Cyber Defense Ops Specialist

Citizens Financial Group • Johnston, RI

3d • Onsite

About The Position

The Cyber Defense Ops Specialist is an individual contributor in the Cyber Defense Threat Detection (CDTD) Cyber Defense Operations Center (CDOC). The role performs security monitoring, intrusion analysis, incident handling, data loss prevention, privileged user monitoring, security incident management, malware detection and eradication, and recognizes hacker and incident-response tactics, techniques, and procedures. The specialist stays current with security technology, the threat landscape, and emerging threats.

The position is based at the Citizens Bank Johnston Campus and is not remote. The schedule is 40 hours per week, four days per week, Wednesday through Saturday, from 7:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m. The salary range is $64,900–$90,000 per year, with an opportunity to earn an annual discretionary bonus. Actual pay depends on factors including budget, work location, relevant skills, and experience.

Requirements

• At least 1 year of security industry experience, preferably in a Security Operations Center (SOC) environment.
• Strong verbal and written communication skills, including the ability to explain technical concepts to non-technical audiences.
• Excellent critical-thinking, problem-solving, and decision-making skills.
• Active listening, attention to detail, customer service, prioritization, and problem-solving skills.
• Ability to work independently or strategically.
• Ability to adapt and demonstrate flexibility in a dynamic environment.
• Bachelor’s degree or equivalent combination of experience.

Nice To Haves

• Experience or knowledge of Security Information and Event Management (SIEM) tools such as ArcSight or Splunk.
• Experience or knowledge of intrusion prevention/detection tools such as FirePower, McAfee, or Palo Alto.
• Experience or knowledge of database security tools such as Guardium or jSonar.
• Experience or knowledge of data loss prevention tools such as Symantec or Triton.
• Experience or knowledge of firewalls such as Cisco, Palo Alto, or Check Point.
• Experience or knowledge of application security tools, including web application firewalls.
• Experience or knowledge of vulnerability tools.
• Experience or knowledge of cybersecurity incident response.
• Experience or knowledge of host intrusion detection systems.
• Experience or knowledge of XDR and antivirus tools such as CrowdStrike, Symantec, or Microsoft Defender.
• Relevant industry certifications, such as Net+, Sec+, CEH, Pentest+, AWS Certified Cloud Practitioner, or Microsoft Azure Fundamentals.

Responsibilities

• Perform ongoing security monitoring and threat analysis.
• Analyze logs, NetFlow data, and packet captures.
• Identify potential IT security incidents and escalate information to appropriate senior staff.
• Assess threat and vulnerability information from internal and external sources and promptly apply applicable mitigation techniques.
• Perform intrusion analysis and incident handling.
• Support data loss prevention, privileged user monitoring, security incident management, and malware detection and eradication.
• Recognize hacker and incident-response tactics, techniques, and procedures.
• Stay current with security technology, the threat landscape, and emerging threats.

Benefits

• Competitive pay
• Comprehensive medical coverage
• Dental coverage
• Vision coverage
• Retirement benefits
• Maternity and paternity leave
• Flexible work arrangements
• Education reimbursement
• Wellness programs
• Paid time off policy exceeding mandatory paid sick or paid time-away policies of local and state jurisdictions in the United States
• Opportunity to earn an annual discretionary bonus

What This Job Offers

• Job Type: Full-time
• Career Level: Entry Level