Akshaykumar Kathirvelu

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OVERVIEW

Built through Real-World Experience
Not Just Simulations

My background started in enterprise network security, where security showed up in day-to-day operations across production environments — from packet analysis and centralized logging to vulnerability remediation and access control hardening.

Through my Graduate Program and MSSP Internship, I expanded into cloud security, identity access management, threat assessment, and security operations.

I've built hands-on security labs, conducted threat assessments, and produced security documentation that solves real problems — not just theoretical ones.

This portfolio introduces my work. GitHub contains the code. Medium contains the insights. Everything here is built, tested, and documented by me.

3Years Enterprise HPE-Aruba Network Security
200+Students Mentored as Graduate Teaching Assistant
6Security Labs, Projects Built & Documented
4Industry Recognized Certifications

 

Threat Detection Infrastructure Security Incident Response Cloud Security

EXPERIENCE

Professional Background

Graduate Teaching Assistant

IT 223 — Information Security Fundamentals

George Mason University · Fairfax, VA

Part-Time Aug 2025 – May 2026

Mentored 200+ students in Information Security Fundamentals — providing hands-on guidance in security labs, vulnerability assessment methodologies, phishing investigation, and cryptography fundamentals.

Information SecurityVulnerability AssessmentZyBooks LabsCryptographyStudent Mentorship

Cybersecurity SME Intern

MSSP Practice

Comtech LLC · Reston, VA

Internship May 2025 – Aug 2025

Contributed to managed security service delivery across healthcare and US State/Local Government clients — STRIDE/DREAD threat assessments, SOC validation lab setup, whitepaper authoring, proposal development, and CMMC readiness.

3Technical Whitepapers
STRIDE/DREADThreat Modeling
CMMCReadiness Support
MSSPThreat AssessmentCMMCSTRIDEDREADSOC Validation

Network Security Engineer, L1 → L2 Escalation

Network Security & Infrastructure Operations

Movate Technologies / HPE-Aruba Networking · Chennai, India

Full-Time Sep 2021 – Jul 2024

Supported enterprise HPE-Aruba production environments across network security operations, escalation troubleshooting, and infrastructure hardening. Centralized syslog visibility through Splunk/HPE IMC/SolarWinds, led vulnerability remediation with Qualys and Nessus, and hardened access controls via 802.1X, RADIUS, and TACACS+.

2,500+Switches & Routers analyzed
3,000+Enterprise users supported
Hours → MinutesResponse time improvement
WiresharkNmapSplunkQualysNessus802.1XRADIUSTACACS+

TECHNICAL SKILLS

Technical Skills

SIEM & Security Monitoring

Splunk (SPL)WiresharkNessusQualys Microsoft SentinelWazuhMicrosoft Defender HPE IMCWindows Event Viewer

Network & Infrastructure

HPE-Aruba (Comware, ArubaOS CX, PVOS)802.1X / RADIUS / TACACS+ Firewall ManagementCiscoSubnetting VLANs / STP / OSPFBGP / MPLSIPSec / SSL / TLS

Cloud & IAM

Microsoft AzureActive Directory / Entra ID Google Cloud PlatformAWS IAM / RBACDefender for CloudGuardDuty / CloudTrail

Offensive Security & Assessment

NmapBurp SuiteYARA MetasploitHydra / Kali Linux SQL InjectionOpenSSL / RSA

Frameworks & Standards

MITRE ATT&CKNIST IR LifecycleOWASP Top 10 STRIDE / DREADCVSS CIS BenchmarksCMMC / VAPT

Systems & Automation

Ubuntu / Kali LinuxPowerShellPython WindowsBashSQLGit / GitHub

PROJECTS

Security Engineering Projects

All Projects ↗
THREAT INVESTIGATION

Network Threat Investigation — Wireshark

Packet-level threat investigation lab simulating 12 attack scenarios — reconnaissance, credential attacks, and protocol vulnerabilities — with real .pcapng evidence and MITRE ATT&CK mapping.

24Real .pcapng Files
12Attack Scenarios
10+MITRE TTPs
WiresharkNmapHydraKali LinuxMITRE ATT&CKPacket Analysis
GitHub
CLOUD SECURITY

Azure vs GCP Default IaaS Security Review

Comparative security assessment of real Azure and GCP virtual machine deployments — evaluating IAM, network controls, storage exposure, logging gaps, and encryption defaults.

2Cloud Platforms
6Security Domains
CIS/NISTHardening Checklist
AzureGCPIAMCIS BenchmarksNISTCloud Security
GitHub
NETWORK SECURITY

Network Security Labs: Vuln Scanning, Protocol Analysis, NAT/VPN

Live Nessus vulnerability scanning, multi-protocol Wireshark analysis (ICMP, TLS, TCP, UDP, RTP), and NAT/VPN behavior investigation using real terminal output and packet captures.

3Lab Scenarios
5Protocols
Realpcap Data
NessusWiresharkNAT/VPNCVSSProtocol Analysis
GitHub
APPLIED SECURITY

SQL Injection and RSA Cryptography Labs

Annotated SQL injection exploitation lab against a simulated web app, and RSA-2048 cryptography implementation using real OpenSSL-generated keypairs with verifiable encrypted artifacts.

2Security Labs
RealArtifacts & .pem
OWASPTop 10
SQL InjectionRSA-2048OpenSSLOWASP Top 10Python
GitHub
THREAT RESEARCH

Malware Progression and Detection

Malware evolution analysis from polymorphic to APTs, with a practical component: 4 YARA detection rules targeting ransomware, polymorphic patterns, fileless PowerShell (T1059.001), and APT lateral movement (T1021).

4YARA Rules
3Detection Methods
MITREATT&CK Mapped
YARAMITRE ATT&CKMalware AnalysisThreat Detection
GitHub
IDENTITY SECURITY

Identity Theft Case Studies and Countermeasures

STRIDE-based analysis of Equifax, T-Mobile, and Facebook/Cambridge Analytica breaches — evaluating IAM failures, attack vectors, and which defensive controls would have prevented each incident.

3Case Studies
6Control Areas
STRIDEThreat Modeling
IAMZero TrustMFASTRIDEIdentity Security
GitHub

EDUCATION & CERTIFICATIONS

Education & Certifications

Education

Academic foundation in engineering and cybersecurity.

Master of Science

Applied Information Technology  (Cybersecurity)

George Mason University

Aug 2024 – May 2026

Bachelor of Engineering

Electronics and Communication Engineering

Jeppiaar Maamallan Engineering College  (Anna University)

Aug 2017 – May 2021

Certifications

Professional certifications in cybersecurity and cloud security.

ISC2 CC

Certified in Cybersecurity

CC

ISC2

Mar 2026 Mar 2029

Verify ↗
AZ-900

Microsoft Certified: Azure Fundamentals

AZ-900

Microsoft

May 2026

Verify ↗
FCA

Fortinet Certified Associate Cybersecurity

FCA

Fortinet

Apr 2026 Apr 2028

Verify ↗
FCF

Fortinet Certified Fundamentals Cybersecurity

FCF

Fortinet

Apr 2026 Apr 2028

Verify ↗
TryHackMe

Pre Security Certificate

Pre Security

TryHackMe

Jun 2025 Feb 2029

Verify ↗
Splunk

Splunk Core User Training [Coursework]

Splunk Training

Splunk

Apr 2026

WRITING

Writeups

MEDIUM ↗

CONNECT

Contact

Location

United States

Availability

Actively Seeking Full-Time Cybersecurity Roles

Onsite · Hybrid · Remote

Roles

SOC Analyst · Network Security · Cloud Security