About Me

My name is Crystal and I’m a Cybersecurity graduate from Southern Utah University. I have completed a degree in cybersecurity, a minor in biology, and a minor in information systems. I am certified in CompTIA Security+ and I love learning about the intersection between biology and cybersecurity, meeting up with my friends at cybersecurity events and conferences, and hitting the gym.

Since summer of 2025 I have been working on Arctic Wolf’s triage team, beginning as an intern and working my way up to Triage Security Analyst and eventually Triage Security Engineer 1. Throughout my development with this amazing Tier 1 team, I’ve learned how to identify malicious activity and honed my investigative, analytical, and stakeholder communication skills.

During my time as a student at SUU I worked as a pharmacy technician, a planetarium tour guide, and as an IT Help Desk technician. In these diverse roles I’ve developed strong problem-solving skills, adaptability, and communication skills. Working summers as a pharmacy technician, I honed my attention to detail and developed a strong ability to work under pressure. Guiding tours inside SUU’s mobile planetarium improved my public speaking skills and ability to answer questions about complex topics clearly and confidently on the fly. Assisting students and faculty at the IT Help Desk gave me valuable hands-on experience troubleshooting technical issues across campus and supporting a variety of users from administrators to students. These experiences have built up my confidence to analyze complex problems and communicate effectively with both technical and non-technical audiences.

In Summer of 2024 I had an exciting internship opportunity with the global Privilege Access Management (PAM) company Delinea, where I was selected from a pool of over 200 applicants. During the three-month internship I collaborated with executives on the development of policy documents and gained hands-on experience in incident response, application security, and threat modeling. I also learned how vendor risk assessments (VRAs) are used practically within the company through Delinea’s work with vendors to deploy new security solutions for enterprise environments. Collaborating with senior security engineers across the world gave me valuable insights into teamwork at an international level. Throughout the internship, I deepened my knowledge of standards like NIST 800-53, ISO 27001, and SOC 2 and their applications in real-world cybersecurity operations. My internship not only broadened my technical expertise but also introduced me to professionals in my field whose insights and career paths continue to inspire me.

In March of 2025 I had the incredible opportunity to present at SecureUSU, the security conference that occurred alongside HackUSU in Logan, Utah. My presentation was titled Cyber Immunity: Social Engineering and the Fight for Patient Privacy. My 25-minute talk dove into the broad topic of social engineering in the healthcare field and how attackers exploit human vulnerabilities to bypass security measures. I discussed real-world tactics, defenses, and the implications for patient privacy. I wrapped up my talk with a realistic identity theft scenario taking place in a pharmacy, Darknet Diaries style, and answered questions about my experiences working in pharmacies. It was an unforgettable experience and I look forward to my next presentation opportunity!

As I explore the vast cybersecurity field and begin to shape my career path, I aim to combine my passion for healthcare with my growing expertise in cybersecurity. I believe that as the medical field becomes more dependent on confidentiality, integrity, and availability, best practices will become more commonly recognized as necessities.

The intersection of technology and patient care presents both exciting opportunities and complex security challenges. By combining my knowledge of cybersecurity with my background in pharmaceuticals and biology, I hope to contribute to innovative solutions that keep patient care convenient while minimizing the risks associated with constant digital access.