OFFICERCIA.ETH: All You Need to Know

Officer's Notes
Coinmonks
10 min readDec 11, 2023

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Art by: Regul Lion

As a blogger and writer in the field of OpSec, OSINT, Web3, and Privacy, I have dedicated my career to educating and empowering individuals to protect themselves in the ever-evolving digital landscape.

Through in-depth research, insightful analysis, and clear, concise writing, I strive to make complex security concepts accessible to my readers, promoting a safer online experience for all!

While I have been fortunate to receive some minor grants and to hold down a job, the resources available to me have not been sufficient to cover all the expenses associated with producing quality content.

Currently, I am fortunate to hold a position at Remedy, all of which align with my passions for security, data privacy, and the Web3 ecosystem. Indeed, these professional roles provide me with valuable insights and firsthand experience to inform my articles.

In other words, despite the invaluable nature of this work, I am not independently wealthy. While I do receive small grants and compensation for some of my writing, I primarily rely on income from a day job to sustain myself. To continue producing high-quality content that serves the public interest, I am seeking support from individuals who share my commitment to digital security and privacy.

This passion for safeguarding individuals and their digital assets stems from a personal experience that deeply impacted me. In 2016, I fell victim to a robbery that resulted in the loss of all my Bitcoin holdings. The repercussions of this incident were profound, and I was left grappling with both the emotional and financial aftermath.

However, justice prevailed, and the perpetrators responsible for the crime have since been apprehended and brought to justice. Now, with a sense of closure and a renewed focus, I am ready to share my knowledge and experiences with the world.

Please check out my AMA with Artem_Oak below!

What’s Next?

Now, as I reflect on that experience, I am more determined than ever to equip others with the knowledge and tools to protect themselves from similar threats. It is through my writing and advocacy that I aim to ensure that others can avoid the pitfalls and vulnerabilities I faced.

Each donation serves as a catalyst, enabling me to dedicate more time and resources to producing content that elevates digital security awareness. Your support will directly contribute to the creation of articles, guides, and resources that empower individuals to navigate the digital realm with confidence and security.

Together, we can build a community of informed and vigilant individuals who are well-prepared to navigate the complexities of the digital world.

First and foremost, are you from the CIA? (why did you choose this name?)

I just put my favorite character from Anime Hunter X Hunter - Kurapika on PFP and decided that I needed to share with the world what was going on in my head. My example shows that if I can do it, then you can do it, because I am just like you, Anon.

I am not an employee of the CIA or any other government (or indirectly related/affiliated) organization. I am just a simulacrum on what is commonly thought of as the CIA in the mass consciousness. In no way do I want to offend or humiliate the CIA in any way by my actions, I just want to teach people security!

Once again, my nickname is a joke, I’m a fan account and not affiliated with any government agency or comparable force! I support zero tolerance towards working on both criminal and governmental (or affiliated with them) organizations!

I also do not aim to humiliate anyone, on the contrary, I just draw attention to safety issues through archaisms and psycholinguistics. With all said, I never (and will not ever) perform any warfare-focused actions towards people & infrastructure. I am a civil guy and I follow local laws. I am not a hacker!

In this difficult time it’s hard to think about anything but global problems, but…I do want us to have something to distract ourselves with, so nothing in my blog will change in terms of content in the near future! I’ll be glad to see everyone here — left, right, Republicans, Democrats, everyone. The main thing is that people should be interested in what is discussed in our chat room and take part in it themselves. I personally hold moderate views. I hope I have answered your question…

Please check out my AMA with OpenSence below!

People can learn about an OSINT mindset by immersing themselves in my content. To add, there is no doubt that it can be applied anywhere in life, and that security is both simple and complex.

I strongly believe that if my actions and the content that I share with the audience helped me to raise at least one good developer, investigator, detective, OSINT specialist, auditor, community manager, or just prevent a hack, attack, or loss of money for at least one person, then everything I do/did was not for nothing.

