What do the career path and the day-in-the-life look like for a Threat Intelligence Analyst on the Operational Outcomes Team at Recorded Future?
We connected with Diana Granger to find out!
Interested in learning more about Recorded Future and their job openings? Make sure to check out their company page on VentureFizz!
Where did you grow up? What did your parents do for work?
I grew up in Glencoe, IL, a small suburb about 30 minutes north of Chicago. My mom was an electrical engineer and my dad worked in venture capital and business consulting.
Where did you go to college? What did you study and what were some of your initial jobs out of school?
I went to Wellesley College, where I double majored in Computer Science and Spanish. My first job out of school before coming to Recorded Future was as a security analyst at an investment management firm.
What has attributed to your success thus far and has helped propel you to the position you have now?
While my degree in Computer Science provided a lot of foundational knowledge, a lot of the technical skills I use day-to-day are things that I learned from on-job-training I received from mentors and colleagues who were willing to invest in me. Additionally, taking opportunities early in my career to solve diverse problems, even if I had limited experience in the subject matter, has made me a well-rounded analyst.
Can you share the high-level responsibilities of your current position as a Threat Intelligence Analyst on the Operational Outcomes Team at Recorded Future?
My main responsibilities include writing, reviewing, and publishing notes about new and emerging adverserial TTPs (tactics, techniques, and procedures), periodically selecting some of these TTPs for more in-depth analysis, and creating signatures to detect them. I also produce finished intelligence reports requested by our clients covering a wide range of cyber-related topics.
Any tips for someone considering a career in your field?
Training is great, but make sure you make time to practice what you learned even after the training/class/seminar is over. Hands-on, practical experience (or as close as you can get to that) is invaluable.
Day in the Life
Coffee, tea, or nothing?
Black coffee always, 2 cups a day. I’ll add in a cup of tea during the winter.
What time do you start working?
Around 9:30am.
What are three things that motivate you in your role?
- My supportive and empathetic teammates.
- The super interesting topics I get to research.
- The actionable nature of the work my team does. Most of my research projects culminate in some sort of action item for our clients (mitigation or remediation steps, signatures to detect malicious activity, etc.)
Every day is different, but can you outline what a typical day looks like for you?
- 9 - 9:30: Coffee and breakfast.
- 9:30 - 9:45: Log in and check Slack, email, or ticket notifications. We’re a global company, so sometimes questions or announcements come in overnight. Look over my ongoing assignments and deadlines so I can set priorities for the day and week ahead.
- 9:45-10:30: Time to work! If I have any quick administrative tasks this is when I usually get it done since it’s a shorter work window.
- 10:30-10:45: Team meeting twice a week to check in on the status of ongoing client-requested reports and assign analysts to new requests.
- 10:45 - 12:30: Back to work! This is when I like to get started on more technical research, malware analysis, or tool / malware signature development.
- 12:30 - 1:00: Lunch.
- 1:00-3:00: Back into research. Depending on my assignments for the week, this is when I do a lot of writing or review of my teammates' reports.
- 3:30-4:00: Weekly meeting with the New and Emerging Threats team within Operational Outcomes to go over success metrics, address any process changes, and ask questions.
- 4:00-5:30: Back to research or writing until I can get to a good stopping point, respond to any final Slack messages or emails, and log off for the day.
What time do you typically wrap up the work day?
Around 5:30pm
Any productivity hacks?
Nothing revolutionary, but I’m a visual person, so Kanban style boards (e.g., Trello) help me prioritize projects and manage competing deadlines. Choosing blocks of time to mute notifications on my devices also helps minimize distractions during tasks that require a lot of focus.
What are the 3 apps that you can’t live without?
- Google Calendar is how I know where I’m supposed to be at any given moment.
- Overcast is my podcast player of choice. I’m one of those people who needs background noise to focus, so I’m pretty much always listening to a comedy / pop culture podcast or music, which brings me to my 3rd app…
- Spotify. My taste in music is all over the place so I make a lot of playlists, but lately I’ve been listening to a lot of Lil Nas X, Lady Gaga, and The Weeknd.
What professional accomplishment are you proudest of?
I had the opportunity to lead a report about Cyber Threats to the Black Community in 2021. It was challenging and way out of my comfort zone, but I’m really proud of the outcome and thankful for the support I received from the analysts that co-wrote the report with me.
Who do you admire or call upon for professional advice?
My teammates and managers at Recorded Future, both current and former, are some of the kindest and smartest people I know and have given me great advice over the years.
