Incident response/Security analyst (Hybrid - Onsite interviews)

The following are required for bid submission:

• Resume
• R2R
• Cover Letter
• Meets Work Location

Position Description             

• Please ensure you attach the SC Cover Sheet (attached), a valid Right to Represent, and the candidate's resume with full legal first name, and last name. Withdrawn candidates will not be permitted to be replaced.
• The State of South Carolina is looking for a Security Analyst - Project Lead
• Why is this position open: New role supporting statewide security incident response. This is a Repost of Posting ID 10792 - DO NOT submit any resources that were previously submitted to posting ID 10792.
• Interview Process: 1 Round of Virtual/Online Interviews - potential for second round of in-person interviews
• Duration of the Contract: 12 Months
• Possibility for Extension: Yes
• Work Location: Remote
• Candidate location: No South Carolina residency required. Open to nationwide candidates; must be able to work eastern time zone hours. All travel-related costs for onsite work will be the responsibility of the resource, regardless of the frequency of onsite work.

Scope of the project:

• The position will work as an Tier 2 SOC Analyst for the Division of Information Security. This role will focus on supporting security monitoring, threat detection, security incident response and security investigations. Engaging directly with state agencies to promote, support, and improve adoption of centralized security services is a key focus. The engagement is expected to be needed for 12 months with the possibility of extension.

Additional Information:

• Preference will be given to candidates that are local to SC and are able to come onsite for project needs.
• Full job description attached and required and preferred skills are listed below.

Pre-employment Checks (drug, credit, criminal, motor vehicle)?

• DRUG, DRIVING, CREDIT, CRIMINAL, E-VERIFY, SLED

Daily Duties / Responsibilities:

• PREFERENCE WILL BE GIVEN TO A CANDIDATE WHO CAN WORK ONSITE OVER HYBRID AND OVER FULL-TIME REMOTE (ON-SITE AS NEEDED).
• Continuously review and correlate security event data across SIEM, EDR, IDS/IPS, and
• threat intelligence sources to identify complex attack patterns, emerging threats, and security incidents.
• Perform deep-dive analysis of suspicious activity, validate incidents, determine root cause and impact, and escalate critical incidents with detailed context to Tier 3 as required.
• Create detailed incident reports, timelines, and post-incident summaries; contribute
• to lessons-learned documentation and recommendations for remediation and preventative measures.
• Investigate user-reported phishing, malware infections, and potential policy
• violations; advise users and internal/external teams on containment and recovery actions.
• Recommend updates to SOC playbooks and workflows based on real-world INVESTIGATIONS, fine-tune detection rules. Alert thresholds, and correlation logic to reduce false positives and improve threat coverage.
• Collaborate with engineering teams to ensure monitoring tools are properly configured and tuned. Integrate new threat intelligence feeds into workflows and proactively hunt for threats using up-to date tactics, techniques, and procedures (TTPs)
• Serve as a customer-facing SME, “selling” the value of DIS services by demonstrating capabilities and resolving issues.
• Document processes, runbooks, and troubleshooting steps related to SOC operations.
• Coordinate with engineering, SOC, and agency staff as needed to meet goals.
• Other duties as needed.

Required Skills (rank in order of Importance):

• 2 Years of Experience with Security Monitoring and Incident Response.
• 2 Years of Experience with MITRE ATT&CK framework.
• 2 Years of Experience with dashboard creation and reporting.

Preferred Skills (rank in order of Importance):

• Experience with the Palo Alto Cortex XSIAM/XDR platform.
• Knowledge of Linux, network administration and network design.
• Experience in administration of firewalls, VPN technology, Active Directory, Intrusion Detection/Prevention systems.
• Candidate is local to Columbia, SC or surrounding city in South Carolina

Required Education/Certifications:

• Associate’s degree in an information technology or information security related field
• Four years of relevant work experience may be substituted in lieu of education
• Two years of experience in supporting large soc operations

Required Skills

• Education - Associate’s degree in an information technology or information security related field or 4 years of relevant work expeirence may be substituted in lieu of education
• 2 Years of Experience with MITRE ATT&CK framework
• 2 Years of Experience with dashboard creation and reporting
• 2 Years of Experience with Security Monitoring and Incident Response
• 2 years of experience in supporting large SOC operations

Preferred Skills

• Certification - CISSP, CISA, CISO or equivalent advanced security certification
• Certification - Additional relevant certifications (e.g., CEH, OSCP, GPEN)
• Certification - Vendor certifications related to information security
• Experience in administration of firewalls, VPN technology, Active Directory, Intrusion Detection/Prevention systems
• Experience with the Palo Alto Cortex XSIAM/XDR platform
• Knowledge of Linux, network administration and network design
• Candidate is local to Columbia, SC or surrounding city in South Carolina

Interview Process (phone, video or in-person, how many rounds of i/v’s, etc)?

• Initial round of interviews on Microsoft Teams (on camera) with in-person interviews Preferred before final selection

Interview Availability: How soon can you schedule an interview (date / times)?

• ASAP after posting closes and resumes are received and reviewed

“Cleo Consulting is an equal opportunity employer (Minorities/Women/Veterans/Disabled)”