It gives me strength and motivation to continue. I get a lot of messages with words of support, just warm words. I am very pleased to read them every time my dear followers!

Could You Please Talk about What You Do?

I run a blog on my Twitter/X/Mirror/Medium where I share with subscribers blockchain researches I find from various sources, my own OpSec techniques and of course OSINT, applying which as a working framework I do all of the above.

On the development side, I’m quite proficient in Python for middle level, learning Solidity (so that as a lego.lido.fi grantee I did github.com/OffcierCia/DeFi-Developer-Road-Map) but so far I know them at the white-hat level.

I have also spent the past years working for Immunefi.com (I later went to work for the Pessimistic-Spotter project) as a community ambassador, building relationships within the community of white-hat hackers, recruiting hackers and working on brand awareness and company image.

Separately, I would like to say that professionally I no longer do OSINT or any investigations (including on-chain investigations). All my work now is in Web3!

It helped me to move even further in this direction, I was able to find answers to questions I had been wondering about for a long time, and I finally understood the issue at a sufficient level for me. I haven’t given up trying to improve, but I still can’t shake the feeling that I can’t afford to risk users’ money (in case I want to do a cross-chain farm for example), my inattention can be costly.

Long Story Short:

  • I’m not a whale, I don’t even own property.
  • I have never stolen money or goods in my life, never carried out an attack.
  • I am not connected with CIA/Mossad/KGB in any way. A nickname is just a joke.
  • I work at my job like a normal person.
  • The ApolloX incident is well described here: t.me/BizFeed/64061
  • There is no plagiarism in the articles, if you think that I quoted someone incorrectly — write to me, I will correct everything. Everything else is nonsense. I am following University and Arxiv style guidelines for SoK works.

Today you’re specialized in cryptocurrency analysis and cybersecurity in general. How did you get yourself into it? How did you learn about it?

It all started when I was already doing Web2 security and by chance in late 2020 I got into Dracula Protocol (I was invited there by a good friend of mine as a community manager) and I had to do a huge number of things there at once.

I had to learn security the hard way through a hundred trials and errors. I got a lot of help from these great sites, before I realized that process gamification was no nonsense, I was getting nowhere…

Then I joined trusted crypto security and development-focused communities and quickly got involved in DAOs, contributed to a lobster DAO (telegra.ph/What-is-Lobster-DAO-12-17) where I became an Admin and my Journey has officially started. I advise everyone who is starting out on a journey to anywhere to first follow a known road and talk to “travelers” who have already done so.

I’m very thankful to each one of the Admin Crew and creator Ivan personally for the amazing experience, amazing acquaintances and knowledge I gained there. I still enjoy reading that chat room and communicating with many people from there. I think that new heights will be achieved, because knowledge strives for knowledge, and there is no problem with it.

Some people associate you with DeFi protocols or even being the creator of some privacy coins. You have constantly refused these allegations. However you did contribute to quite a number of projects. Which ones? What did you do for them?

The list is quite long, but I can cite a few: For the Lido.fi project and their lego.lido.fi grants initiative, I made one of my most successful projects, DeFi Roadmap github.com/OffcierCia/DeFi-Developer-Road-Map.

I have also spent the past year working in Immunefi.com team as a community ambassador, building relationships within the community, recruiting hackers and working on the image. Some things I can’t disclose because of NDAs but I also helped a few auditing companies and open source projects.

I first got into this field as a regular risk analyst back in 2018 when there was an ICO boom and my impressions were not the most pleasant. Then I worked on a project that was focused on Bitcoin VIP services and manual portfolio management.

I got frustrated with the idea and left for a few years for hardcore interesting things like OSINT and pen-testing, security. I thought I was missing out on time while my friends were doing neural networking and other interesting stuff so I was trying to catch up.

Now I understand that the cryptocurrency environment is a testing ground where the brightest minds are born. Maybe this is its true purpose — to notice those people who understand a little bit more than an average person (and it’s only about differences in attitude to the subject) and to be able to attract them to me.

