Systems engineer · Network security

Complex security.
Made practical.

I’m Jonathan Hatfield. I build tools, labs, and technical stories that make network and cybersecurity architecture easier to see, test, and explain.

Start a security conversation ↗Explore NSE Path ↓

LAB / ACTIVE

01ObserveTelemetry online

02UnderstandContext mapped

03ActPolicy enforced

01Security architecture

Designs that connect controls to real outcomes.

02Hands-on labs

Build, break, troubleshoot, and understand.

03Technical storytelling

Clear explanations for engineers and leaders.

Featured projects

Understand more.
Put it into practice.

Tools for clearer security conversations and more focused learning. Built from the same idea: make complex topics practical enough to use.

Guided customer conversation2026

Fortinet × MITRE ATT&CK

Make security
easier to explain.

Start with what matters, choose familiar tools, and explore a visual attack story. Leave with a clear next step.

Start a conversation ↗

New projectSecure Layer by Jon

NSE Path

Your next certification.
One focused session at a time.

An independent study app for Fortinet certifications. Work through realistic scenarios, understand the reasoning behind each answer, and turn the areas you struggle with into your next study session.

Scenario practice
Answer explanations
Progress & review

In development

Coming soon for iPhone and Android.

Independent preparation. Not affiliated with or endorsed by Fortinet.

NSE PathBuild knowledge. Keep moving.

A focused study path

NSE 4

FortiOS 7.6

Administrator

Practice with purpose
Put your knowledge into a scenario.
Understand the answer
Learn the why behind each choice.
Come back stronger
Review mistakes and track progress.

NSE 8 study content is coming later.

Secure Layer by Jon

Notes from the field.

My YouTube channel and field notes will share practical lessons from building, troubleshooting, and explaining modern security environments.

YOUTUBE CHANNELCOMING SOON

▶

SECURE LAYER BY JON

Build · Break · Fix

Secure Layer by Jon.

Hands-on Fortinet and network-security labs, practical troubleshooting, architecture tradeoffs, and the lessons that survive outside the slide deck.

FIELD NOTES01

Architecture & troubleshooting

The “why” behind the design.

Short, useful breakdowns of security concepts, configurations, and customer architecture decisions.

THE JOURNEY02

Learning in public

Road to NSE 8.

A candid record of the labs, gaps, breakthroughs, and systems behind pursuing Fortinet’s expert-level certification.

About

I like the part where
the diagram meets reality.

I’m a Fortinet Systems Engineer focused on networking and cybersecurity. My work lives between deep technical detail and the customer conversation: understanding the environment, finding the real problem, and making a solution understandable.

This site is my place to build in public—interactive projects, technical field notes, and Secure Layer by Jon videos grounded in what actually happens in the lab and in the field.

FortinetSecure Layer by JonNetwork securityArchitectureLabsTechnical enablement

Complex security.Made practical.

Understand more.Put it into practice.

Make securityeasier to explain.