Cole Blahut

Audits Without Anxiety — Cyber Security Consultant Intern

• Supported 3 client cybersecurity assessments alongside senior consultants, reviewing security controls, preparing compliance documentation, and identifying potential gaps in information security practices.
• Assisted with PCI DSS assessments by reviewing 200+ evidence items and mapping them to 45 sub-requirements across access management, encryption, vulnerability management, and logging, while documenting control gaps and tracking remediation.

Cybersecurity Consulting Club — Officer

• Plan events, coordinate logistics, and recruit members for a student club focused on cybersecurity consulting and risk management, organizing professional development opportunities that introduce students to industry practices.

SolarWinds SUNBURST: Breach Impact & Remediation Strategy

Analyzed the 2020 SolarWinds supply-chain breach as a consulting engagement: quantified the business impact from SEC filings, mapped root causes, and built a prioritized 90-day remediation roadmap with cost-benefit analysis.

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AI-Assisted Software Reverse Engineering & Behavioral Analysis

Investigated a benign file-manifest utility using controlled black-box probes, evidence capture, and AI-assisted hypothesis generation. Validated file filtering, JSON output, error behavior, and SHA-256 content sensitivity, then documented findings and regression tests.

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Security Operations Assessment and Risk Reduction Plan

Analyzed 600 synthetic authentication events, documented suspicious patterns, prioritized identity-security risks, and developed a measurable 30/60/90-day remediation roadmap.

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Cybersecurity

PCI DSS compliance, risk assessment, black-box testing; Splunk, Wireshark, Nmap, Nessus, Metasploit, Autopsy, Ghidra

Programming & Infrastructure

Python (pandas), SQL, JavaScript, Java, C/C++, R, PowerShell, HTML/CSS; TCP/IP, DNS, DHCP, NAT, firewalls, VMware, Cisco Packet Tracer