Email: [email protected]
LinkedIn: linkedin.com/in/gavinkestner
GitHub: github.com/gavink01

📄 Download PDF Resume

🎓 Education

North Dakota State University Fargo, North Dakota

  • Master of Science in Computer Science – Expected Spring 2026
  • Bachelor of Science in Computer Science, Summa Cum Laude – Spring 2025
    4.0 GPA

Certifications

  • Google Cybersecurity Certificate
  • Tines Core & Advanced
  • CompTIA Security+ (in progress)

💼 Professional Experience

Cyber Security Defensive Ops Intern

NBCUniversal — June 2025 – Present

  • Led threat intelligence investigations using ZeroFox, LifeRaft, and OSINT techniques, identifying and documenting high-risk digital threats.
  • Spearheaded migration of security automation playbooks from XSOAR to Tines, designing scalable workflows, mapping data fields, and creating dynamic case templates.
  • Built and maintained Splunk dashboards to monitor threats across 400+ company assets.
  • Collaborated on an intern project to design/develop a Copilot Studio Agent integrated with ServiceNow knowledge articles.

Student IT Security Assistant

NDSU IT Division — November 2024 – May 2025

  • Conducted software security reviews, assessing data handling practices and vendor documentation (HECVATs, SOC 2 reports).
  • Ran Nmap reconnaissance to identify unregistered servers, open ports, and vulnerable services campus-wide.
  • Developed Bash scripts to automate Nmap scans and streamline result filtering.

Cyber Security Research Team Lead

NDSU College of Engineering — July 2023 – November 2024

  • Led a team of six undergraduate research assistants in developing cybersecurity software.
  • Managed project plans, task allocation, deadlines, and resources.
  • Fostered a collaborative environment to improve productivity and skills growth.

Autonomous Systems Security Intern

Kirkwall — May 2024 – August 2024

  • Built a vulnerability management system using a web scraper/crawler and GPT-3.5 to parse binary information.
  • Created an Azure-based virtual lab for tool evaluation.
  • Configured virtual machines, VPN access, and security rules.

🏆 Involvement & Projects

Cybersecurity Student Association (CSA)

  • 🥇 1st Place in the 2024 and 2023 National Cyber Summit Cyber Cup Challenge.
  • Analyzed Zeek log files and Suricata alerts using Splunk and Corelight Investigator to detect indicators of C2 beaconing, lateral movement, and data exfiltration.
  • Top 10%: National Cyber League (NCL) Fall 2024, Fall 2023, Spring 2023.
  • Participated in cyber competitions specializing in OSINT techniques, password cracking with Hashcat, network traffic analysis using Wireshark, log analysis, and web exploitation.

Home Lab Environment

  • Built and managed a virtual SOC lab environment for hands-on cyber operations and detection training.
  • Configured VMware virtual machines, including an Ubuntu Server for adversary simulation, Windows 11 VM equipped with LimaCharlie, and Kali Linux VM for cyber competitions.

Field Research Submission Tool

Partnership with Microsoft & NDSU Ag Data Team — Spring 2025

  • Built a full-stack web app (React + Node.js + MSSQL) that streamlined 24,000+ producers’ field research submissions statewide across North Dakota replacing legacy paper/email workflows.
  • Implemented Google OAuth2 login that simplified onboarding and ensured authenticated access statewide.
  • Developed bulk Excel upload/export features, enabling fast data entry and flexible reporting for research extension.

View all projects →

💻 Technical Skills

Languages & Frameworks: C#, Python, SQL, JavaScript, HTML, CSS, React, Node.js
Cybersecurity Tools: Splunk, Corelight Investigator, ZeroFox, LifeRaft, Tines, XSOAR, Nmap, Wireshark, Zeek, Suricata, Kali Linux, Hashcat, LimaCharlie
Cloud & Infrastructure: Azure, VMware, Windows, Linux, Ubuntu Server, VPN configuration, security rule management
Development & Collaboration: Agile/Scrum, Git (Azure DevOps), Google OAuth2 authentication, MSSQL
Techniques: Network Analysis, Log Analysis, OSINT, Web Exploitation, Vulnerability Management, Threat Hunting

📞 Let’s Connect

I’m always open to opportunities in cybersecurity and connecting with fellow security professionals.

📧 Best way to reach me: [email protected]

Last updated: August 2025