Principal Cyber Security Engineer

Leidos•Linthicum, MD

2d•$154,050 - $278,475

About The Position

The Principal Cyber Security Engineer joins a small team providing Information Assurance (IA) architecture analysis and security engineering support for the implementation and fielding of the National Leadership Command Capability, supporting Nuclear Command, Control, and Communications (NC3), Continuity of Government (COG), and senior leader communications. The role serves in a consultant-like capacity, providing technical knowledge, expertise, and advice to the customer. The engineer leads and delivers threat-informed cybersecurity products, including cybersecurity risk assessments, architecture reviews, and engineering guidance. The work includes assessing risks and recommending mitigations, supporting real-time threat and vulnerability discovery and response capabilities, analyzing architectures against security requirements, evaluating emerging technologies, and helping stakeholders develop and implement solutions. The role also establishes and validates system security requirements and designs, integrates IA and security components across network, computing, and enclave environments, supports security planning and risk management, and reviews certification and accreditation documentation.

Requirements

Active TS/SCI clearance with polygraph.
Bachelor of Science degree from an accredited university, ideally in Computer Science, Information Assurance, Information Security System Engineering, or a related field.
Minimum of 20 years of experience as an Information Systems Security Engineer (ISSE) or Systems Engineer on programs and/or contracts in the customer space.
CISSP-ISSEP certification required.
Strong writing skills.
Ability and confidence to present briefings to senior-level DoD officials, both in prepared briefings and ad hoc discussions.
Expertise in the Risk Management Framework (RMF) and conducting cybersecurity risk assessments.
Expertise in network technology and systems security engineering.
Experience identifying, researching, characterizing, and documenting security weaknesses in operating systems, software applications, firmware, network hardware components, and network architecture designs, including identifying protection needs and documenting policies and procedures.
Experience developing and documenting system security requirements and conducting requirements gap analysis.
Experience with security monitoring and incident response capabilities.
Knowledge of, and practical experience with, NIST Special Publications 800 Series, CNSSI 1253, and DoD 8500.
Ability to work independently within a schedule and with little direction.

Responsibilities

Lead and deliver threat-informed cybersecurity products, including risk assessments, architecture reviews, and engineering guidance.
Conduct cybersecurity risk assessments and provide prioritized risk mitigation recommendations in support of the customer’s mission.
Support the design, implementation, and operation of real-time capabilities to discover, detect, analyze, and mitigate threats and vulnerabilities.
Analyze candidate architectures against defined security requirements, identify security gaps, and recommend mitigation strategies.
Research and evaluate emerging technologies to determine cybersecurity effectiveness.
Help stakeholders develop, refine, deliver, and implement innovative solutions and capabilities.
Engage stakeholders to define security objectives, protection needs, security requirements, and associated validation methods.
Validate and verify system security requirements definitions and analysis, and establish system security design.
Design, develop, implement, and/or integrate IA and security systems and components for networking, computing, and enclave environments, including environments with multiple enclaves and differing data protection or classification requirements.
Assist architects and systems developers in identifying and implementing information security functionality to ensure uniform application of Agency security policy and enterprise solutions.
Contribute to security planning, assessment, risk analysis, risk management, certification, and awareness activities for system and networking operations.
Review C&A documentation and provide feedback on completeness and compliance.