{"id":196634,"date":"2026-03-17T07:02:00","date_gmt":"2026-03-17T11:02:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/testing.news-you-need.com\/index.php\/2026\/03\/17\/cyber-residency-program-news-releases\/"},"modified":"2026-03-17T07:20:11","modified_gmt":"2026-03-17T11:20:11","slug":"cyber-residency-program-news-releases","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/testing.news-you-need.com\/index.php\/2026\/03\/17\/cyber-residency-program-news-releases\/","title":{"rendered":"Cyber Residency Program \u2013 News Releases"},"content":{"rendered":"

Cyber Residency Program \u2013 News Releases<\/a><\/p>\n

https:\/\/newsreleases.sandia.gov\/cyber-residency\/<\/a><\/p>\n

Publish Date: 2026-03-17 07:02:00<\/a><\/p>\n

Source Domain: newsreleases.sandia.gov<\/a><\/p>\n

Author: <\/a><\/p>\n

Using an unordered list, summarize the following article with between 4 and 8 key points. <\/p>\n

ALBUQUERQUE, N.M. \u2014 The American Medical Association describes residency as a bridge between medical school and independent practice, giving residents an immersive experience to apply what they have learned while building expertise.<\/p>\n

Sandia National Laboratories cybersecurity experts Kinsleigh Wong, left, and Matthew Trotter work through a problem regarding a scenario that is part of the general forensics rotation of Sandia\u2019s cyber residency program. (Photo by Craig Fritz) Click on the thumbnail for a high-resolution image.<\/p>\n

Swap medicine for cybersecurity and you get a good sense of Sandia National Laboratories\u2019 cyber residency program. The program offers a tailored, hands-on learning experience for cyber defenders right out of college, as well as Sandia employees with other expertise who want to transition into cybersecurity.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe observed that most of the cybersecurity defenders took about 18 months to become proficient,\u201d said Han Lin, a Sandia manager who founded and oversees the program. \u201cOur initial motivation for creating the program was to fast-track their learning so they would be contributing and being impactful in six months instead.\u201d<\/p>\n

The program has been running about five years and roughly 75 employees have completed the residency. About 20% of residents are Sandia employees with related expertise who wanted to explore cybersecurity, while the rest were recent graduates.<\/p>\n

Residents rotate through as many as five cybersecurity focus areas, with each rotation lasting as long as needed for the resident to gain the necessary skills, Lin said. All residents gain experience in computer forensics, while rotations in incident response, red teaming, information assurance and secure software depend on a resident\u2019s interests.<\/p>\n

Introduction to computer forensics<\/p>\n

Much like crime scene investigation, computer forensics involves examining the data and clues left behind after an attack or breach to identify the culprit and determine whether they accomplished their objective. The work can include network forensics, application forensics and memory forensics. Each area requires specialized tools to avoid disturbing any evidence, Lin said.<\/p>\n

Sandia National Laboratories cybersecurity experts Matthew Trotter, left, Kinsleigh Wong, right, and manager Han Lin discuss logistics of Sandia\u2019s cyber residency program and the Forensic and Incident Response Exercise also known as Tracer FIRE. (Photo by Craig Fritz) Click on the thumbnail for a high-resolution image.<\/p>\n

The computer forensics rotation includes lectures and active-learning assignments, said Kinsleigh Wong, a Sandia cybersecurity expert and former resident who helps run the rotation. Depending on whether a resident is an established employee exploring a new career or a recent graduate, the rotation can be part time while the employee continues normal work or a full-time commitment, Lin said.<\/p>\n

One lecture focuses on memory forensics, said Matthew Trotter, a Sandia cybersecurity expert who teaches the session and supports the rotation. He described memory forensics as conducting an \u201cautopsy\u201d on computer memory to capture clues before they disappear when a device loses power The work requires specific tools and technical expertise, he said.<\/p>\n

\u201cPeople are generally pretty receptive and say it\u2019s very interesting because it\u2019s not something you learn about in a traditional educational course,\u201d Trotter said. \u201cIt\u2019s been memorable sharing knowledge that I gained from diving into it and learning how to tailor the talk to share my knowledge in an accessible manner.\u201d<\/p>\n

