So long, and thanks for all the malware

As you have probably inferred from the title, I have made the decision to exit from the security industry, and the tech industry in general. The first decade or so in the security industry was productive, fun, and transformative. It’s the more recent years that have led me to the decision to almost literally abandon tech and run off into the woods.

If you’re interested, read on to learn more about the changes I have experienced that led me to this decision, and what I’m going to be doing in the future. If not, I’d at least like you to know that it’s not like I’m disappearing off the face of the Earth. I’ll still be around places, like Signal and Mastodon. So please stay in touch, and I’ll do the same. See my contact page.

What changed?

My first few years in the security industry involved me working on my own, building my own website and my own security product. I played with a LOT of malware. It was challenging, fun, and sometimes frustrating. I worked on what interested me, learned a lot, and ultimately felt like I was actually helping people. I made a lot of friends in the process.

Then I joined Malwarebytes, and for the first 5 or 6 years I continued along the same path. I did some really valuable work, had the opportunity to name some malware (although those who know me know I kind of suck at that), and spoke at a lot of conferences. My role was part product manager, part support manager, part security researcher, part marketing, part completely undefined everything else, and that was great.

Over time, though, I made a very serious mistake. I allowed myself to be steered, through promotions, into less and less technical roles that got closer and closer to 100% product manager. This also meant that my technical skills began to stagnate just as Mac malware started getting more sophisticated.

At the same time, the industry was changing. Security was getting even more competitive than it had been, and venture capitalists were more involved than ever. Companies were under intense pressure to reduce costs and increase profits. Growth, above all else, was job #1.

I survived the massive layoffs that spanned the tech industry a couple years ago, and that cost my son his engineering job in Seattle. I survived a series of smaller layoffs as well. But eventually, my luck ran out. I, and the team I managed, was cut, and I was adrift.

I found myself at another company fairly quickly, thanks to a couple connections there, but just shy of a year the same thing happened again, and my position was eliminated.

The tech industry I’d known and loved has gotten a lot less friendly. All I want to do is build cool stuff that helps people, but the “growth” and “10x” and “five nines” mindsets these days get in the way of that. (I swear I think if I hear anyone else say “five nines,” not in an ironic way, I may punch them!)

The tech job market is rough

I started up my job search again, fully intending to find another role in the security industry… or, maybe something else interesting in tech. I’m interested in photography, so I threw in applications places like GoPro and Adobe. Little did I know that recent developments would be working against me.

If you find yourself in the job market right now, you have my condolences. Between the waves of layoffs over the last few years, and the more recent layoffs from companies deciding AI can do their jobs, there are a lot of people looking. I know folks who have been looking for more than a year. I routinely see a new job pop up on job boards, and within the first day it could easily have hundreds of applicants.

Worse, it seems that many people are using AI to quickly apply for jobs. They use the AI to tailor their résumé and cover letter to the job, AI to submit, etc. They’re essentially spamming job listings. It’s so prevalent I’ve seen some applications where they require you to check a box to agree that you won’t use AI for the application process.

To make things even worse, employers are using AI. (Yes, even for the ones that make you agree not to use AI, the language you agree to basically says, “We can use AI, but you can’t.”) I’ve had applications rejected within minutes, showing clearly that AI was screening my submission and rejecting me based on… I don’t even know what. (Actually, that’s not entirely true, as I’ve recently learned that if you use a two-column format in your résumé – as I do, as was good practice in the past for readability – you automatically get kicked out of consideration by some screening tools.)

Another problem is that the majority of jobs these days are either directly related to AI, or the preferred qualifications include a line saying something like “Passionate about using AI.” Since I feel like the AI bubble is going to burst soon, I don’t want to tie my paycheck to something like that.

On top of all that, I’m probably hitting a bit of ageism. I’m less than 10 years from typical retirement age. Due to my seniority in the field, I’m also probably being seen as too expensive a hire. And if I apply for something I’m really interested in, but that pays a lot less than I was making or has a “lesser” title, that seems to be a red flag.

It all is very depressing, seeing the deck stacked so firmly against me. And to see such an extreme focus on “AI,” which in its present form is bound to fail spectacularly for the things people are trying to use it for.

So, what now?

As I said earlier, I’m almost literally running off into the woods. I have decided to follow my passion for photography and the outdoors, and start a company offering curated private photo tours and other services. Living near Yellowstone, I feel there’s a good market for this sort of thing, especially if I offer services other companies generally aren’t.

Making this decision is scary, because I can’t know for sure that it will succeed. But I feel happier having made this decision than I have in years, so I figure it’s the right choice.

Most likely, at some point down the road, I’ll let the hosting of this site lapse. I can’t justify keeping it going if I’m not going to be doing security anymore… and my attempted reboot of the site didn’t get very far anyway. Time got away from me.

I’ll post an announcement here before that happens, and you can still always get hold of me at one of the methods on my contact page.

If you’re curious about my photography – mostly wildlife from the American west – see my photo site.