Professional Summary
Analytical, outside-the-box technologist with 14+ years practical experience across software development, solution architecture, information/network security, reverse engineering, and systems administration — plus hands-on engineering trades (welding, electrical wiring, vehicle mechanics, hydraulics, micro-electronics). Specializes in rescuing and modernizing legacy monoliths into low-footprint, high-performance microservices, then mentoring client teams to operate them. Primary web stack: Blazor Server + C#; cloud solutions in C# end-to-end; fluent reading/debugging/porting Java, Rust, VB.NET/Visual Basic, Clarion, Progress 4GL/OpenEdge, C/C++, Pascal, PHP. Azure hosting + Azure DevOps co-managed for the Payme/Mentenova programme. Author of The Intimacy of Truth (in progress). Practical depth beats book smarts.
Core Competencies
Solution architecture (monolith→microservices strangler) · C#/.NET (Framework→Core→10), Blazor Server/WASM, MAUI/Xamarin · Web, e-commerce & CRM builds · Reverse engineering (barcodes/RSA, RFID/AEI, pcap, emulation) · Vulnerability assessments, Zero-Trust identity (DPoP/FIDO2, MFA mesh), network active defense (Go/eBPF, WAF, ipset), RASP · Biometrics (ZKTeco/Crossmatch, R558/AS608) · Data (MS SQL, Postgres/Timescale+PostGIS, MySQL, SQLite, Oracle; EF + Dapper; Redis) · Document management & OCR · Azure hosting + DevOps · Mentorship & delivery leadership · JSE-scale identity & onboarding design.
Professional Experience
Bespoke development + SaaS incubation: OmniTrust/OmniLock zero-trust mesh, OmniGrid HEMS, RDT biometric terminals, container/OCR logistics pipeline, PlayStore/MobisecLite app suite. Consulting member, JSE Project Horizon (Biometric-First Identity Framework v1.0 + onboarding flows consolidation).
Commissioned to optimize legacy Mentenova benefits monolith (netcoreapp2.2, MVC/jQuery, EF Core 2.x, IdentityServer4). Single-handedly architected and built the modern net10 replacement (Blazor UI, split Dataservice/Calculation/ClientAccess APIs, standalone Identity microservice, event-driven messaging, Redis cache, OpenAPI, 4 envs + APITEST; Azure-hosted, DevOps-managed). Final ~1.5 years: mentored client internal developers in monolith→microservices patterns.
Web API + Xamarin/Android rescue, debugging, and ongoing improvement of client systems.
Driver-licence pre-capture scanning (external specialist), TTTFP/CTMS operator + officials enterprise deployment apps (SADC corridor), proprietary SSO cryptographic services + mobile clients + Linux/Windows server administration, assorted POC/R&D.
Tender demos, in-house tools, reverse engineering of orphaned software, SAP integration modules, legacy biometric integration, Ruckus SmartZone/SpoT.
Client infrastructure, installs, monitoring, Ruckus AP triangulation, R&D.
OpenEdge systems, Crystal Reports, calibration tooling (days→minutes); earlier: functional test docs, DoD mobile medic app testing, DRC House Plates (GIS + biometrics), Malawi site supervision and staff training.
Microfilm production automation (+~70% throughput), monitoring/logging, XML indexer (+~70%), validation auto-fix, Java/Oracle uploader, LTO shell scripts, IRIS management, junior mentoring.
Flagship Deliverables
PlanMyBenefits modernization · SA/Namibian DL barcode RE chain · Transnet RFID AEI decoder · RDT biometric terminals · OmniTrust/OmniLock zero-trust mesh (red-team audited) · CTMS corridor MDM · OmniGrid HEMS · Container/OCR pipeline · JSE biometric identity framework. Pilots: ContainerRowCall, VisitorManagementSolution, OmniLock (OldWipps).
