> I’m curious exactly how many times a candidate gets to apply to Matasano.
Undefined. Personally, I applied twice, ended up coming to work here the second time through.
> Do I have to do the microcorruption.com and the cryptopals.com and The Web Application Hackers Handbook before even trying the technical screens and challenges?
Nope. But they might help, and you may want to anyhow; they're fun :)
Thomas describes the Matasano process as costing “almost nothing,” but that includes running a couple exploit training websites and sending an 852-page book to applicants. Which I’m not inclined to go through immediately, because I need money right now.
Do I have to do the microcorruption.com and the cryptopals.com and The Web Application Hackers Handbook before even trying the technical screens and challenges? Or should I try seeing if my existing web application security best practices and rusty MIPS assembly experience are enough to get to where I have enough breathing room to do these exercises?