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Robert (RK) Davies

Robert (RK) Davies

Linux, Security, Automation and AI specialist.

Imperial Beach, California, US
(619) 354-HACK (4225)

Background


About

About

Results-driven IT professional with over 20 years of experience in security, administration, and automation for thousands of nodes. Skilled in managing enterprise-level infrastructure, ensuring compliance, and excels in developing robust security controls. Pioneered groundbreaking advancements, including TuSimple's first autonomous freight delivery on US highways and uncredited contributions for an internationally broadcast TV show. Passionate about leveraging innovative technologies and data-driven strategies to address complex challenges in traditional and unconventional settings.

Work Experience

Work Experience

  • Sr. Technical Services EngineerWEKA.io

    May, 2024 - Jan, 20258 months

    Supported global customers with cutting-edge technologies, contributing to post-sales success and 5-star Gartner reviews through collaboration with internal teams. Key responsibilities included bridging customer-R&D gaps, resolving issues, providing feedback, monitoring systems, managing escalations, tracking cases, and documenting knowledge. The role required technical expertise in Linux, AWS, Kubernetes, strong troubleshooting skills, flexibility for on-call duties and travel, along with knowledge of operating systems and networking technologies.

    • Spearheaded support for some of the largest HPC storage environments globally, ensuring seamless operations and client satisfaction.

    • Delivered calm confidence and expertise in issue resolution during critical incidents with clients, fostering trust and reliability.

    • Orchestrated a dedicated hardware lab environment, providing a WEKA cluster equipped with industry-standard hardware to facilitate TSE training and testing effectively.

    • Developed and maintained comprehensive documentation of the lab environment, highlighting key aspects such as scheduling, limitations, changes, improvements, and support resources for employees, enhancing overall efficiency and knowledge sharing.

  • DevSecOps Sr. Manager101domain, Inc.

    Feb, 2023 - Jan, 202411 months

    Led cross-functional teams spanning IT infrastructure, software development, technical operations, and security to drive technological advancements and process improvements. Managed SOC II audits, ensured high system reliability, oversaw tools like JIRA and Google Workspace, and handled IT budgets. Utilized advanced technical skills in automation, CI/CD pipelines, scripting languages (Shell, Python), containerization (Docker/Kubernetes), and monitoring tools (Elastic.co, Prometheus).

    • Championed the creation and support of innovative tooling solutions for bulk domain management tasks, cutting manual work by 85%.

    • Directed and mentored a high-performing team of operations engineers, driving a culture of continuous learning and development.

    • Swiftly mastered and rolled out a custom-engineered platform, significantly enhancing our infrastructure's efficiency.

    • Monitored, maintained and remediated PCI and SOC2 compliance with tools such as QualysGuard for successful annual audit.

  • Cyber Security Instructional Specialist, Trilogy Education

    Feb, 2020 - Dec, 20233 years 10 months

    Led the next generation of CyberSecurity Professionals to acquire the skill-sets required in the job market today. I bring my experience as an independent security enthusiast in my youth and as a security professional in the corporate world as an adult, together for students to grow and learn from over a 6-month cyber security BootCamp.

    • Prepared students for industry certifications such as CompTIA Security+, Certified Ethical Hacker (CEH), and Certified Information Systems Security Professional (CISSP).

    • Covered key security concepts such as network security, cryptography, and incident response.

    • Conducted hands-on labs and simulations to reinforce learning and provide practical experience.

    • Stayed up-to-date on the latest security threats and vulnerabilities.

    • Utilized knowledge of security tools such as Wireshark, Nmap, and Metasploit to demonstrate concepts.

  • IT Operations ManagerTuSimple, Inc.

    Sep, 2021 - Feb, 20231 year 5 months

    Led a team of engineers and analysts in managing and optimizing network and hardware infrastructure for Linux-based clusters supporting autonomous freight trucks. Oversaw system maintenance, ensured high availability, and implemented robust security measures to protect critical operations. Collaborated with cross-functional teams to resolve technical issues, drove infrastructure scalability, and aligned IT strategies with organizational goals. Stayed informed about advancements in autonomous technologies and DevSecOps practices to enhance operational efficiency continuously. Played a key role in ensuring the seamless functionality of systems vital to the safe and efficient operation of autonomous freight trucks.

    • Developed a career path program for entry-level to management positions, driving professional growth.

    • Orchestrated escalation paths between 6 IT teams, ensuring smooth operations.

    • Implemented Scaled Agile for Enterprises to enhance project management efficiency.

    • Managed and maintained security infrastructure, including firewalls, intrusion detection/prevention systems, and vulnerability scanners.

    • Oversaw the implementation of security policies and procedures, ensuring compliance with industry standards and regulations.

    • Led incident response efforts, investigating security breaches and implementing remediation measures.

  • Linux System AdministratorTuSimple, Inc.

