BTL1 Success Stories

Back in 2020 I decided to transition from DevOps/Systems Engineering into a role with more focus on cyber security, in particular DFIR. I took BTL1 after months of decision making and was glad I did. The hands-on training gave me everything I needed to gain the coveted gold when I finally took the exam, and the confidence to jump straight into a senior SOC analyst role.

BTL1 also gave me the knowledge that I could combine with my previous non-cyber related experience to create some well received digital forensic challenges for the BTLO platform.

The Blue Team Level 1 Certification is a comprehensive exam that incorporated many different skills that a blue team operator may require depending on the role they wish to go into. The content is easy to follow and goes into more than sufficient detail.

The Exam itself was undoubtedly challenging and took me approximately 18 hours to attain gold, the experience made me a much more confident and well-rounded analyst and has made me qualified for lead roles.

BTL1 has helped me tremendously on my journey to become a SOC Analyst. The skills I have learned from this course and exam gave me a great foundation on blue team and prepared me well for my job interview. Whether you are on your journey to become a blue teamer or already work in the industry for a while, BTL1 is the way to go!

BTL1 has changed my life tremendously! After months of grinding, practicing, and garnering certifications, I realized I needed more “practical” training! I managed to complete the 24-hour incident response with everything I learned from the course! I was immediately showered with love from the community. I also received three offer letters for a security analyst position! I went from a NOC Technician to a SOC Analyst in a few days! BTL1 has solidified my skills as a defender!

Thanks to Security Blue Team I discovered how amazing the defender side is. Starting with the BTJA, getting BTL1 certified and BTLO as the secret sauce, I was able to get my dream job in 6 months. I had to work hard to get to the top ranking at BTLO. However, between the amazing community, the BTL1 great content and the realistic exam, I was able to upskill myself enough to stand where I am now.

Earning my BTL1 certification was an effective way for my employer to gauge that I did have the necessary skills needed for a job promotion.

The BTL1 course gave me practical hands-on training which was a huge help in the interview process. I was able to speak to topics like MITRE ATT&CK, Phishing Analysis and SIEM tools in interviews and further describe how these tools (and others) can be used.

I don’t think I would have made it through the interviews for this role had it not been for the BTL1 training and what I learned. There's a lot of overlap between what I do day-to-day now and what I learned in the BTL1 course & exam.

I took BTL1 back in December 2020, at that time I was pretty new to the SOC, however I had some cybersecurity knowledge and experience. I do believe that BTL1 provided me with knowledge and skills that have helped me to become a Senior SOC Engineer! The material was very well organized, and easy to follow. I really enjoyed the path this course gave me in deciding what to practice.

The hands-on labs were helpful in solidyfing the obtained knowledge. The exam was really challenging, like the Blue Team version of OSCP, which is good because if you manage to pass it you know that you have obtained necessary skills to become SOC T1 or even SOC T2 as in my case.

BTL1 does not only look good on my resume, but the material within is what has really made me shine. With no prior organisational security experience, BTL1 has prepared me for the challenges ahead, granting me a certain perspective like no other certification. The practicality of BTL1 has forced me to think differently and has made me a valuable asset to my current organisation where I can proactively and reactively respond to attacks and investigations with a high level of confidence in my abilities. BTL1 is a big part of where I am today.

Before deciding to purchase BTL1, i was a systems engineer and already had a job offer as an engineer in a SOC environment. I thought it would be a good idea to sharpen my knowledge before moving into the new job. One of the reasons i purchased the exam was due to the lack of budget-friendly blue team certificates. As far as i knew, the other “cheaper” options were mostly product certificates or theory-based.

The exam was my first certificate in blue team so i have no comparision with others but the coverage of topics was very wide in my opinion. My first attempt i failed due to my lack of knowledge in splunk(the hardest part of the exam in my opinion). After brushing up my splunk knowledge I passed the exam with a score of over 90%. The learning experience built me a solid foundation to branch out and explore different fields in defensive security.

I want to work in the GRC world, so at first glance BLT1 is not made for me, however my team motivated me to choose this certification. BTL1 allowed me to discover all the fields of defensive cybersecurity, and provided me with technical skills to occupy a position.

I see the return on investment of this certification every day in my work, or in the context of personal projects. I have learned so much thanks to this certification that I am looking forward to the release of Blue Team Level 2 to continue to deepen my knowledge and acquire new skills to be a better blue teamer!