Vítor Costa

Cybersecurity · Infrastructure · DevSecOps

I'm a Cybersecurity Engineer with hands-on experience in secure development, automation, and incident response. Currently completing my Master’s in Computer Engineering, I’ve applied DevSecOps practices, strengthened infrastructure security, and implemented security controls across systems and networks. I'm autonomous, persistent, and driven by solving complex technical challenges.

Contact me Explore experience

01Incident Response

02SIEM & Monitoring

03DevSecOps

02 / EDUCATION

Academic background

A foundation in computer engineering, with a current focus on cybersecurity, secure infrastructure and DevSecOps.

September 2024 — July 2026EQF 7

Master's Degree in Computer Engineering

Cybersecurity and System Administration

ISEP - Instituto Superior de Engenharia do Porto·Porto, Portugal

Studied secure software development practices and implemented applications following those principles.
Gained hands-on experience with DevOps and DevSecOps through automation projects using tools like Docker, Jenkins, GitHub Actions, Ansible, Vagrant, and LXD.
Applied offensive and defensive cybersecurity concepts by implementing a SIEM with Wazuh and an IDS with Suricata, as well as conducting penetration tests using Kali Linux tools.
Designed and documented an Information Security Management System (ISMS) to define policies, procedures, and controls for an organization seeking ISO 27001 certification.
Applied secure networking protocols and principles across infrastructure setups.

September 2020 — January 2024EQF 6

Bachelor's Degree in Computer Engineering

Computer Engineering

ISEP - Instituto Superior de Engenharia do Porto·Porto, Portugal

Studied a wide range of programming paradigms, design patterns, and algorithms.
Worked with various technologies including Java, C#, C, and Bash scripting.
Received foundational training in computer networks and system administration.
Gained experience in both Linux and Windows Server environments.
Participated in semester-long integrative projects, working in teams to solve real-world problems by applying the technical skills acquired in class.

September 2017 — August 2020EQF 4

High School - Technological Scientific Track

Management Informatics

Colégio Internato dos Carvalhos·Vila Nova de Gaia, Porto, Portugal

Developed web applications using PHP.
Worked with ERP systems such as PHC.
Created automated solutions using Microsoft Excel.
Worked with various databases including SQL Server, MySQL, and MS Access.
Gained introductory knowledge in economics, accounting, and finance.
Studied fundamental marketing concepts.
Completed a final project that involved building an article-based website using PHP.

03 / EXPERIENCE

Work experience

Hands-on work across security operations, software engineering, infrastructure automation and enterprise IT.

June 2025 — NowPROFESSIONAL

Cybersecurity Engineer - SOC – Incident Response

Sonae MC

Maia, Portugal

Investigating and resolving reported cybersecurity incidents and cases.
Supporting SIEM rule tuning and optimization efforts.
Proposing improvements to the platform, including identifying potential new log sources.
Contributing to the definition and refinement of incident response processes.
Creating post-incident analysis reports (post-mortems) to document lessons learned and recommend actions.

September 2024 — May 2025PROFESSIONAL

Platform Engineer – Data Store Platforms

Sonae MC

Maia, Portugal

Assisted in automating virtual machine management using Ansible, GitHub Actions, and AWX.
Designed and implemented an API for centralized user management across multiple database systems, including MySQL, PostgreSQL, SQL Server, and Oracle.
Conducted research and developed proofs of concept for IT infrastructure automation.
Provided support to the DBA team with database-related issues.

October 2023 — December 2023PROFESSIONAL

Software Engineer Intern

Engenho & Obra

Porto, Portugal

Developed a web application for human resource management using a distributed system architecture.
Implemented the frontend using Angular and the backend with Java Spring.
Applied an onion architecture design pattern to structure the backend for better separation of concerns.
Created detailed deployment documentation for future use.
Delivered a fully functional solution including authentication, user and permission management, file sharing, event and absence management, and more—meeting all client requirements.

October 2019 — April 2020PROFESSIONAL

IT Intern

COTESI

Vila Nova de Gaia, Porto, Portugal

Manually updated outdated records in the SAP ERP system database.
Designed and helped implement a functionality to prevent future data inconsistencies in the ERP system.
Developed a simple application to automate document generation, streamlining internal workflows.
Assisted in network infrastructure maintenance.
Supported the implementation of GDPR-compliant data protection policies and helped mitigate risks of data exfiltration.