About me
I'm Tristan, a cybersecurity graduate based in Clearwater, Florida. I've been fascinated by how computers work (and how they break) since I was a kid. Here's the longer version of how I ended up here.
My path
The spark
I've been drawn to computers for as long as I can remember. When I was young, I stumbled across an early hacking forum and found a free remote access tool. I had no idea what I was doing, but I wanted to see if I could get it running on my dad's computer over our home network. Looking back, downloading a free RAT from the internet probably wasn't the brightest idea, but it worked, and I was hooked. That moment sparked a curiosity that never went away.
Going deeper
As I got older, that curiosity turned into something more intentional. I spent a lot of time on Hack The Box and TryHackMe, learning tools like Metasploit and working in Kali Linux. At first it was just for fun. I didn't know yet that it could be a career. Once I figured that out, I committed fully and started pursuing my B.S. in Cybersecurity at St. Petersburg College.
Building things
Along the way I started freelancing as a web developer under my own LLC, Parrish Design. I built cloud-hosted applications with authentication, role-based access control, and API integrations for clients. It taught me a lot about how secure systems are designed from the ground up, and that experience translates directly to security work.
The real goal
Eventually I decided it was time to fully commit to what I had always been most passionate about: cybersecurity. Everything I've done, from the freelance development work to investigating security issues across enterprise environments at KnowBe4, has been building toward that goal.
How I approach things
I like understanding systems well enough that I can recognize when something is off. Whether I'm looking at how authentication is configured, how mail is flowing through an environment, or how access controls are set up, I want to understand the full picture, not just the surface.
I also believe that if you can't explain something clearly, you probably don't understand it well enough yet. Clear documentation and communication matter to me just as much as the technical work itself.
Outside of work
Rock climbing
I've been climbing for a few years and have taken trips to climb around the country. It's the best way I've found to completely unplug and focus on one thing at a time.
Fishing
Living in Florida makes this an easy one. It's a good balance to the screen-heavy side of my life.
Building things
Whether it's a website, a tool, or a side project to learn something new, I like making things and seeing them work.