Network Engineer

Tech Mahindra•Oakland, CA

28d•Remote

About The Position

Role: Firewall L3 Engineer Department: Network Security Operations Location: Remote Reporting To: Network Security Lead / Manager Role Overview The Firewall L3 Engineer will be responsible for providing advanced technical support, managing day-to-day firewall operations, and handling complex service requests and incidents across multi-vendor firewall platforms. This role involves ensuring security policy compliance, troubleshooting high-severity issues, implementing configuration changes, and supporting firewall infrastructure as part of enterprise security operations. The engineer will act as the escalation point for L2 teams and collaborate with architects on improvements, migrations, and optimization.

Requirements

5-8 years of experience in firewall operations, with at least 3+ years in L3 support.
Hands-on expertise with at least two major firewall vendors (e.g., Fortinet, Palo Alto, Check Point, Cisco, Juniper).
Strong knowledge of:
Firewall policies, NAT, routing, and security zones
SSL/IPSec VPN setup & troubleshooting
High Availability (HA) firewall clusters
Advanced threat protection features (IPS, AV, URL filtering, sandboxing)
Experience with firewall migrations and upgrades.
Proficiency in troubleshooting using logs, packet captures, and debug tools.
Familiarity with ITIL processes (Incident, Problem, Change Management).
Good understanding of network protocols (TCP/IP, OSPF, BGP, DNS, DHCP).

Nice To Haves

Knowledge of security compliance frameworks (ISO 27001, PCI DSS, NIST) is a plus.
Automation/scripting knowledge (Python, Ansible, API integrations) is an added advantage.
Relevant certifications preferred (any of the following):
Fortinet NSE 4/7/8
Palo Alto PCNSE
Check Point CCSA/CCSE
Cisco CCNP Security
Juniper JNCIP-SEC

Responsibilities

Provide L3 operational support for firewall infrastructure (Fortinet, Palo Alto, Cisco, Juniper, Check Point, etc.).
Troubleshoot and resolve complex firewall incidents escalated from L1/L2 teams within agreed SLAs.
Implement and validate service requests (policy changes, NAT rules, VPN setups, security rule modifications, SSL/IPSec tunnels, etc.).
Perform root cause analysis (RCA) for recurring or high-impact security incidents.
Ensure firewall rule base optimization to improve performance, reduce risks, and remove redundancies.
Monitor firewall performance and health, take proactive measures to prevent outages.
Support firmware upgrades, patching, and security fixes in coordination with change management.
Work closely with SOC, NOC, and security architects for incident handling and security enhancements.
Maintain detailed documentation for changes, incidents, and SOPs.
Participate in on-call rotation for major incident escalations.
Ensure compliance with organizational security policies and regulatory requirements.
Mentor and provide guidance to L1/L2 engineers.