JOINING THE CYBERMEN

PHISHING, scamming and cyber threats are constantly in the news but Sarah Taylor is in the thick of it.

The 24-year-old from Warrington, Cheshire, is a cyber security apprentice for BT, where a 3,000-strong cyber team works round the clock to keep 30 million customers (including the NHS and armed forces) safe from hackers.

What does your job involve?

When a security incident occurs it’s my responsibility to understand the situation, then notify and engage the right people to make sure appropriate action can be taken.

The day-to-day job involves picking up these incidents and performing the initial ‘triage’.

In cyber, it’s common for this to happen outside of a company’s normal working hours so we work on shifts.

As well as being something I like about the job, not knowing what is going to come in each shift is one of the challenges. It keeps me on my toes, but it can also seem as if I can never be fully prepared for every eventuality.

It’s a challenge I enjoy though and I try to learn from every incident that happens so I can be better prepared for the next shift.

What do you love about it?

The best part of the job is having the autonomy to make critical decisions on whether the information within an alert needs to be escalated up the chain to a customer.

I enjoy having the freedom to react how I see fit and getting to use my problem-solving skills in trying to work out exactly what has occurred in each incident.

Why did you opt for a geeky role like this?

After college I did an eight-week summer school where I learnt about how the internet works as well as basics in computer programming and networking.

This was when I first heard of cyber security. It was clear from then on that this was where I saw my long-term career heading.

I wouldn’t consider myself a typical geek. I’m into my tech but I enjoy getting out and socialising too. Saying that, my friends and family certainly know who to ask about any tech-related issues that they have.

What sort of studying are you doing?

I’m doing a degree apprenticeship and I am in my second year, which is all online since the start of the pandemic. It includes virtual workshops and assignments for each university module.

I’m given time away from my usual work duties to focus on it.

Why didn’t you go to university?

I started out studying Computer Science at the University of Manchester but I was soon disappointed by the lack of cyber security content that was being offered in the course.

I always had a part-time job and found that I thrived in a working environment as it felt like I had greater purpose.

Studying for the sake of studying didn’t feel purposeful and so I left university ready to work and apply for apprenticeship schemes. I knew that having a job and studies that directly affected and improved that job performance would feel more satisfactory for me, and I was right!

It is still a male dominated role?

Yes, and it motivates me more than anything to stand out and perform as well as my peers. I’m competitive with myself and I enjoy proving that women belong in tech too.

What are your ambitions?

I’m very ambitious and want to continue learning and taking my career from strength to strength. I have started deputising in the absence of our shift leader in the hope of gaining more valuable experience.

After my apprenticeship, I want to continue challenging myself to improve and hopefully continue to be an asset to the business.

TECHY Sarah loves the challenges of her job