Professional Statement #

Hello, world! My name is David J. Kim. I work full-time as a Security Solutions Architect for Akamai Technologies. I have also worked in IT Operations as an Information Assurance Compliance Analyst for LMI. I was inspired to write free, original, educational cybersecurity content by John Hammond. This blog shares interesting lessons I have learned from using a wide range of tools from Burp Suite for web application penetration testing to Claude Code for managing AWS Infrastructure, GitHub repositories, and Terraform.

I am passionate about safeguarding personal data - both my own and that of the companies I represent. I enjoy learning about constantly evolving new technologies and applying my skills to tackle and resolve complex business problems.

Education and Certifications #

I graduated with a Master of Professional Studies in Cybersecurity from the University of Maryland Baltimore County in December 2022. I passed the exams for the following certifications: CISSP (May 2025), GWAPT, GCIH, GSEC and Security+.

These certifications were excellent resources to jump-start my academic journey into computer systems, the OSI networking model, and fundamental internet protocols such as DNS/HTTP. However, I have since learned that demonstrating technical skills and being able to communicate my IT knowledge across business departments are also critical skills in the modern U.S. workplace.

I believe the value of having any knowledge in cybersecurity is intrinsically tied to the act of sharing that knowledge with other people. Given the difficulty of staying up-to-date on cybersecurity issues and vulnerabilities, I believe in cultivating a mindset focused on growth, rather than scarcity.