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On New Years Eve the PVC Security podcast had a very impromptu recording session. We decided, on Twitter, five hours before the New Year to record our weekly podcast and discuss what we learned about security in 2014. I was hosting a party at the exact same time of the recording so I didn’t pipe in with what I learned in security last year, so instead I’ll write about it here.

The biggest thing I learned about security in 2014 is that it’s very important to have a solid background in IT. Understanding how a network is put together and how computers and servers work goes a long way in helping to secure them.

It is also extremely helpful in getting security implemented in an organization. Implementing security should not be about telling people their systems or applications are broken and that THEY need to go fix them. It should be about working together to finding the best most secure way of doing things. Understanding the limitations of a network, computer or server is going to help in finding the best solution to an insecure problem.

I’ve been working in information technology since 2002. I’ve done everything from moving phone lines to pulling cable to soldering to workstation troubleshooting to inventorying to server management to network management to now security. I’ve got a very broad IT background and I’m starting to realize that it is helping me become a good security professional. That’s not to say that one can’t jump into security or take another route to security, but I think I’ve benefited from having experience in the areas that I now find myself trying to secure and keep secure.

Happy New Year! I am looking forward to all the new things I will learn in 2015.

This post first appeared on Exploring Information Security.