Skills Matrix (evidence-anchored, L2–L5)
- • C# / .NET (Framework 4.x → Core 2.2/3.1 → 6/7/8 → 10) — L5 · PlanMyBenefits net10 + CPM; OmniTrust 40+ csproj; MAUI net8/10-android
- • VB.NET / Progress 4GL / Crystal — L4 · Magna BC OpenEdge; VMSParser VB; fan-fold calibrator
- • C / VC++ / Arduino C++ (ESP32-S2/C3) — L4 · DL decryption (VC++), OmniGrid/RDT firmware (ArduinoJson, SPIFFS, Modbus)
- • Java / Android (NDK, Kotlin/Compose, Xamarin) — L3 · Kotlin 1.9 + NDK bridge.cpp; Xamarin→MAUI migration
- • Python (tooling/data) — L3 · business_scraper; book builder generate_book.py (467 lines)
- • Go / C++ NDK / PHP / Ruby — L2 · OmniWall Go/eBPF daemon; ExamplePHP QR; SAP/Ruby modules
- • SQL (T-SQL, Postgres, MySQL, SQLite) — L4 · Per-schema Dataservice APIs; Timescale+PostGIS; Logs2sqlite Top-20; Dapper hot paths
- • Blazor Server (primary), e-commerce, CRM, WASM — L4 · Blazor Server/WASM storefronts, CrmDemo, XAF back-offices, WebForms→Blazor migrations
- • ASP.NET Core Web API / WCF / OData / GraphQL — L4 · CTMS OData+WCF+EF6/7; OmniTrust GraphQL extraction
- • EF Core + Dapper / Redis / Hangfire — L4 · Redis/In-Mem cache, Dapper hot paths, chunked streaming
- • MS SQL / Postgres/Timescale+PostGIS / MySQL / SQLite / Oracle — L4 · Per-schema APIs; pcap→SQLite pipeline; Oracle IRIS pipeline
- • Data Analysis / OCR / Reporting — L4 · QuestPDF/EPPlus/FastReports; VoTT + PaddleOCR/PixelLink-LSTM; ApexCharts
- • Testing / QA / Forensics — L4 · DB-driven test suite; xUnit RdtBackupTool.Tests; EnCase cert
- • MAUI / Xamarin.Android / Kotlin/Compose — L3 · MAUI 8/9 + BarcodeScanner.Mobile/Camera.MAUI; omni-ip Kotlin+NDK
- • Mobile Device Mgmt / Kiosk / EDR (MDM) — L4 · OmniLock 150+ policies, DeviceOwner, 10 FPS remote-control; CTMS TTTFP lockdown
- • Identity (IdentityServer4 → OpenIddict 7.4, OIDC/JWT/DPoP, RBAC) — L5 · Tiered RBAC (UserType ∩ GroupRole ∩ Override), Login-As, FICA/RICA + POPIA
- • Cryptography (RSA, Argon2id, Pedersen/Bulletproofs) — L4 · Decryptor RSA 128/74-block; OmniVault ZK; OmniTrade CYP ledger
- • Biometrics (ZKTeco/Crossmatch, AS608/R558, RK0057.bio) — L5 · RDT enrol/match/import-export; OmniTouch Modbus/Relay/HID
- • RE / Protocol Analysis (barcodes, RFID, pcap, emulation) — L5 · SADL/NAMDL chain; Transnet ATA/AEI 128-bit; HSM pcap; Unicorn SWI32 emulation
- • Low-footprint / High-performance design — L5 · MQTT 4→1 gateway; single-file trimmed net10-android; ArduinoJson7 streaming fix
- • Network / Systems / Security Admin — L4 · Ruckus SmartZone/SpoT; CentOS/MS Server; Kudu/Azure; Coolify/Docker; Coraza WAF + ipset
- • Azure hosting + Azure DevOps — L4 · App Service, MySQL Flexible, Service Bus, SignalR; repos + pipelines (Payme)
- • Cloud & Containers — L4 · Docker/Coolify, Kudu, Mosquitto MQTTnet, Coolify self-host
- • Micro-electronics / ESP32 / Sensors / Power — L4 · ESP32-S3 KiCad; C3 SuperMini HEMS; buck/MAX3232/ACS712; potting/RJ45/3D brackets
- • Electrical / Hydraulics / Vehicle Mechanics / Welding — L3 · Field installs (Ionizer/RDT/OmniGrid); weighbridge/scale integration
- • Document Mgmt / Microfilm / GIS — L4 · AST IRIS/LTO3/Oracle; DRC House Plates GIS; container OCR/RowCall
Scale: L2 Proficient · L3 Advanced · L4 Expert · L5 Architect-Mentor. No proficiency percentages.
Certifications & Milestones
- MCSE TCP/IP Module — Completed intensive 48-hour self-study at age 14 under supervision of a practising CISO/digital forensics specialist; passed all mock exams unaided.
- CompTIA Network+ (age 23) — Reported 119% score — revealing grading inconsistency at Damelin (as documented in CV).
- Guidance Software EnCase 6 Enterprise Implementation Certification — Validated proficiency in forensic data acquisition and analysis at enterprise scale.
- Progress 4GL Foundation Certification — Formal credential for OpenEdge development (Magna BC era).
- Online credentials (edX, Coursera, MIT, Alison) — Cryptography L1–L2, cloud architecture, advanced programming, PM, network security, blockchain, MAUI — practical depth over paper.
Professional ethos: Every role earned through relentless hard work, perseverance, and a deep drive to understand people, businesses, and the world. “We each owe society at least as much as we take.”
Mentor insight: “There is never enough time to do it twice and always enough to do it right.”
Differentiators
Not the best in any single skill — unmatched in breadth + practical depth + creativity across IT and engineering trades. Ships, documents, mentors, and hands over running systems. See Portfolio and Achievements.
This HTML CV is the print source (File → Print → Save as PDF produces a print-friendly PDF). A static PDF is also served at /cv/Werner_Pretorius_CV.pdf where available. Verified data only — no invented qualifications, employers, dates or certs.