As Argonne’s cyber defense infrastructure support specialist, Giana Ciuffetelli helps to maintain and manage the cyber tools that keep Argonne safe and running well.

“Everyone has taught me so much,” said Ciuffetelli. ​“So, I believe working with my team is my favorite part. I enjoy collaborating and helping the team.”

While her colleagues work more on phishing scams, Ciuffetelli focuses on protecting Argonne overall.

“If you can imagine Argonne as a house, that house has doors and windows for all types of people to come in and work,” she said. ​“These people are authorized to come in and be there. My job, in this case, is to manage those windows and doors.”

“Everyone has taught me so much. So, I believe working with my team is my favorite part. I enjoy collaborating and helping the team.” — Giana Ciuffetelli, cyber defense infrastructure support specialist

She also knows the manufacturers and checks to see if there are any vulnerabilities in these structures.

“I ask questions such as: Are there better doors for Argonne to use instead of our current ones? Maybe there are doors that have new technologies, such as automatically opening and closing, instead of manually turning the knob and opening the door. I take these new things into consideration and decide if we should switch or keep the current doors.

These doors and windows also can have intruders come into Argonne and, as the security team, we try to make sure that these intruders stay out. For us, we use software on our network in the case of the doors and the house.”

Before starting last October at Argonne, Ciuffetelli was a student at Purdue University Northwest in Indiana. She earned her Bachelor of Science degree in computer information technology and finished a year of her master’s degree.

Outside of work, she plays video games and especially enjoys the new Pikmin game app that tracks steps and rewards players for walking around. She also takes care of two pet rabbits named Georgie and Candy, and a Russian tortoise named Tortellini that fits in the palm of her hand.

In addition, she enjoys exploring various foods and cultures. One of her favorite spots includes Tous Les Jours in Chinatown for its delicious cakes and pastries.

“A lot of my culture learning is through documentaries or trying different foods I hear about,” she said.

“I specifically have a lot of interest in Asian cultures. From clothing to language to ceremonies, such as weddings and parties, they are interesting.

Of course, I learn what I can from people of those different cultures, but I don’t just dwell on asking tons of questions. I just happen to learn throughout the friendship.”