Sara Takhim

Security Consulting @ IBM X-Force | Cybersecurity @ Northeastern ‘24

Boston, MA, United States

Details

Education: Bachelor of Science - BS

Cybersecurity

Northeastern University

2020 : 2024

High School Diploma

Computer and Information Sciences, General

Morris County Vocational School District

2016 : 2020

Certificate

Cyber Defense

New York University

2019 : 2019

Experience: 2023 : Present

IBM

Cybersecurity Consultant Co-op

• Establish and moderate overall club objectives through creating and enhancing the organization’s mission statement.

• Oversees all club operations for 200+ general members and meeting scheduling between executive board members through facilitating and leading weekly meetings.

• Formulated a novel sponsorship prospectus, resulting in successful partnerships with several companies in the tech industry.

• Supports the work efforts and contributions of the executive board members to ensure maximum efficiency and promote club growth.

2022 : 2023

Northeastern University Women in Technology

President

• Engaged in web application penetration testing leveraging Burp Suite to identify common vulnerabilities.

• Provided high-profile clients with relevant security assessment findings & technical solutions via detailed reports.

• Ensured full testing coverage by discussing technical details of applications through providing mitigation plans.

2022 : 2022

NCC Group

Security Consultant

• Utilized QRadar SIEM to determine scope of simulated data breach and deploy appropriate remediation efforts.

• Developed a product leveraging the Velociraptor tool to bolster and hasten the process of digital forensics analysis through the automation of disk image mounting and artifact collection.

• Partook in weekly bootcamps with specialized training in dead disk forensics, memory forensics, threat intelligence, social engineering, and web application testing.

2022 : 2022

IBM

Incident Response Analyst

• Collected and analyzed open source data and intelligence relevant to the cybersecurity and the mission of NYC3 on a daily basis.

• Conducted threat landscape research across relevant industries and verticals related to New York City with open source data.

• Developed actionable intelligence in the form of technical reports on key issues of strategic interests to NYC3 to achieve strategic, influenced operations.

2021 : 2021

New York City Cyber Command

Cyber Threat Intelligence Analyst

Company: IBM

Years of Experience: 5

Spoken Language: English, Spanish, Turkish

Skills Application Security, Burp Suite, C++, Collaborative Leadership, Community Engagement, Community Outreach, Computer Science, Creative Problem Solving, Cryptography, Customer Retention, Cybersecurity, Cyber Threat Hunting (CTH), Cyber Threat Intelligence (CTI), Data Structures, Digital Forensics, Educational Leadership, Elementary Education, Event Management, Incident Response, Information Gathering, Intelligence Analysis, Java, JavaScript, Leadership, Linux, Network Security, Network Traffic Analysis, Nmap, Penetration Testing, Postman API, Product Development, Program Management, Project Management, Public Speaking, Python, Python (Programming Language), Security Information and Event Management (SIEM), Software Development Life Cycle (SDLC), Special Education, Strategic Planning, Technical Writing, Threat Assessment, Virtualization, Vulnerability Scanning

About 👋 Hello there, my name is Sara!

👩‍💻 I am a Senior at Northeastern University studying Cybersecurity. I have been interested in pursuing a career in cybersecurity since high school. In the past, I have worked as a Security Engineer, Cyber Threat Intelligence Analyst, Incident Response Consultant, and a Penetration Tester, all through various internships. I have obtained multiple technical certifications including CompTIA Network+ and CompTIA Security+. Currently, I am working as a Cybersecurity Consultant with IBM X-Force. During my time as a student, I intend to gain as much experience as possible!

💡 Some things that excite me are leadership in the technology industry, digital forensics, web application penetration testing, and Formula 1 Racing.

💕 I hope to become an inspiration to young professionals in the industry some day. My passion for security continues to grow with each new topic I learn.