# About me
Hi, I’m Martin. I’m an information security professional based in Innsbruck, Austria, with 15 years of experience as a consultant, engineer, and researcher.
I lead the security consulting practice at Axians ICT Austria, helping organizations assess and improve their security, from hands-on technical details all the way to strategic decisions at management level. I take a pragmatic, threat-based approach, focusing on the measures that reduce risk the most – in IT and OT environments alike.
I enjoy working across many areas of security rather than in a single niche. It helps me see how things connect and keep the bigger picture in view. I value working with people at every level, from engineers and infrastructure teams to CISOs. I’m a CISSP, hold an MSc in Computer Science, and have been running my own consulting and software engineering practice since 2011.
Outside of work, you’ll find me climbing, cycling, tinkering with DIY projects, or building things in my homelab.
If you’re looking for pragmatic security advice or want to exchange perspectives, feel free to reach out.
# Experience
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2021–nowLead Cyber Security Consultant @Axians ICT AustriaI lead the security consulting practice: developing services and methodologies, scoping and delivering engagements, and presenting results to management. I also advise CISOs and executives on security priorities. To make our work more efficient, I build tooling such as a collaborative assessment platform with automated reporting.
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2011–nowFreelance Security Consultant and Software Engineer @mplattner.atMy own practice for security consulting and software engineering, mainly custom web applications, including long-term maintenance and system administration.
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2020Added new features to the network analysis tool mitmproxy.
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2018–2020Information Security Researcher @University of InnsbruckResearch on cryptocurrency forensics in the Security and Privacy Lab of Rainer Böhme. Co-authored “BlockSci: Design and applications of a blockchain analysis platform”, published at USENIX Security 2020.Paper: [PDF] [Publisher] [Video] [Slides]
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2015–2020Focus on information security. My thesis on cross-chain analyses of forked blockchains received the “Best Master Thesis of the Institute 2020” award and the OCG Incentive Award 2022.Thesis: [PDF] [Slides] [Code]
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2011–2015BSc Computer Science and BSc Business Informatics @University of ViennaIncluding an exchange semester at Stockholm University with a focus on digital forensics. Received a four-year performance scholarship from the University of Vienna.Thesis: [PDF] [PoC app]
# Talks
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– Lost in OT? Industrial Cyber Security from an IT Expert's PerspectiveAn introduction to OT security for IT professionals: how industrial plants are built, how security differs between IT and OT, and how to protect systems that can’t simply be patched or rebooted.
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– Cyber Incident Response for Critical InfrastructureAn incident response case in the logistics sector: how we handled it, the tools we used, and the lessons learned.
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– Cyberattack First-Hand: Insights into a real incident[Event webpage]A walkthrough of a real incident response case, from first response to lessons learned.
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– Be Prepared When It Hits: Ransomware Readiness.[Event webpage]What organizations need in place to handle a ransomware incident.
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– Simulated Phishing Campaigns – Done right.[Conference recap video]Our phishing simulation service built on open-source tools, with a live demo of a full campaign on Terraform-automated infrastructure.
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– Automating Security Report Generation using Python[Conference recap video]Our Python toolchain for generating security audit reports, with live demos.
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– Generalizing BlockSci to Cross-Chain Analyses of Forked Ledgers[Slides] [Event website]Overview of my master thesis at the award ceremony of the Inday Students 2020 event.
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– Workshop: BlockSci's Architecture and Bitcoin Blockchain Data Analysis[Slides] [Course website]BlockSci’s architecture and hands-on Bitcoin data analysis, part of the “Principles of Blockchain Systems” lecture.
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– Training: Blockchain Data Analysis with BlockSci[Slides] [Demo I] [Demo II] [Event website]Blockchain analysis with BlockSci for Austrian law enforcement officers, regulators, and tax officers.
# Selected Freelance Works
Please note that most of my security-related projects are subject to an NDA and cannot be shown here.
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– Web Application: Panel Survey ManagementApplication for managing consumer panels for market research, integrating the survey software LimeSurvey. Fully internationalized and deployed to multiple environments via CI.
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– Web Application: Business Run Event ManagementApplication supporting all phases of running events, from participant management and an online shop with invoicing to barcode-based starter packet pick-up and timing results sent to participants’ phones.
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– Web Application: Workforce SchedulingStaff scheduling application for a large Austrian hospital, with schedule versioning, role-based access control, and absence management.
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– Website: Physiotherapist Carmen VeiderWordPress website for a local physiotherapist, including custom icons and SEO.
