In a world of infosec rockstars, shutting down sexual harassment is hard work for victims

[InfoSec News <alerts () infosecnews org>]

https://www.theregister.co.uk/2019/11/04/hackers_and_harassment/

By Shaun Nichols in San Francisco
The Register
4 Nov 2019

Cassie was studying for the computer security industry qualification CISSP when 
the harassment started.

A friend she had met at a nearby hacker meetup offered to help her prepare for 
the exams, and guide her through the world of infosec.

"He asked me about what my goals are and offered to mentor me. He also offered 
to provide me with resources to study for the CISSP certification exam," she 
said.

"I gladly accepted his offer in hopes of advancing my career and provided him 
with my email address."

As is often the case, he wanted to be more than friends, and when she turned 
down his romantic advances, the once seemingly friendly gestures deteriorated 
into sustained harassment. Cassie said that, despite making it clear she was 
not interested, the man continued to pester her with messages, and approach her 
at infosec events.

"While I was studying for the CISSP exam, he would frequently invite himself 
over. He would insist that I needed to relax and that he would teach me to pick 
locks," Cassie told The Register. "I politely declined his offers. I was okay 
with being around him in public, but not alone."

[...]



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