Simon McMahon

Cybersecurity-focused IT Support Officer (L2) with 3 years experience / Endpoint, identity & network security / Building toward a blue-team career.

Professional Summary

IT Support Officer (Level 2 scope) with 3 years’ experience across retail and corporate environments. Known for improving systems, leading small projects and mentoring junior staff while maintaining high ticket volumes and strong customer outcomes. Daily, hands-on experience with endpoint security, endpoint management (Microsoft Intune, Endpoint Central), network security (Cisco Meraki, Palo Alto firewalls, GlobalProtect VPN) and security monitoring tooling (Microsoft 365 Defender, Darktrace). Building a dedicated pathway into cybersecurity, underpinned by formal training in the ACSC/ASD Essential Eight and ISC2 Certified in Cybersecurity (CC).

Core Skills

Technical / Hard Skills

  • Security monitoring & alert triage (Microsoft 365 Defender, Darktrace)
  • Incident response support (investigation, containment, user/device remediation)
  • Vulnerability assessment & validation (Nessus, Nmap; remediation planning)
  • ACSC Essential Eight uplift (hardening activities; Essential Eight assessment training; E8MVT)
  • Endpoint security & fleet management (Endpoint Central, Intune; patching, packaging, OS deployment)
  • Identity & access management (IAM) (Microsoft Entra ID, ADUC, GPOs; MFA and policy alignment)
  • Network security fundamentals & troubleshooting (TCP/IP, DNS, VPN; Palo Alto, Meraki, GlobalProtect)
  • Secure remote access administration (ScreenConnect hardening, TeamViewer, RDS farm administration)
  • Security automation / scripting (PowerShell, Python; webhooks; Jira/email integrations)
  • Windows / macOS / Linux security-aware support (secure configuration, troubleshooting across OS types)

People / Professional Skills

  • Clear incident documentation (timelines, actions taken, outcomes, handover notes)
  • Calm, structured triage under pressure (prioritisation, escalation, SLA focus)
  • Strong customer/stakeholder communication (technical and non-technical)
  • High attention to detail (repeatable checks, evidence capture, verification)
  • Ownership & follow-through (drives issues through to resolution)
  • Team collaboration (works closely with infrastructure/security; vendor coordination)
  • Mentoring & knowledge sharing (1:1 coaching, runbooks, high-quality documentation)
  • Continuous improvement mindset (automation, standardisation, process uplift)
  • Adaptable work style (handles shifting priorities and clean handovers)
  • Professional service delivery (high-volume environments; customer-rated outcomes)

Professional Experience

IT Support Officer — Billabong Australia (Gold Coast)
Nov 2022 – Present
Retail & corporate IT support role working across ~140 stores (SDS, Billabong, Quiksilver, Roxy etc.) and ~200 head office users, handling Level 2 tickets, projects and security-focused work.

  • Partnered with the Infrastructure Team to perform daily cybersecurity checks across Microsoft 365 Defender and Darktrace.
  • Led smaller (~20 users) and contributed to larger (~900 users) Microsoft 365 tenant migration activities during a company merger (BitTitan MigrationWiz), with focus on identity, access and service continuity.
  • Reduced build time of retail and corporate machines by ~50% by redesigning OS deployment and standard images (Endpoint Central / NTLite / Hyper-V), strengthening standardisation and secure configuration.
  • Designed and implemented automated Retail Network Checks and enhanced Cisco-based reporting using a Python/PowerShell + Email + Jira workflow to improve network stability and operational resilience.
  • Led remote access hardening of ScreenConnect (HTTPS, MFA, password policies) to better align with ACSC Essential Eight guidance.
  • Supported deployment, configuration and day-to-day use of Endpoint Central, Microsoft 365, Microsoft 365 Defender and Darktrace across the retail network.
  • Administered retail RDS server farm (~140 daily users) including troubleshooting, incident management and patching; collaborated on GPO changes to enhance user experience and policy alignment.
  • Administered retail POS PC fleet (~500 endpoints) via Endpoint Central: patch management, OS deployment, application packaging and configuration management.
  • Mentored junior helpdesk staff with 1:1 coaching and high-quality documentation to improve first-contact resolution and consistent runbooks.
  • Consistently ranked among team leaders for resolved tickets and 5-star Jira ratings; nominated for Employee of the Quarter three consecutive times.

