Encompasses technical, engineering, data analytics, cyber security, management, operational, logistical, and administrative support for Bureau of Diplomatic Security, Cyber and Technology Security Directorate in three key offices/functional areas: Cyber Monitoring and Operations, Cyber Threat and Investigations, and Technology Innovation and Engineering State.

Peraton is seeking an experienced Tier 2 Cyber Incident Response Team (CIRT) Shift Lead to join Peratons' Federal Strategic Cyber Mission program.

Location: Beltsville, MD; On-site

Work Hours: Day Shift, 06:00– 14:00 EST (6:00 - 2:00 PM, EST), Tuesday - Saturday

In this role, you will:

• Detect, classify, process, track, and report on cyber security events and incidents.
• Perform advanced in-depth analysis of coordinated Tier 1 alert triage and requests in a 24x7x365 environment.
• Analyze logs from multiple sources (e.g., host logs, EDR, firewalls, intrusion detection systems, servers) to identify, contain, and remediate suspicious activity.
• Characterize and analyze network traffic to identify anomalous activity and potential threats.
• Protect against and prevent potential cyber security threats and vulnerabilities.
• Perform forensic analysis of hosts artifacts, network traffic, and email content.
• Analyze malicious scripts and code to mitigate potential threats.
• Conduct malware analysis to generate IOCs to identify and mitigate threats.
• Collaborate with Department of State teams to analyze and respond to events and incidents.
• Monitor and respond to the CIRT Security Orchestration and Automation Response (SOAR) platform, hotline, email in-boxes.
• Create tickets and initiate workflows as instructed in technical SOPs.
• Coordinate and report incident information to the Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency (CISA).
• Collaborate with other local, national and international CIRTs as directed.
• Submit alert tuning requests.

Additionally, as a Tier 2 Shift Lead you will:

• Review all Tier 2 shift tickets for accuracy and completeness
• Coordinate with CIRT Watch Officers and government leadership on remediation actions
• Provide technical and procedural improvement recommendations to CIRT leadership
• Assist with Tier 2 candidate technical interviews as required
• Ensure coordinated remediation actions are operating properly

Minimum Qualifications

• Bachelor’s degree and minimum of 9 years of relevant experience; or, Master’s degree with minimum of 7 years; or PhD with 4 years. In lieu of a degree, 4 years of additional experience may be considered.
• Must possess, or obtain prior to start date, at least one of the following certifications. Continued certification is required as a condition of employment:

  • CASP+ CE; CCNA Cyber Ops; CCNA-Security; CCNP Security; CEH; CFR; CHFI; CISA;CISSP (or Associate); CISSP-ISSAP; CISSP-ISSEP; CySA+; GCED; GCFA; GCIH; SCYBER

• Demonstrated experience across the incident response lifecycle.
• Experience with SOAR platforms and automated response workflows (e.g., ServiceNow, Splunk SOAR, Microsoft Sentinel).
• Experience with Security Information and Event Management (SIEM) platforms (e.g., Splunk, Microsoft Sentinel, Elastic, QRadar).
• Experience with Endpoint Detection and Response (EDR) solutions (e.g., Microsoft Defender for Endpoint, Elastic XDR, Carbon Black, CrowdStrike).
• Knowledge of cloud security monitoring and incident response.
• Knowledge of integrating indicators of compromise (IOCs) and tracking advanced persistent threat (APT) actors.
• Ability to analyze cyber threat intelligence and understand adversary tactics, techniques, and procedures (TTPs).
• Knowledge of malware analysis techniques.
• Familiarity with MITRE ATT&CK and D3FEND frameworks.
• U.S. Citizenship required.
• Active Secret security clearance required at start.

Preferred Qualifications:

• Proficiency with Splunk for security monitoring, alert creation, and threat hunting.
• Experience using Microsoft Azure access and identity management.
• Proficiency in Microsoft Defender for Endpoint and Identity for security monitoring, response, and alert generations.
• Experience using digital forensics collection and analysis tools (e.g. Autopsy, Axiom MagnetForensics, Zimmerman-Tools, KAPE, CyLR, Volatility).
• Experience using ServiceNow SOAR for ticketing and automated response.
• Experience using Python, PowerShell and BASH scripting languages.
• Proficiency in cloud security monitoring and incident response.
• Demonstrated ability to perform static/dynamic malware analysis and reverse engineering.
• Experience with integrating cyber threat intelligence and IOC-based hunting.
• Technical certifications such as: Azure SC-900, CCSP, GCIH, CCSK, GSEC, CHFI, GCLD, GCIA.
• Advanced technical certifications such as: SecurityX/CASP+, PRMP, GREM, GEIR, GNFA, or GCFA.

Target Salary Range: $104,000 - $166,000. This represents the typical salary range for this position. Salary is determined by various factors, including but not limited to, the scope and responsibilities of the position, the individual’s experience, education, knowledge, skills, and competencies, as well as geographic location and business and contract considerations. Depending on the position, employees may be eligible for overtime, shift differential, and a discretionary bonus in addition to base pay.

Benefits Statement: Peraton offers eligible employees a variety of benefits including medical, dental, vision, life, health savings account, short/long term disability, EAP, parental leave, 401(k), paid time off (PTO) for vacation, and company paid holidays. A full listing of available benefits can be viewed at https://www.careers.peraton.com/benefits.

Application Statements: The application period for the job is estimated to be 30 days from the job posting date. However, this timeline may be shortened or extended depending on business needs and the availability of qualified candidates. By applying to this job, you are expressing interest in the role and the Company. During the review of your application, you may be required to participate in an on-camera interview, as well as participate in a process to verify your identity.