INTRODUCTION
I have just finished my first year at the University of Warwick studying a degree in Cyber Security. Having a feeling that I lacked the full university experience of having Lectures, labs and the social aspect of uni life due to the pandemic, I was very eager to get an internship. Whilst conducting my search for an internship, I was disheartened that most places only wanted second and third-year students. However, I was very pleased to see that Bays was interested in me, a first-year cyber security student and what I could offer to the company.
PROJECTS
During my time at Bays, I have been able to apply what I learnt in my first year of studying cyber security and put it to use in a practical environment. It is great to see how important cyber security is, and how it is applied at an industrial level, which is something that I was very curious about. The first thing I did was a quick review of the company to look for any aspects that I thought I could develop during my time at Bays.
Bays expressed that they were keen on implementing a device management software, but they were not sure on the benefits of a particular one. I put together a presentation and pitched Microsoft Endpoint to the director, Dr Sophie Carr and the head of delivery, James Hawkes at Bays. Microsoft Endpoint is a management application that aims to keep the business data secure in an office environment and on a cloud working basis. Endpoint contains tools and services to manage and monitor user devices from mobile phones to desktops to servers. It is comprised of multiple services that each play a role in data security and management. Working closely with the head of delivery and the director of the company we purchased Endpoint and I was assigned the responsibility to set up, roll out to the company and manage it.
I got stuck in looking at the cyber essentials certification and worked to advance the progress the company had in completing the application. Here, I applied what I learnt about risk management and networking to question the company on their use of firewalls and their management of employees regarding access to data, and talked about how we could code our own VPN. Microsoft Endpoint provided help to develop other aspects of projects and interests the company had. Bays were interested in a company strategy for Anti-Malware and Endpoint helped with that as whilst managing devices at a small additional cost, Endpoint comes with Microsoft defender so that was a quick solution to the company strategy question regarding an anti-virus solution. Furthermore, Endpoint ticks a few boxes that supports the application to the cyber essential’s certification.
STARTING A CAREER IN IT AT BAYS
The team at Bays were so welcoming and lovely to work with, they create a bubbly fun environment to work in virtually and in office. They allow everyone to put forth their technical knowledge and combine it to meet deadlines and goals in a chilled environment. Although Bays work with data pipelines in AWS and employ very talented data scientists, the company has been able to find unique ways to support my skills in IT and Cyber Security.
Bays work on a range of projects spanning from creating their own cloud-based portal – ‘Meeting the Need’ to reducing plastic pollution in the oceans, as Bays strives to make positive change in the world. Bays also provided me with many opportunities to network with other professionals from working on external projects, attending events such as the ‘Fraud and Cybercrime’ meeting with the London Metropolitan Police, to a ‘netwalking’ activity; where we networked with another company Arke Ltd as we walked along the countryside, which was a new experience to me.
I do encourage young people to consider bays as a potential place to gain work experience, as it is a great place to get your foot in the ground to start your career in IT, whether you get stuck in with the coding projects or even on the technical side of the business. The Company provided me with a great insight into how a business runs, right from the process of bidding for projects to drafting up reports and delivering finished products to clients.
Finally, this internship not only allowed me to see how cyber security is implemented on an industrial scale; but also enables me to put my skills to use and developed new skills that I can apply to my further studying of cyber security. I have gained invaluable experience and would love to come back to Bays.