To help residents remember the process workflow, Trotter created an exercise built around a mock cyberattack, including a list of tools and steps he would use to extract forensic data from memory.<\/p>\n

Creating a practical exercise<\/p>\n

As part of the general forensics rotation, residents use what they learn to create a new Tracer FIRE scenario. Tracer FIRE, short for Forensic and Incident Response Exercise, is a three-day cyber workshop. Sandia partners with universities to offer the exercise and provide students with a realistic experience. Wong added that Tracer FIRE also gives current cybersecurity staff an opportunity to practice and maintain their skills.<\/p>\n

Each summer\u2019s scenario is different and has ranged from protecting an electric scooter company from ransomware and corporate espionage to defending a municipal water supply\u2019s operational technology from hackers and a rogue CEO, Wong said. Each resident, Tracer FIRE intern and staff member involved in the exercise is responsible for building part of the scenario, whether that is setting up an element of the attack or preparing digital \u201cclues\u201d tied to a segment of the narrative.<\/p>\n

Lin said Tracer FIRE also serves as a recruiting tool. Students who thrive in the exercise can apply for summer internships at Sandia, and top interns are often hired as staff after graduation, helping create a talent pipeline.<\/p>\n

Once residents complete the program, they mentor the next group of residents, Lin said. Spreading mentorship across alumni reduces the burden on any one person and gives former residents a chance to deepen their expertise and build leadership skills.<\/p>\n

Wong said he started at Sandia as an intern in 2018 and was hired in 2021. Since completing the residency, he has mentored about 10 residents. He said his favorite rotation was incident response, where residents learn the practical steps of responding to a cyberattack instead of analyzing evidence afterward.<\/p>\n

\u201cI especially liked the incident response rotation because I liked seeing the tools and processes that are used by our incident response teams,\u201d Wong said. \u201cIt really fleshed out my whole view of enterprise cybersecurity at Sandia.\u201d<\/p>\n

Building a network<\/p>\n

Beyond technical training, Lin said the program is designed to help new employees build a professional network across the organization.<\/p>\n

Sandia National Laboratories cybersecurity expert Kinsleigh Wong keeps a chess board in his office when he needs to take mental break. Wong, a past resident, now serves as a mentor for Sandia\u2019s cyber residency program. (Photo by Craig Fritz) Click on the thumbnail for a high-resolution image.<\/p>\n

\u201cIf they need a network forensics expert, they know who to call because they worked with one during a rotation,\u201d Lin said. \u201cThey find people they enjoy working with and learning from, so they stay. Retention is not always about money. It\u2019s about the people you work with too.\u201d<\/p>\n

Wong said networking is a vital part of the residency.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt feels like I\u2019m a connector,\u201d he said. \u201cAs a mentor, I\u2019m focused on letting them know what\u2019s here and connecting them with their interests. If they\u2019re really good at software development, I might have them explore malware development.\u201d<\/p>\n

Trotter, who joined Sandia before the residency program began, said the structure would have helped him early in his career.<\/p>\n

\u201cI remember when I started, I was inundated with all these different tools and processes that I had to learn on the go,\u201d he said. \u201cIt was overwhelming. With the residency program, it gives you time to learn without having expectations on you. It really helps. We\u2019ve gotten some really great hires out of the program.\u201d<\/p>\n

<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Cyber Residency Program \u2013 News Releases https:\/\/newsreleases.sandia.gov\/cyber-residency\/ Publish Date: 2026-03-17 07:02:00 Source Domain: newsreleases.sandia.gov Author:…<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":196635,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"fifu_image_url":"https:\/\/www.sandia.gov\/app\/uploads\/sites\/275\/2026\/03\/Problem_solvers-1024x683.jpg","fifu_image_alt":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[15],"tags":[30,24,32],"class_list":["post-196634","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-cybersecurity","tag-breach","tag-cybersecurity","tag-malware"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/testing.news-you-need.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/196634"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/testing.news-you-need.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/testing.news-you-need.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/testing.news-you-need.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/testing.news-you-need.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=196634"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/testing.news-you-need.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/196634\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":196636,"href":"https:\/\/testing.news-you-need.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/196634\/revisions\/196636"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/testing.news-you-need.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/196635"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/testing.news-you-need.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=196634"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/testing.news-you-need.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=196634"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/testing.news-you-need.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=196634"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}