How to build Security Testing Group – by @Santhoshst
Security Testing Tips: Building Security Testing Group
There is no straight-forward way of doing things on this planet. One needs to be experimentation fanatic in order to understand things. Likewise, if you want to build a security testing community or a group, then there are several tips that you may want to use.
#1 You got be extremely passionate about security testing
If you want to lead security testers, you need to be skilled enough so that the group believes in you for what you are in security testing industry or craft. Not any person can start a community, even if he / she starts it, there may be no growth at all. It would be like a tree which doesn’t yield a fruit. If you have got passion inside you, I think you need to demonstrate it to the people if you want them to believe in your skills and join you in building a security testing group.
#2 Build a relationship with hackers (Do not discriminate between white hat and black hat)
The very reason I mention about discrimination is, it is easy to give up learning when you see a black hat hacker or someone who has got that attitude. Stop being biased, and have unconditional learning from the other end. Together, we push the human race forward. If I had to communicate with black hat guy, I would love to because; I can learn other things from him / her which helps me to be a better white hat guy.
#3 Have meet-ups more frequently
Be it in any relationship, the less time you give for your companion; you lose out that spark in life. Likewise, frequent meet-ups help to build a better community in terms of skills and relationship that can help everyone mutually. I do not want to tell you fairy tales that will make you comfortable, let us face it; Building a community takes a lot and one needs to face a lot of challenges. It wasn’t easy for Rosie Sherry to build Software Testing Club and it is not easy even now to grow it and maintain it. I admit that, she is awesome!
#4 Speak skills, not just definitions
Like I see in many testing meet-ups, most of them are still figuring out what is testing and checking and debating over it while not many understand it in the end and they continue the journey in the upcoming meet-ups with the same things again. I insist testers to practice security testing hands-on when they meet-up. Let there be a take-away which is technical and hands-on instead of some glossary.
#5 Extend your group to collaborate with other similar groups
Do not be a frog in the well, walk out to other similar groups and learn from them. Other groups may not welcome in the way that you expected, however; it doesn’t matter to you whether their welcome gesture was great or not. What matters to you is learning from them and utilizing it in your work. Let there be a healthy competition between the peers in terms of learning. You could help each other to learn (One of the way how one can learn) and that’s the way you could accumulate more learning mutually. There are other ways as well, find it out for yourself in order to see what way works better for your learning. You know yourself better!
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