How the Cybersecurity Boot Camp Helped Ron Neve-Bar Shift His Career Path—and Start a Company of His Own

As the co-founder of a successful software development company, Tapin2it, Ron Neve-Bar is no stranger to the IT industry. While building software for his clients, he wanted to go a step further by securing his digital business processes.

 “I was always interested in cybersecurity,” he said. “When COVID-19 struck, I thought there was no better time to start looking for online, part-time courses.”

After seeing an ad for UofT SCS Cybersecurity Boot Camp, Ron started researching the course and curriculum.

Before long, he knew he’d found his next step. “When you’re learning cybersecurity, there’s so much material,” he said. “You can go online and look at YouTube videos all day long, but I’m the type of person that needs to bounce ideas off instructors. The boot camp was perfect for me.”

Back to the not-so-basics

Having worked in IT for many years, Ron arrived at the boot camp with a solid foundation of technical knowledge. This allowed him to focus on the course’s more advanced material — and challenge instructors at every given opportunity. 

Although the boot camp took place during the pandemic, Ron liked the virtual aspect of the course.

“It was simple and easy to follow,” he said. “ A sense of camaraderie came across in the meetings and breakout rooms. I’ve stayed in contact with multiple people since the boot camp finished.” 

Tackling the Wild West

When Ron first joined the boot camp, he aimed to expand his existing IT knowledge. But before finishing the course, he had identified a new focus within the cybersecurity industry.

After doing some industry research, Ron was shocked to find that there was a huge gap in cybersecurity services for small- and medium-sized businesses.

“The small-to-medium business sector is literally nonexistent in the cybersecurity industry,” he said. “These companies are just left to the antivirus world, and that’s not good enough. I saw a huge opportunity there — it was like the Wild West.”

Talking to the experts

After completing the boot camp, Ron started talking to some big cybersecurity firms. He received advice from industry experts and started to develop his own business idea and direction.

“Because of the course, I had the right skill set to discuss everything at their professional level and from their perspective,” he said. “If I hadn’t taken the course, these conversations would have been completely different.”

Launching his new business  

Ron has now launched a detection and response business, CyberGood Security, that offers a cyber security monitoring service to small- and medium-sized companies.

 “The biggest misconception of these companies is thinking that no one will target them because they’re small,” he said. “They believe that they’re protected by antivirus software — but  that’s not good enough anymore.”

Today, Ron continues to grow his new business, day by day.

Want to expand your IT knowledge? Explore UofT SCS Boot Camps today.