Hi, I'm Stephen Xu, a student at Harvey Mudd College, a small liberal arts college in California. I have many interests, and as such am currently undeclared, but I'm primarily considering majoring in Math, Computer Science, and English.

I spend a lot of time playing Capture The Flag (CTF) competitions, which I find to be a great way to learn about computer security. You'll find some of my writeups for problems I solve on this site. I founded Les Amateurs, which was ranked as the 4th best CTF team in the United States in 2024. I also play CTFs with smiley, which was ranked as the #1 team in the Untited States in 2024. Some notable competitions I've won includes 3rd at PicoCTF 2023, and 2nd at CSAWCTF Quals 2023, two of the largest CTFs in the world. I also was a DEFCON 32 Finalist for the CTF.

I also enjoy reading, and am slowly making my way through the books that are recommended to me, as well as the classics that I find interesting. Some of my favorite books include East of Eden by John Steinbeck, Les Misérables by Victor Hugo, and A Tale of Two Cities by Charles Dickens. Occasionally I'll also dabble in writing poetry, all of which is far too embarassing to be posted here.