Trolley Collection Vehicle Driver — Coles Supermarkets Australia (Gold Coast)
Feb 2022 – Nov 2022

  • Safely operated trolley collection vehicles in a busy retail environment with strong focus on safety, reliability and customer service.
  • Recognised by management with a Take5 Employee Recognition nomination for work ethic and performance.

Data Analyst Intern — NoiseNet Operations Pty Ltd (Brisbane)
Aug 2017 – Feb 2018

  • Participated in FUELD Accelerator Sydney with the company.
  • Utilised professional statistical techniques and maintained large databases to collect and analyse data from partners and customers.

Education

Diploma of Information Technology (Advanced Networking / Cloud Engineering)
TAFE Queensland, Gold Coast · Jan 2022 – Dec 2022

Bachelor of Mathematics (GPA 5.6 / 7)
The University of Queensland, Brisbane · Feb 2014 – Jul 2018

  • Awarded Vice Chancellor’s Scholarship (academic merit)

Certifications & Training

  • Microsoft 365 Certified: Endpoint Administrator Associate — Studying (expected completion Jan 2026)
  • Essential Eight Assessment Course — TAFEcyber / ASD ACSC (issued 11 Jul 2025)
    Training in assessing implementation of the Essential Eight controls and developing actionable remediation plans.
  • ISC2 Certified in Cybersecurity (CC) — ISC2
    Foundational certification covering security principles, network security, access control, incident response and governance.

Software and Hardware Experience

Security Tooling & Hardening

  • Microsoft 365 Defender / Windows Defender, Darktrace, Nessus, Nmap, Windows AppLocker
  • Essential Eight Maturity Verification Tool (E8MVT), Bitwarden, KeePass
  • Security hardening, AdGuard / uBlock Origin / NoScript

Endpoint & Fleet Management

  • Endpoint Central (RMM), Microsoft Intune, OS deployment, application packaging, NTLite, Windows ADK

Identity & Access

  • Microsoft Entra ID, Active Directory Users & Computers, Group Policy (GPOs), ADMT (Active Directory Migration Tool)

Microsoft 365 / Admin Dashboards

  • Microsoft 365 Admin (Exchange Online / SharePoint / Teams), Google Workspace Admin
  • Box Admin (Box Drive, Box Shuttle), Adobe Admin, BitTitan MigrationWiz

Collaboration / Work Management / ITSM

  • Jira, Confluence, Trello, ManageEngine ServiceDesk Plus
  • Devolutions Server, Devolutions Remote Desktop Manager, Devolutions Launcher, Devolutions Workspace Browser Extension

Remote Support & Access

  • Endpoint Central, ScreenConnect, TeamViewer, RDS (Remote Desktop Services) Farm

Servers / Virtualization / Storage

  • Windows Server administration, VMware vSphere, Hyper-V, Windows DFS, Synology NAS, rack servers

Networking & Connectivity

  • Cisco Meraki (MX64/MX64W/MX65/MX68), Palo Alto firewalls, GlobalProtect VPN
  • DNS, reverse proxies, Windows DHCP scopes, WireGuard, OpenVPN

Monitoring & Troubleshooting Utilities

  • Observium, NetBox, WizTree, Everything (voidtools), Greenshot, network diagramming
  • Rsync, ForensIT Transwiz / User Profile Wizard

Development / Automation / Integration

  • PowerShell, Python (requests / NumPy / Pandas / FastAPI), Power Automate, webhooks, Postman, git
  • Docker, Docker Compose, Azure Functions, AWS EC2, AWS Lambda, Vercel, SQL databases
  • OpenAI API (RAG, MCP), ChatGPT Codex, Gemini AI Studio
  • GitHub Pages (Jekyll), AutoHotKey

Retail / Frontline Systems & Peripherals

  • Cegid Back Office (BO), Cegid Front Office (FO), Enghouse, Linkly, EFTPOS terminals
  • POSmusic Pro Player, Zebra barcode scanners, Epson TM-T88IV/V/VI/VII receipt printers
  • A4 printers (Epson/Brother/etc.), Canon & Fiery printers
  • Yealink W70B + W56H, Netgear LM1200, Telstra Smart Modem v7610, TPG, Telstra, Entag

End-User Hardware & OS

  • Windows 10/11, macOS, Ubuntu Server, Linux Mint, Linux/Bash
  • HP/Lenovo/Dell laptops & desktops, Apple iMacs/MacBooks, laptop docks
  • Logitech Rally Teams Room System

Home Lab & IoT

  • Home Assistant, Tuya smart devices, WireGuard, OpenVPN, ESPHome

References

Available upon request