Safeguarding Your Cloud Infrastructure in 2025

In the latest episode of UpCloud’s Cloudscapes podcast we were joined by Hack The Box – the Cyber Performance Center that provides a human-first platform to create and maintain high-performing cybersecurity for individuals and organizations. 

Thiseas Meggos, VP of Infrastructure, and Gerasimos Marketos, SVP of Product, shared how they’re scaling a global cybersecurity community of more than 3.5 million users, building a hybrid cloud architecture, and delivering upskilling labs using Pwnbox – a customized, online Parrot Security Linux distribution with pre-installed hacking tools.

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Building a Cyber Performance Center

Hack The Box is a leading platform dedicated to building high-performing cybersecurity individuals and organizations. Rather than focusing on end-user security awareness, they targets cybersecurity teams and professionals, offering a comprehensive cyber performance center that combines upskilling, capability assessment, and recruitment.

“We enable users to achieve readiness and resilience, things that are pretty critical in today’s world.” – Gerasimos Marketos, SVP of Product, Hack The Box

The Move to Cloud: Flexibility and Scalability at the Core

Hack The Box’s early move to cloud computing was driven by scalability, flexibility, and cost efficiency. This strategy allowed them to rapidly grow a global platform, now supporting over 3.5 million users.

“The cloud gives you the freedom to deploy what you need at a relatively good cost, while taking away all the headache of the maintenance.” – Thiseas Meggos, VP of Infrastructure, Hack The Box.

They partnered with UpCloud to scale demanding services like Pwnbox, and the intense load generated during proof-of-concept testing pushed both organizations to enhance performance and resilience together. 

Hybrid Cloud: The Optimal Model for Modern Security

Hack The Box takes a hybrid cloud approach, combining private cloud stability with public cloud flexibility. Their private cloud setup provides predictable performance for day-to-day operations, while public cloud capacity handles massive spikes during events like Capture The Flag competitions.

“When you have spikes in usage, you utilize public cloud resources for that specific time when you don’t need those running necessarily every day.” – Gerasimos Marketos, SVP of Product, Hack The Box

This hybrid strategy supports cost optimization and scalability, and allows Hack The Box to meet fluctuating demand without overprovisioning – ensuring an efficient and secure infrastructure.

The Future of Cybersecurity: AI, Quantum, and Continuous Learning

AI and emerging technologies are only going to continue growing in the cybersecurity space  – from chatbots and generative AI. However, AI expands the attack surface of organizations and these new touchpoints require security attention. Hack The Box is already addressing this with dedicated AI security training modules developed in partnership with Google. Quantum computing, IoT, ICS, and OT environments also represent areas of growing focus for the Hack The Box team. 

Continuous Upskilling is Non-Negotiable

If there is one clear message from this episode, it’s that continuous upskilling and research in cybersecurity are absolutely essential. As threats evolve at an unprecedented pace, staying ahead requires constant learning and adaptation.

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