Telstra Cybersecurity Job Simulation

End-to-end incident response to a malware attack, including SOC triage, network analysis, mitigation, and post-incident review.

Overview

This project is based on the Telstra Cybersecurity Job Simulation delivered through Forage, designed to replicate the day-to-day work of a Security Operations Centre (SOC) analyst responding to a live cyber incident.

The simulation covered the full incident lifecycle, from initial alert triage through technical mitigation and post-incident governance reporting.

Key Activities

  • Triaged a malware attack alert received by the SOC
  • Identified critical infrastructure impacted by the attack and escalated appropriately
  • Analyzed firewall and network logs to identify attacker behavior and exploit patterns
  • Developed a Python-based firewall rule to mitigate malware propagation
  • Collaborated with network and infrastructure teams to contain the incident
  • Authored a blameless incident postmortem covering timeline, root cause, and lessons learned

Skills Applied

  • SOC alert triage and incident response
  • Malware and network traffic analysis
  • Pattern recognition and attacker behavior analysis
  • Python scripting for defensive security controls
  • Incident documentation and postmortem reporting
  • Cross-team technical and non-technical communication

Industry Relevance

This project closely aligns with responsibilities in:

  • SOC Analyst (Level 1 / 2) roles
  • Incident Response & Blue Team positions
  • Security Engineering and Network Defense
  • Telecommunications and critical-infrastructure security environments

It reinforces how structured incident handling, technical mitigation, and clear documentation are essential to effective cyber defense in large, distributed organizations.