to think of myself as a bit of a hybrid at Swisscom, juggling a bunch of tasks that go way beyond what you'd expect from your typical PM. So yeah, you could say I like keeping things… interesting!

When I’m not busy saving the world one packet at a time, I’m embracing the chaos at home with my two incredible daughters as well my wife and our furry overlords—aka five cats. Yes, you heard that right, five. I live near Zurich, Switzerland, where I also disappear in lakes and rivers as a diving instructor. Because why not? Who says you can't go from deep diving into code to deep diving in the seas?

Oh, and did I mention I love traveling? There's nothing quite like hitting the road and exploring new cultures and countries. Just last month, I wrapped up a 3-week epic road trip that took me from Switzerland all the way through Turkey, Georgia, and up to Armenia—all by car! It was an adventure filled with incredible landscapes, rich history, and of course, some very interesting driving experiences!

Looking forward to sharing ideas, having some fun, and learning from this awesome community. And who knows? Maybe we’ll swap cat stories or scuba adventures along the way!

Catch you around!

ps: as you shared your animals, here are my beasts! :)

Bijou

Jamie

Mimi

Neo

Flocke

Hi there Immersive Community!

I'm Neil and I've been fortunate to be on the journey with Immersive Labs for over five years now!  What a wonderful and amazing journey it has been and continues to be. 😄

As one of the longer tenure 'Immersers,' I've enjoyed seeing our platform and products evolve and grow to meet the needs of our customers and the wider cybersecurity industry.  THIS is my passion, this is what drives me.  As Global Head of our Cyber Resilience Team (often known as Professional Services in the SaaS business) me and my team are committed to supporting YOU, our customers, partners, and the Immersive Community in your human cyber capability and becoming more cyber resilient.

Outside of Immersive Land, I enjoy all-year-round mountaineering, hiking, and biking with the family, and am a keen swimmer.

Delighted to be part of the Human Connection.  Please feel free to reach out and contact me if you would like any advice or guidance on building your cyber resiliency.

Neil.

Hi everyone, it is great to see a good community coming together to support the best practices in Cyber Security and sharing experiences (And Solving Labs).

I am Antony, I am currently a Team Lead for the army CPT (Cyber Protection Teams), I have been using the Immersive Labs platform to support my learning in Cyber Security for the last 2 years between more formalised academic courses. Prior to that I have years of experience doing various jobs throughout the MOD all centred around communications and IT.  

I use the IL platform to enhance training activity for my teams and use it especially before deployments to sharpen skills. 

Glad to be here at the start and watch the community grow.

Rgds
Ant

Hey everyone!

I'm Madeline, and I joined the Immersive team back in January as a Customer Support Analyst. Super excited to be part of this awesome community!

A bit about me: I love hiking and skiing. Whether I'm on a trail or a ski slope, I just enjoy being outdoors. 

Looking forward to experiencing the Human Connection with you all! 

Hiya! I'm Andrada, I've been a Customer Support Analyst at Immersive for over 2 years now, and love it😁. Happy to be part of this Community, see you soon!🐈

Hey Community 👋

My name is Max and I have been working as a Customer Support Analyst at Immersive for just shy of 10 months now! My professional upbringing has involved a number of support centric roles across the tech industry, and I have especially enjoyed my time helping IL users overcome unique challenges each day.

Outside of work, you will find me playing music (drums or guitar), gaming with friends, or escaping Greater Boston to enjoy the various hiking trails and ski slopes the Northeast U.S. has to offer!

Thrilled to be a part of The Human Connection with you all!

Hi everyone, my name is Adam and I have the absolute pleasure of leading our amazing Customer Support Team here at Immersive.

I have always loved tech, from building computers and throwing LAN parties in my teens, to working for this amazing company coming up on 5 years.

These days you’ll find me in Bristol, dabbling in photography, climbing, and the art of wedding planning!

See you all in the community 👍