Welcome to my about page ! — Welcome ! Thanks for stopping by my About page. A brief introduction about me, Taimur Ijlal.

How to choose the right cybersecurity cert and avoid the common pitfalls — Let me tell you a story about one individual: let's call him Dave. Dave saw that many of his peers were pursuing the Certified Ethical Hacker (CEH) certification. It was trending in the industry, and Dave, not wanting to be left behind, decided to jump on the bandwagon. Unfortunately, Dave’s…

Are certs the golden ticket to success in cybersecurity ? — Before you take out the pitchforks and start attacking me .. hear me out .. I have no issues with certifications in Cybersecurity I think they are a great way to baseline your knowledge AND prove that you have the minimum skills needed for a position If you are a…

Here are five simple steps to get a firm understanding of the unique security risks of AI systems — AI is everywhere in 2023 which is amazing and terrifying at the same time Even if you do not buy into the hype, you cannot deny just how big of an impact AI is having on nearly every industry across the world One area that is going to become huge…

Are you making these mistakes when working in Cybersecurity? — First things first .. I have worked in Cybersecurity for over 20 years but do not consider myself an “expert” by any means My long experience, however has given me some perspective on how much this industry has evolved over the years In this article I want to debunk some…

These skills will boost your cloud security profile and make you stand out — 2024 is right around the corner and if you are planning to start a Cloud Security Career in it would be a good idea to know skills to focus on. As full-time employees, we have to be smart about using our time, so prioritizing what to learn is very important. …

How to leverage your IT Helpdesk experience to move into cybersecurity — I coach and mentor a lot of people to help them get into Cybersecurity and today, I want to talk about a person .. let's call him John John is one of the most technically proficient people I know He has amazing technical skills and knowledge of endpoint solutions But…

How to Embrace AI for Your Career Success! — In 2023 AI seemed to be here, there, and everywhere, dominating the news on all mediums. Another item that shook the tech world this year was massive layoffs, with thousands of people losing their jobs The double whammy of job disruption + tech layoffs has caused cybersecurity professionals to be…

Learn the different protection techniques in the PCI standard — I just recently wrote about the new version of the PCI DSS ( or the Payment Card Industry Data Security Services ) standard set to become effective in March 2024 I focused on the key changes that are upcoming and how companies can prepare themselves for the same However, the…