Week starting: 23rd February 2026
This was a busy week; less authoring, more research and planning for what’s ahead.
What I worked on
CTF Content:
- No new challenges authored this week
- Some of my existing challenges are currently featured in the Cyber Premier League (CPL) happening in Tanzania; courtesy of my role as a Content Engineer for CTFZone Labs (ctfzone.com)
- Deep in research mode for upcoming challenge authoring:
- Finals of the CPL
- Another National CTF
- One more project I’m cooking with the team
Community Sessions:
- Hosted the HTB Uganda Meetup session this week (second session ever)
- I wasn’t the speaker this time, just the host
- 45+ people attended consistently throughout the session
- The community momentum is holding strong
Learning:
- Currently focusing on Azure as I prep for an exam later
- Did some research into dMSA (Delegated Managed Service Accounts) in Windows Server 2025 as part of broader AD exploration
Content:
- Haven’t had time to deep-dive into new blog posts this week
- Sherlock writeups still on the backlog
Key takeaways
Seeing my challenges in the wild during CPL reminded me why I enjoy content creation for CTFs. Watching players engage with work you’ve built, even if you’re not directly involved in running the event is rewarding.
Hosting the HTB Uganda session instead of presenting was a different experience. Watching someone else deliver content and managing the session flow gave me a new perspective. The fact that we’re still pulling 45+ people for our second-ever session shows the community’s hunger for this kind of content.
Azure prep is forcing me to think about cloud security differently. The mental shift from traditional infrastructure to cloud-native thinking is real, and it’s clicking in ways I didn’t expect.
Challenges and friction
Work was demanding this week, which ate into time I’d normally spend on personal learning or content creation. Between that and the research phase for upcoming CTFs, there wasn’t much bandwidth left for Sherlock writeups or new blog posts.
The challenge authoring process is slower when you’re researching ideas instead of actively building. It feels less productive in the moment, but I know this groundwork is necessary for creating quality challenges later.
Looking ahead
Next week’s focus:
- Continue Azure exam prep
- Start building out challenges for the upcoming CTFs
- Hopefully find time to knock out at least one Sherlock writeup
- Get back to regular blogging rhythm
Research weeks feel slower, but they’re setting up the next wave of output.