The one who possesses information rules the world. It’s a very convenient asset for investment — it’s either worth 100% or 0. It’s very predictable and that’s all the big money loves. Don’t take it seriously, it’s just my thoughts on the subject:) I think my main advice is to stay calm.

Officercia.eth: Past & Future

Whenever I write an article, I make sure to rigorously fact-check and verify the accuracy of information. I consult with industry experts, seek out multiple sources, and cross-reference data to ensure that my readers receive the most reliable and up-to-date information. Crucially, this commitment to thoroughness and accuracy ensures that my articles are not only informative but also trustworthy.

Fully recognizing the needs of my readers and the importance of continued professional development in this field, I am reaching out for support. Donations would allow me to attend relevant conferences, conduct interviews, and invest in the necessary resources to continue producing top-notch content. I am also exploring the creation of a community-driven platform where like-minded individuals can discuss and collaborate on these critical topics.

Separately, I would like to say that professionally I no longer do OSINT or any investigations (including on-chain investigations). All my work now is in Web3!

That said, I’m a very bad investor — I’ve only used most of the apps in the test network so donations from subscribers play a significant part in my income (which can be scarce due to rumors that I’m a whale, APT group member or worse) and I get very frustrated when there aren’t enough of them.

I'm just a guy and (I'm an alcoholic - just kidding!). I'm an average guy (no better or worse than you) who has spent his whole life perfecting certain skills. My job is to select and personally check for you materials and resources, tools, and show you how to work with them (and of course add amazing art from my old real-life fiend Regul). The rest is up to you. All things are difficult before they are easy.

It is my hope that, with continued support, I can continue to provide the high-quality content that my readers have come to expect while empowering and educating others on the importance of OpSec, OSINT, Web3, and Privacy.

The best thing is to support me directly by donating to any address from the list below:

  • 0xB25C5E8fA1E53eEb9bE3421C59F6A66B786ED77A or officercia.eth — Ethereum;
  • 17Ydx9m7vrhnx4XjZPuGPMqrhw3sDviNTU or bc1q75zgp5jurtm96nltt9c9kzjnrt33uylr8uvdds or bc1p378ghr5k40tm2tw40m4lu4a680m8cfpqd7m6utx5d6p28e5xvnpsqs9f86 — Bitcoin;
  • ZkBob Address: zkbob_polygon:m4S2QfVNbACDPRuQuFC2AKXi7mimqM6Dv48v8hPProAcS6zASs4MuqnXA2TxTo & ZkBob Payment Link;
  • 4AhpUrDtfVSWZMJcRMJkZoPwDSdVG6puYBE3ajQABQo6T533cVvx5vJRc5fX7sktJe67mXu1CcDmr7orn1CrGrqsT3ptfds — Monero XMR;
  • t1Tixh34p5FK9pMV4VYKzggP6qPbUwUabxx — ZenCash ZEC;
  • BLyXANAw7ciS2Abd8SsN1Rc8J4QZZiJdBzkoyqEuvPAB — Solana, SOL;
  • DQhux6WzyWb9MWWNTXKbHKAxBnAwDWa3iD — DOGE;
  • 0xC99201E9e0a5B61f83cc50965bFD3457c414fE62 — SHIB ETH/BSC;
  • TYWJoRenGB9JFD2QsdPSdrJtaT6CDoFQBN — TRX USDT;
  • LebuhjAPJLnLULAKsMgQEZC5E5q9TdvurJ — LiteCoin;

You can also support me by minting one of my Mirror articles NFTs! All the covers for my articles are made by my irl friend RegulLion!

Thank you for considering contributing to my mission. Your support is not only an investment in my work but also in the collective well-being of all who engage with the digital sphere.

Special Thanks:

With your help, we can foster a safer and more secure digital landscape for current and future generations.

Thank you!

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Officer's Notes
Coinmonks

Threat Researcher | Web3 / OSINT / OpSec / Privacy