About Me

Authored by AJ Montano, Updated 2024.

Hello, my name is AJ Montano.

All my life I have connected people with technology and absorbed everything I can about both. I’ve built a successful career combining my passion for people & technology, and have been immersed in the technical community since I was a child.

I built my first computer with my dad in elementary school and started taking classes to learn Java & web development. During my high school years, books like the “anarchist cookbook” and philosophical entities like anonymous seriously challenged social norms. This period inspired a practically obsessive interest in Networking, CyberSecurity, and Psychology.

These upsets of societal norms ultimately culminated into a crazy “Wild West” kind of experience and caused significant victimization for less technically proficient people. That suffering ignited my passion to help people and secure this incredible CyberSpace we all share. My hyperfixation became rapidly learning technical concepts, techniques, languages, and tools. I hit the ground running with Backtrack testing exploits within my own network and injecting myself into the technical community. These interests have led to a career serving as a trusted technical authority in support of enterprise, government, and residential clients.

Shortly after high school, I discovered that I have a natural ability to build strong relationships and I became fascinated with the science and art that drives human psychology. I came across the research of Paul Ekman. He dedicated nearly the entirety of his career to the study of human emotions. He pioneered the research into human physiology & deception. I was hooked and rapidly achieved expert-level certification in micro-expression detection & analysis from Paul Ekman.

Naturally, I researched, developed, and applied people centered “soft skills” to further my career. Which eventually positioned me into a technical leadership-based career role. Where I led a technical team with GeekSquad in a demanding and complex environment. Meeting this challenge required that rapidly develop leadership proficiency. I took leadership courses, developed advanced techniques and acquired platinum certifications. Additionally, I successfully achieved platinum level certifications in all BestBuy, GeekSquad, store, field and corporate roles. These achievements made me eligible to participate in the entire Harvard ManageMentor program, provided by Best Buy. I achieved successful completion of all Harvard certifications in the leadership & development program. During my time in this role I developed and showcased the foundation that BestBuy used to transition GeekSquad field work from a cost center into a profit line on the P&L.

To further my development I left best buy and accepted a new technical role in government. In this role I have leveraged my technical and soft-skill expertise to advise, consult, and support the entire organization. This has lead me to become a trusted advisor to leadership, officials, decision makers and end users over all technical matters. These include matters of policy, design, investigation, and education. I’ve worked closely with and advised a team of forensic analysts, investigators, and attorneys in their investigations to support their acquisition, understanding, and use of technical data. As well as help them present that information to other non-technical people.

I firmly believe that success requires a comprehensive support system. As such my social network includes a diverse group of people with expert level knowledge and professionalism covering nearly every aspect of technology. This network allows me additional understanding of a huge variety of technological applications and has given me a uniquely strategic perspective.

Due to the ever-changing nature of technology, I constantly research new discoveries, latest technology, psychological insights and Cyber techniques. This passion for learning has enabled the emergence of a highly advanced technical & artistic skill set with vast Cyber applications. I currently attend Western Governors University in pursuit of my Bachelor’s and Master’s degree in CyberSecurity. At the time of writing, I hold about 113 college credits in total. However, In my personal perspective, dedication to develop skills beyond the classroom has an unmatched level of practical understanding. I have personally supplemented my skill development beyond the classroom regarding technical concepts like:

Programming: Python, PHP, C# and Powershell.
Web Development: Java, HTML, HTML5, CSS and CSS3.
Database Management Systems: Oracle, access, SQL and MySQL.
Game Development: Unity & Unreal Engine.
3D Graphics: Blender, Adobe Character Creator and MetaHuman.
Generative AI: Midjourney, Dalle, Gemini and ChatGPT.

Networking: Network+, Interconnecting Cisco Networking Devices (ICND), Firewalls, Multilayer Switching (MLS), Next Generation Firewalls (NGF), Cisco routing and switching, Virtual Networking (Vlan), Network Administration, Network Troubleshooting, Network Design, Network Engineering, Network Architecture, Cloud Networking, Domain Naming Service (DNS), TCP/IP, VOIP, and The complete coordination, configuration and implementation of modernizing significantly obsolete network infrastructure, including software, systems, host machines and peripheral equipment like phones and faxes.

CyberSecurity: Security+, Network Detection & Response, Intrusion Prevention, Intrusion Detection, Risk Assessment, Threat Mitigation, Security Assessment, NIST & MITRE Frameworks, Vulnerability Exploitation, Digital Forensics, Adversary Analysis, Open Source Intelligence, Phishing, Vishing, Privilege Escalation, Authorization Manipulation & Credential Capture, Denial-of-Service, Distributed-Denial-of-Service, Data Destruction, Detection Subversion, Honeypotting, Policy Development & Implementation, Incident Response, Physical Security, Cellebrite, GreyShift (Magnet GrayKey), Red Teaming, Blue Teaming and Purple Teaming.

Administrative: A+, Windows Domain, Microsoft Azure, Office 365, Active Directory, Mobile Device Management (MDM), SAN & ISCSI Windows Defender, Data Backup & Recovery, Adobe Suite of tools, System Repair, Linux, Kali Linux, Anti-Virus tools, Putty, SysInternals, WireShark, Nmap, zenmap, Notepad++, Bring Your Own Device (BYOD), PC & Mac, IOS & Android, Dream Weaver, PyCharm, Visual Studio, and much more.

Electronics: Audio Video, Home Theater, Licensed Video Calibrator (ISF), Audio Video Repair, Smart Home, HVAC, Appliances and Home Networking.

Active, ethical, and helpful communities collectively empower our society to produce positive change. This is one of the many reasons why I started r/ManagingUp and am involved in several other important communities.

Please check out the community page on my site if you’re interested in communities that make positive impacts. I may or may not have affiliations with these communities, but I believe they have value to add to our society and that is why they are listed in the community section of this website.

My little brother and my mom passed away on May 6th, 2022, and I have been creating digital art as a creative outlet to help work through the grieving process, check out my design studio at AJMdesign.com .

If you are interested in working together let’s get in touch and see if we’re a fit! Fill out my contact form so we can chat. Additionally, you can download a redacted version of my resume below if interested.