Welcome
Cybersecurity. IT infrastructure. Penetration testing.
Welcome to MidwestSec. This site documents my journey through IT and cybersecurity as I continue building skills across offensive security, defensive security, and infrastructure.
I strongly believe that one of the best ways to become a better defender is to understand how attackers think and operate. Learning how systems are attacked has changed the way I approach securing them.
This site is where I document that process.
You’ll find walkthroughs, technical notes, projects, lessons learned, and plenty of things that didn’t work the first time.
Current Focus
Right now, I’m focused on continuing to develop my offensive security skills while applying what I learn to the defensive side of my day-to-day work.
Current areas of focus include:
- OSCP preparation
- Web application penetration testing
- Active Directory security
- Hack The Box labs
- Windows and Linux privilege escalation
- Network penetration testing
- Security monitoring, detection, and hardening
Certifications
Current certifications:
- ISC2 CISSP
- CompTIA Security+
- CompTIA CySA+
- TCM Security PNPT
- TCM Security PJPT
- MikroTik MTCNA
- MikroTik MTCRE
Currently working toward:
- Offensive Security Certified Professional (OSCP)
Why MidwestSec?
I’ve spent my career working with IT infrastructure, networks, servers, endpoints, and the security controls protecting them.
As I’ve moved deeper into cybersecurity, I’ve become increasingly interested in understanding both sides of the equation.
How do we secure a network?
And just as importantly:
How would someone break into it?
Learning offensive security has made me look at defensive security differently. Misconfigurations, excessive permissions, exposed services, weak segmentation, identity issues, and seemingly minor vulnerabilities become much more meaningful once you’ve seen how they can be chained together during an attack.
That’s the idea behind MidwestSec.
It’s a place to document what I’m learning, share practical notes and walkthroughs, and continue developing my skills on both sides of cybersecurity.
The goal is simple:
Become a better defender by learning how to attack.
Start Exploring
If you’re here to learn, break something in a lab, troubleshoot a problem, or see what I’m working on, there’s plenty to dig into.
Want the technical stuff?
Check out the Walkthroughs for penetration testing labs, attack paths, and lessons learned along the way.
Looking for a command or solution?
Head over to the KB for technical notes, commands, configurations, and fixes I’ve documented for future reference.
Want to follow the journey?
The Blog covers certifications, projects, professional updates, and what I’m currently working toward.
Want to know who’s behind MidwestSec?
Check out whoami for more about my background, experience, and how I got here.
The best way to become a better defender is to understand how the attack works.
Pick a section and start digging in.