Nestor Angulo de Ugarte

If I was early in my career in 2025 and wanting to land a position in offensive security, I’m not sure I’d even bother applying for offensive security roles. It’s way too competitive. As I see it, tech/cyber is a really broad field with tons of job areas. The really niche ones (like red teaming or penetration testing) are the ones that everyone is always fighting over. So, let them have it. Half of them won’t last in the role or they’ll bail in a year or two. Instead, I’d target adjacent-to-offsec roles at companies where I’d ideally want to be doing offensive security work. I say this because a lot of companies (not all, I know) like to hire from within. But even if that’s not the case, it at least provides a great opportunity to network and build relationships with that team while trying to work your way over. Every job I’ve had is the result of investing in relationships and knowing someone. I think this is what I’d do.