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Welcome back to Pentester Diaries! In this episode, I sat down with Core Pentesters Harsh Bothra and Parveen Yadav to talk about their lives as full-time freelance pentesting. Full-time freelance pentesters work for multiple pentesting or bug bounty companies as freelancers.
I also talked with Core Pentester Alex Moraga, another full-time freelancer, about his experience. He shares his journey in this unique position below.
In your own words, what is full-time freelance pentesting?
It is doing what you like most 24/7, a mix between life and being professional.
Why did you decide to do freelance full-time instead of a traditional job?
When I decided to follow my true passion, I realized my options of whom to work for were limited because of where I was geographically. So I decided to give myself a chance to be a freelancer and have the freedom to work on my own time; I used to be a night person and had the opportunity to work on exciting projects remotely from any place in the world.
What are the pros?
You manage your daily schedule, choose where to work from, have the chance to team up with some of the best pentesters in the world in a multicultural environment that provides a great learning curve, and get paid based on the job, experience, and efforts.
What are the cons?
There is always uncertainty from time to time when it comes to the number of projects per month, paying the taxes, healthcare, and saving for your retirement is something that you have to be aware of; those are extra “soft skills” in some cases.
What does your week look like?
Most of the week is a mix between work and life. I have the chance to enjoy good food from a nice place and be prepared to attend a meeting, prepare a report, or even work on weekends. But for sure, it is worth the work/life balance that freelance gives you.
Advice for those interested in making the switch?
Transition is not psychologically easy. Be prepared to work with different people, take care of your finances, self-work, learn discipline, and most importantly, enjoy the job as much as possible.
