Amanda Rousseau is a malware researcher at Endgame and the founder of fashion-meets-cybersecurity blog VanitySec.

If I asked you to picture a hacker, you’d probably imagine a guy in a hoodie living in his mom’s basement. If you did, you’re not alone. To be honest, hackers have gotten quite a skewed reputation over the years!

Contrary to what you might think from watching TV shows like Mr. Robot or Silicon Valley, hackers are not a homogeneous group of nerds. I should know this, I’m a white-hat hacker.

Known as the Malware Unicorn, I kicked off my career in the U.S. Department of Defense protecting the government against cyber criminals. Since I was one of the few women on the floor, I had a higher standard to perform because I stood out and was an anomaly. In return, I was forced to learn how to get the job done efficiently and with no mistakes in a short amount of time, which allowed me to quickly rise through the ranks. While others were focusing on my gender, I was perfecting my skills and expertise. I now work in the private sector at a company called Endgame where I reverse engineer malware, which means I break down the lines of code in an attack to figure out how it works and how to stop it.

A few years into my career, I still see myself as an oddball: I rock platinum blonde hair, write bad malware pick-up lines, secretly place unicorns throughout my error code to add some flair, and love graphic design just as much as coding. In the cybersecurity industry though, I fit right in. By becoming an expert in my field and exceeding expectations, I’ve pushed my peers to overlook my gender and solely respect my ability to do the work and get the job done. You see, behind the computer screen, your gender and superficial characteristics don’t matter. Hackers have no identity; they’re anonymous. It’s the work you produce that earns you respect among peers.

Even though the cybersecurity industry has been predominantly male in the past, it is rapidly evolving and attracting hackers from all walks of life. In fact, a group of fellow hackers and I recently launched a blog called VanitySec to create a community for women working in the cybersecurity industry to discuss all-things fashion and security, from cute hand warmers for debugging to how to create artwork from your favorite malware. Ultimately, we want to show that there are multiple facets to being a woman in security, from malware to makeup and everything in-between.

We always need more smart and creative people to join the field to defend businesses and countries from an ever-changing cyber threat. You might look at cybersecurity and think it’s some foreign thing, but I’m here to tell you that it’s not. Here are four advantages to being a white-hat hacker:

1. You meet people from a variety of different backgrounds

Hackers aren’t all nerds stuck in their basement — I promise. In fact, cybersecurity professionals come from diverse backgrounds and possess a wide variety of skills. They’re coders, social scientists, data scientists, graphic designers and more. To be a really good hacker, it’s helpful to have a unique way of looking at problems, which is why a successful team is full of hackers from all walks of life (the more motley the crew, the better!). The threats are constantly changing, so being adaptable is paramount.