Team Thursday #4 — ACM Cyber’s Aaron Eason
On this special Team Thursday, we will be introducing ACM Cyber’s very own president: Aaron Eason.
Q: Pitch ACM Cyber!
Aaron: As the largest cybersecurity organization on campus, we’re the heart of cyber at UC San Diego. While quarantine has forced most organizations into dormancy, ACM Cyber has been enjoying our newly established first year as one of the fastest growing orgs on campus, period. We have workshops, seminars, industry panels, socials, scholarships, newsletters, competitive teams to join, and a thriving online community. We’re even hosting the global cybersecurity competition San Diego CTF in the Spring Quarter.
Q: What’s ACM Cyber up to now?
Aaron: Our still-growing board is doing alot. The main, large event that is on our horizon (and should be on yours, too) is San Diego CTF ( https://sdc.tf ). When we launch San Diego CTF, we’ll be launching UC San Diego into the public spotlight of cybersecurity, and the opportunities and resources we will have access to will multiply. In general, we’re trying to kick off all sorts of programs and opportunities that have never been available to the students of UC San Diego. If you subscribe to our newsletter, you can stay on top of these updates every week!
Q: What is something that you are looking forward to this quarter?
Aaron: This is only our second quarter as ACM Cyber. We’re still trying to figure out what precedent we want to set with the kinds of events that we host, how we manage ourselves, and what sort of opportunities we want to provide to our members. All that said, I’m mainly excited to see our online community grow and friendships form in our Discord and through our socials.
Q: Why did you want to start this community?
Aaron: UC San Diego is too great of a school to not have any significant cybersecurity community whatsoever. I think there’s a vacuum at this institution for a real cyber organization, and if I can help start that, then ACM Cyber may very well be my most meaningful contribution to this school. Our overall goal isn’t just to bring cyber to UC San Diego, but to bring UC San Diego into the greater cybersecurity community at the national level. In other words, we’re gonna be famous.
Q: What is the randomest thing that you hope ACM Cyber can do in the future?
Aaron: Once we’re in person, I want to do a code-breaking scavenger hunt. Everybody gets into teams, and you have to run around campus to find cryptographic clues to solve puzzles and win prizes! If you have any ideas, let me know.
Q: Thoughts on DogeCoin?
Aaron: I sold all my DogeCoin back in 2016! No, I won’t say how much, I’d feel embarrassed. Can cryptocurrency be the future? Sure. Is it DogeCoin, or even Bitcoin? Definitely not, for sustainability reasons. But keep your eyes out for the Winner, stay informed, and don’t buy into hype!
Want to get to know more about the different communities in ACM? Join our discord: https://acmurl.com/discord.
You can also join the ACM Cyber discord to get updates on their latest events and projects here: https://acmurl.com/cyberdiscord
