RALEIGH – Two cybersecurity interns with the N.C. Department of Information Technology (NCDIT) are already helping protect state systems and the personal data of North Carolinians.
While working in NCDIT’s Enterprise Security and Risk Management Office (ESRMO), interns Jennifer Medina, a Wake Technical Community College graduate, and Jacob Wright, a student at Fayetteville Technical Community College, recently helped identify and mitigate potential cyber threats.
Medina flagged a suspicious email, initiated a systemwide purge, and blocked the associated malicious URL, preventing users from accessing it even if they had previously clicked the link.
In a separate incident, Wright detected an attempted account compromise before automated alerts were triggered and quickly escalated the issue so his team could isolate and disable the threat.
“Folks raved about what they did,” said their supervisor, Albert Moore, an IT security and compliance manager at NCDIT. “It really caught my attention when their coworkers were congratulating them for saving the day.”
Medina and Wright are part of a growing partnership between NCDIT and the Carolina Cyber Network, which includes 23 universities and community colleges across North Carolina. The initiative is designed to strengthen the state’s cybersecurity talent pipeline while giving students real-world experience protecting public systems.
For Wright, a former Army sergeant and combat medic who served two deployments before studying cybersecurity, the internship provides an essential on-ramp into the field.
“This internship is a kind of bridge over the gap to doing exactly what I want to do,” Wright said.
For Medina, the experience has reinforced her decision to pursue a career in cybersecurity. “It’s confirmed this is the work I want to be doing. This is the career I want to pursue,” she said.
The program offers paid, 20-hour-per-week positions with flexible shifts alongside the state’s experienced cybersecurity professionals, making it accessible to students balancing school, work, and family responsibilities. These internships both strengthen the state’s cyber defenses and help address critical workforce shortages in the field.
“There are lots of places to fit in cybersecurity, and I believe it’s a strong career choice,” Moore said. “Public service is a calling. The reward is knowing the data you’re protecting is your data, your family’s information, and the systems people rely on every day.”
NCDIT is expanding partnerships with universities and community colleges to bring more early-career talent into public service technology roles and ensure North Carolina remains prepared to defend critical digital infrastructure.
For more information about the N.C. Department of Information Technology, visit https://it.nc.gov or follow us on X, Facebook, LinkedIn, YouTube and Flickr.