    Sep, 2019 - Sep, 20212 years

    Supported a world's first autonomous freight achievement by contributing build methods, standards, and security practices within their defined DevSecOps structure.

    • Designed and implemented distributed PXE Boot Installation systems, supporting multiple Linux distributions to streamline deployment and improve efficiency.

    • Engineered high-performance workstations equipped with multiple GPUs, optimizing containerized processing tasks and accelerating computational workloads.

    • Developed specialized servers with multi-GPU configurations, supporting sensor simulation and robust CI/CD pipelines.

    • Spearheaded the design and implementation of truck builds utilizing high-performance, high-availability, low-latency systems, enabling efficient offloading of tasks to multiple GPUs via containerized environments.

    • Pioneered automation services and established policy controls aligned with industry standards and security best practices, ensuring compliance and safeguarding infrastructure.

    • Implemented intrusion detection and prevention systems (IDS/IPS) to protect against unauthorized access and malicious activity.

  • Linux Systems AdministratorSony Network Entertainment, Inc.

    May, 2016 - Apr, 20192 years 11 months

    Maintained high availability of Linux systems in a 24x7 production environment, ensuring maximum service uptime through effective system configurations and support procedures. Provided Tier 2 support for Linux and storage systems, including user management, application support, disk space management, and hardware failure response. Automated routine operational tasks using shell and Puppet scripts while documenting procedures to enable efficient Tier 1 NOC support.

    • Led security initiatives, designing and maintaining Security Engineering (SecEng) infrastructure utilizing Tripwire and CyberArk to proactively monitor and secure critical systems.

    • Spearheaded the automation of PCI-DSS hardening controls across thousands of nodes, both on-premises and in the AWS Cloud, significantly enhancing security posture and compliance.

    • Proactively analyzed diverse threats and vulnerabilities, prioritizing remediation efforts and implementing effective solutions to safeguard organizational assets.

    • Collaborated closely with Infrastructure and Security Engineering/Governance teams, ensuring alignment on security practices and achieving organizational security objectives.

    • Deployed ArcSight, Splunk, QualysGuard and CyberArk for real-time threat detection and incident response, contributing to a robust security monitoring program.

    • Proficiently managed privileged access through CyberArk, enforcing least privilege principles and reducing the attack surface.

Projects Experience

Projects Experience

  • MoDe

    Aug, 2022 - Mar, 20237 months

    Python program to take video input from file or YouTube stream and detect motion utilizing the OpenCV library.

  • REAPR

    Nov, 2022 - Dec, 20221 month

    Python program to monitor chat from a YouTube live stream and record custom #HASHTAGS to a database for later review.

  • GAZR

    Oct, 2023 - Mar, 20251 year 5 months

    Python program to monitor chat from a YouTube live stream for custom #HASHTAGS to control pan, tilt, and zoom cameras remotely to view celestial objects live, through YouTube.

Skills

Skills

  • System Administration

    Automation

    BASH

    Linux

    Shell Scripting

    Satellite

    Cobbler

    CFEngine

    Puppet

    Chef

    Ansible

    Python

    Remote Management

    SSH

    PSSH

    RSYNC

  • Networking

    Network Devices (Switches, Firewalls)

    Protocols (TCP/IP)

    InfiniBand

    HPC

  • Databases

    Fault Tolerance

    Hadoop

    Kavka

    MySQL

    Oracle

    Memchached

    Redis

    Replication

  • Security

    Security Incident Event Monitoring (SIEM)

    ArcSight

    CyberArk

    QualysGuard

    Penetration Testing

    Attack Surface Management

    Risk Assessment

    Incident Response

    OWASP

    BurpSuite

    OllieDbg

    Metasploit

    Network Intrusion Detection and Prevention

  • Cloud Computing

    AWS

    GCP

    Azure

    OCI

    Object Storage

    Terraform

    Elastic Load Balancing

  • IT Service Management

    Change/Configuration/Incident/Problem Management

    ITIL Certified

  • Disaster Recovery

    Business Continuity Planning

    Data Center Failover

    Disaster Recovery Contigency Planning

    High-Availability

    Root Cause Analysis

    Threat Detection and Response

  • Services & Protocols

    Apache Web Servers

    SSL/TLS

    DNS Management

    DHCP

    SNMP

    SMTP

Education

Education

  • Network Administration, Incomplete, ECPI College of Technology

    Dec, 2000 - Aug, 2001

    3.68

    DOS and Micro Applications

    Linux Administration

    Public Speaking

    HTML Design

    Novell Netware

    x86 Hardware

Publications

Publications

  • A Dumpster Diving Treasure , 2600: The Hacker Quarterly

    Published on: Dec 01, 2002

    Volume 19 Number 4: The article published was in regards to finding and repurposing specialized hardware in Red Hat's dumpster.