Junior Cybersecurity Incident Response Engineer

About

Clearance: Active Secret Clearance required

Travel: Up to 10%

We are seeking a Junior Cybersecurity Incident Response Engineer to support a mission-critical federal environment. This role is responsible for monitoring enterprise security tools, identifying potential threats, and supporting incident response efforts.

The ideal candidate will have foundational cybersecurity knowledge, strong analytical skills, and the ability to operate in a fast-paced Security Operations Center (SOC).

Key Responsibilities

• Monitor SIEM and security tools to detect, analyze, and correlate potential cybersecurity threats
• Perform Tier 1 alert triage, including validating alerts, assessing severity, and escalating as needed
• Differentiate false positives from legitimate security incidents
• Support incident response activities, including evidence collection and containment efforts
• Document investigations thoroughly for audit and reporting purposes
• Follow SOC playbooks, procedures, and escalation protocols
• Assist in tuning detection rules and improving alert accuracy
• Collaborate with IT, operations, and risk teams to align with security policies and mission needs
• Maintain awareness of security technologies such as firewalls, IDS/IPS, endpoint protection, and vulnerability scanners

Required Qualifications

• Bachelor’s degree in Cybersecurity, IT, Computer Science, or related field (or equivalent experience)
• 0–3 years of experience in cybersecurity, IT operations, or related field
• Basic understanding of cybersecurity principles and threat detection
• Experience or familiarity with SIEM and other security tools
• Active Secret Clearance (required)
• Strong problem-solving, communication, and analytical skills

Preferred Qualifications

• Experience in a SOC or 24/7 monitoring environment
• Relevant Certification (Security+, CySA+, etc.)
• Familiarity with incident response playbooks and procedures
• Exposure to federal cybersecurity frameworks or compliance standards