👋 Hello there, I’m Marcos!
I am seeking Ph.D. positions in security and privacy that connect human-centered research with cyber threat detection, cyber threat intelligence, malware analysis, and cybercrime. I am especially interested in how human analysts investigate, interpret, and make decisions from EDR data, security telemetry, TTPs, and attack evidence—and in how attackers think, adapt, and operate.
A little bit about me
🧑🏽💻 I’m a final-year Computer Engineering student at CEFET-MG (Brazil), passionate about human-centered security and privacy.
🛡️ Alongside my research, I work as a Cyber Intelligence Analyst at Wabtec. Previously, I was a Cybersecurity Analyst at Hotmart, where I investigated security events in a large-scale production environment and developed operational documentation. These experiences complement my work across both technical and human-centered cybersecurity.
💻 I recently completed a research internship at the Max Planck Institute for Security and Privacy in Bochum, Germany, where I worked under the supervision of Dr. Yixin Zou. My research focused on human-centered security and privacy, analyzing the life cycle of online gambling addiction through personal testimonies to identify deceptive design patterns that manipulate users across regulated and unregulated platforms.
🛫 I was awarded a one-year U.S. Department of State scholarship to study cybersecurity at Northern Virginia Community College through the Community College Initiative Program (CCI), where I graduated summa cum laude with a 4.0 GPA.
📚 I’m the second author of a systematic review on cybergrooming with researchers from Virginia Tech, and I contributed to an international study on security and privacy advice across nine Majority World countries, published at IEEE S&P 2026, coordinating data collection in Brazil.
👾 I’m passionate about CTFs, hackathons, and collaborative research. I founded and served as president of CyberForce NOVA, a cybersecurity student club at NOVA, where I helped organize events and promote cybersecurity awareness.
If you’d like to know more about my work, check out my CV.
Publications
[C.2] Collins Munyendo, Veronica Rivera, Jackie Hu, Emmanuel Tweneboah, Amna Shahnawaz, Karen Sowon, Dilara Keküllüoğlu, Marcos Silva, Yue Deng, Mercy Omeiza, Gayatri Priyadarsini Kancherla, Maria Rosario Niniz Silva, Maryam Mustafa, Abhishek Bichhawat, Francisco Marmolejo-Cossio, Elissa M. Redmiles, Yixin Zou.
“I Wonder if These Warnings Are Accurate”: Security and Privacy Advice in Nine Majority World Countries.
IEEE Symposium on Security and Privacy (IEEE S&P), 2026 (to appear). 📄 PDF
* co-advisors[C.1] Heajun An, Marcos Silva, Qi Zhang, Arav Singh, Minqian Liu, Xinyi Zhang, Sarvech Qadir, Sang Won Lee, Lifu Huang, Pamela Wisniewski, Jin-Hee Cho. (2025).
Toward Integrated Solutions: A Systematic Interdisciplinary Review of Cybergrooming Research.
R&R at ACM Computing Surveys (in revision).
Preprint 📄: arXiv:2503.05727.
Selected Academic & Professional Experience - Full CV
Cyber Intelligence Analyst 🚆
September 2026 - Present
Wabtec
Cyber Intelligence Analyst at Wabtec, extending my applied cybersecurity experience while I continue to pursue research at the intersection of security, privacy, and human behavior.
Cybersecurity Analyst 🛡️
March 2026 - August 2026
Hotmart
Investigated security events and anomalies in a large-scale production environment, using IBM QRadar, CrowdStrike, and observability data to support threat triage and risk identification. Developed operational documentation and playbooks that standardized security workflows across teams.
Research Intern 🔍
Max Planck Institute for Security and Privacy
March 2025 - August 2025
Research intern in the Human-Centered Security and Privacy group led by Dr. Yixin Zou, conducting qualitative research on the life cycle of online gambling addiction through personal testimonies and uncovering deceptive design patterns that influence user behavior across regulated and unregulated platforms.
Research Intern 🧑🔬
Trustworthy Cyberspace Lab (tClab), Virginia Tech
October 2023 – November 2024
Worked under the supervision of Dr. Jin-Hee Cho as part of the RYLAI Project. Contributed as second author of a systematic interdisciplinary review analyzing 77 studies on combating cybergrooming and supported dataset and code collection to guide future research on online child safety.
Professor’s Assistant, Intern 📡
C4I & Cyber Center at George Mason University
November 2023 - February 2024
I had the opportunity to study the Zero Trust Architecture and its implementation in communication between drone swarms. Also, I had to perform a study and presentation of some drone flight simulation platforms for future lab research.
Web Developer Intern 🌐
PIIM-LAB - CEFET-MG
March 2022 - April 2023
Developed a full-stack web platform for online essay correction for federal network teachers, implemented platform improvements, created additional pages for file attachment and student registration, and built dynamic spreadsheets to display grades directly from the database using Python, Django, JavaScript, HTML, and CSS.
Awards & Achievements
3rd Place - CTF Competition at UFMG – (November 2024)
Integrant of the team that won the third place in a CTF organized by a federal university in Brazil (UFMG - DCC).2nd Place – UBC 2.0 Ideathon (September 2024)
National competition for Brazilian alumni of the U.S. Department of State, awarded for presenting a solution to protect the Amazon Rainforest.Academic Exchange Scholarship – CCI Program, U.S. Department of State (2023-2024)
One of 13 students selected nationwide in Brazil.Presidential Scholars Award – NOVA (2024)
Awarded for maintaining a GPA of 3.75+, completing 9+ credit hours per semester, and 20+ cumulative credit hours.Dean’s List Award – NOVA (2023)
Awarded for maintaining a GPA of 3.50+ with no grades below C and completing 6+ credit hours per semester.Honorable Mention – ICPC (International Collegiate Programming Contest), South America/Brazil Regional Phase (2022)
Honorable Mention – Minas Gerais Programming Marathon, Brazilian Computer Society (SBC) (2022)
International Event Organizer – Castlethon 4.0 (2022)
One of only 2 students from CEFET-MG selected to be part of the organizing committee.