What's up! I'm Ansh (spyduck007)
Hey! I’m Ansh, a high school student at TJ who likes to understand how systems work, and then see how they break, how they can be improved, and how to explain all of that to other people.
I’m interested in both cybersecurity and AI/ML, and a lot of my learning happens through building things, breaking them, and iterating until I actually understand what’s going on under the hood.
How I got started
My first real technical project was back in freshman year, when I built a secure file transfer tool. At the time, I didn’t know much beyond the basics, but that project taught me how security concepts like encryption, authentication, and threat models apply in practice, not just in theory.
That experience hooked me. Since then, I’ve been steadily expanding into different areas of cybersecurity, especially through hands-on work and CTF competitions. I enjoy starting with something small, realizing how many things I don’t know, and slowly filling in those gaps through research, testing, and failure.
Cybersecurity & CTFs
A big part of my growth has come from my involvement with my school’s cybersecurity club:
I’m currently an officer in TJCSC, where I:
- Compete in CTFs with the team
- Help organize and run in-house events
- Mentoring fellow club members cybersecurity topics and core concepts
- Design challenges and explain solutions in a way that’s approachable
Teaching has been one of the most rewarding parts of this experience. Explaining a concept forces me to understand it more deeply, and I enjoy helping others go from confusion to confidence, especially when they solve something they initially thought was impossible.
Interests
Within cybersecurity, I’m especially drawn to areas where logic, creativity, and persistence intersect:
- Cryptography, forensics, networking, and AI/ML vulnerabilities
- Reverse engineering and binary exploitation (still a work in progress, but I’m committed)
- Web exploitation and other CTF categories as they come up
Alongside security, I also work on AI/ML projects and tools, often experimenting with models, automation, or ways to augment existing workflows. I like using ML as a practical tool, not just training models, but understanding where they succeed, where they fail, and how they interact with real systems.
What I’m working on now
Right now, I’m focused on:
- Building personal cybersecurity and AI/ML projects that solve problems I actually care about
- Preparing lectures, workshops, and challenges for TJCSC events
- Writing clearer documentation and write-ups that reflect my real thought process
- Actively improving in rev and pwn (they’re still humbling, but that’s part of the fun)
- Writing and Publishing a research paper on AI/ML algorithms
- Continuing to participate in more CTF competitions all over the world
Outside the code
Beyond the technical side, I care about ethical hacking, responsible disclosure, and using technical skills in ways that genuinely make systems safer. I enjoy collaborating with curious people, mentoring others, and building tools that help someone else learn faster than I did.