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How you want to be one step ahead of hackers as Security Specialist

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Vasha Choudhary
IT Security Specialist
Reading time4 minutes

Varsha Choudhary works with other IT security specialists on the Global Security Monitoring Team to protect Rabobank's applications and systems. They continuously improve the bank's digital defence walls.

“While I was studying for my bachelor’s degree in Computer Science Engineering, my fellow students were mostly interested in coding and programming. I thought that was cool too, but I wanted to be different and started working towards my goal of becoming a Security Specialist.”

“I worked hard to gain knowledge of networks, different operating systems, how to exploit vulnerabilities, and so on. After my studies, I started out as a developer, but I worked hard and through further studies I finally reach my goal. Currently, I work as an IT Security Specialist, protecting the bank from cyberattacks and hackers.”

Developing within the bank

“Within Rabobank, my knowledge of networks, different operating systems and even programming is very useful. I chose cyber security at Rabobank because we work with different tools, such as . This allows me to increase my knowledge of different tools and develop further. I see myself moving through Rabobank as an electron: everyone shares knowledge, and you can participate in other teams to enhance your skills further.”

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Working together on cyber security

“As security specialists, we protect the bank by understanding how a hacker thinks. We always try to be one step ahead of them. To do that, we have a threat hunting team, a security monitoring team and a team that performs vulnerability scanning and penetration tests. My job is to lay the groundwork for our threat hunters. If the rules in SIEM tool are incorrect, they can’t do their job. We therefore work with digital maps, on which we inform each other about our work. This keeps our work streamlined, and the bank secure.”

The open culture means I am not afraid to ask about new opportunities, and I know I can achieve my goals at the bank."
Varsha, IT Security Specialist

Global protection leads to stability

“I like the idea that in our work we protect Rabobank globally: we also work for other regions, like North America, Brazil and Australia. We contribute to stability. Customers must be able to trust their bank, and because of our efforts, they can be sure that their information and money are safe. But the development of data and technology is moving so quickly that it is becoming increasingly difficult to protect that data. We are getting smarter all the time in monitoring and defence, but hackers are also constantly improving their attacks. That’s why we always want to be one step ahead of hackers.”

Working together in an open culture

“I think that the reason the cooperation between teams is so good is that we have a very open culture at the bank. I notice that colleagues trust our team. They really pay attention to what we say, and there is room for criticism. We also receive a lot of constructive feedback. We celebrate our successes together, and what I like very much: I have never have to dress formally here. I can be myself. The open culture also means that I dare to ask about new opportunities within the bank, and I know that I can achieve my goals here.”