Security Engineer, Web Application Security

KFC•Louisville, KY

About The Position

Position Summary We are seeking a Security Engineer to join Yum! Brands' Cybersecurity Engineering organization and help protect the web applications and APIs supporting our global digital ecosystem across KFC, Taco Bell, Pizza Hut, Habit Burger & Grill, and Yum! corporate platforms. This role will support the operation and continuous improvement of Web Application Firewall (WAF), Content Delivery Network (CDN), API security, and digital certificate management services. The engineer will work with technologies such as Akamai App & API Protector, Akamai CDN, Certificate Manager, and other web security platforms to help protect internet-facing applications from cyber threats while maintaining application availability and performance. The ideal candidate has a strong technical foundation in networking, web technologies, or cybersecurity and is interested in developing deeper expertise in web application security, CDN technologies, APIs, and certificate management. This role will work closely with senior engineers and cross-functional teams to troubleshoot issues, onboard applications, respond to security events, implement security changes, maintain certificates, and improve operational processes.

Requirements

Bachelor's degree in Computer Science, Cybersecurity, Information Technology, or equivalent education and/or professional experience.
2–4+ years of experience in cybersecurity, networking, infrastructure, cloud engineering, application support, or a related technical field.
Foundational understanding of: HTTP/HTTPS, TLS/SSL, DNS, TCP/IP, Web applications, REST APIs, Reverse proxies and CDN concepts.
Familiarity with Web Application Firewall technologies or web application security concepts.
Familiarity with common web security threats and the OWASP Top 10.
Experience troubleshooting technical issues using logs and other diagnostic information.
Ability to analyze technical problems and follow issues through resolution.
Strong written and verbal communication skills.
Ability and willingness to learn new security technologies and platforms.

Nice To Haves

Hands-on experience with Akamai or similar WAF/CDN platforms.
Experience with Akamai technologies such as: App & API Protector, Property Manager, Certificate Manager, Edge DNS, Cloudlets, Bot Manager.
Experience with public TLS certificate management.
Experience working with cloud environments such as AWS, Azure, or GCP.
Experience with SIEM or log analysis platforms such as Splunk, Sentinel, or similar technologies.
Basic scripting experience with Python, PowerShell, or Bash.
Experience working with REST APIs.
Familiarity with Git, Infrastructure-as-Code, or other DevOps practices.
Security certifications such as Security+, GSEC, Akamai certifications, or equivalent technical certifications.

Responsibilities

Configure, maintain, and support Web Application Firewall (WAF) protections using Akamai App & API Protector and related security technologies.
Monitor and investigate web security events involving: OWASP Top 10 vulnerabilities, API attacks, Bot traffic, Credential stuffing, DDoS attacks, Layer 7 attacks, Other suspicious or malicious web traffic.
Assist with WAF policy tuning to reduce false positives while maintaining appropriate security protections.
Review application traffic and security logs to identify attack patterns, application behavior, and potential security concerns.
Implement approved WAF policy changes, exceptions, allowlists, and security configuration updates.
Support senior engineers during complex security investigations and production incidents.
Configure and maintain CDN and edge security configurations supporting internet-facing applications.
Work with Akamai technologies including: Property Manager, Edge Hostnames, Cloudlets, DNS integrations, Origin connectivity, Caching and delivery configurations.
Troubleshoot common CDN and web application issues involving: HTTP response codes, Cache behavior, DNS Routing, Origin connectivity, TLS/SSL, Application availability.
Support the onboarding of new websites and APIs onto the enterprise WAF/CDN platform.
Perform pre-production validation, testing, and post-change verification.
Support the lifecycle management of public TLS certificates, including: Request validation, Issuance, Deployment, Renewal, Revocation, Replacement.
Monitor certificate inventories and upcoming expiration dates.
Coordinate certificate changes and renewals with application owners and other technical teams.
Validate certificates after deployment and troubleshoot common certificate, trust chain, DNS validation, and TLS issues.
Maintain accurate certificate ownership and lifecycle documentation.
Escalate certificate risks or renewal issues before they can impact production applications.
Monitor and investigate WAF alerts, application issues, and security events.
Analyze HTTP requests, response codes, headers, WAF logs, CDN logs, and other available telemetry to assist with troubleshooting and investigations.
Participate in incident response activities involving WAF, CDN, DDoS, certificates, and internet-facing applications.
Assist with troubleshooting customer-impacting production issues and determining whether issues originate from the security/CDN layer or another application component.
Implement approved mitigations and validate application functionality following security changes.
Follow established incident management, escalation, and change management processes.
Participate in the team's on-call rotation supporting globally distributed applications and services.
Identify repetitive operational activities that could benefit from automation.
Develop and maintain basic scripts and tools using technologies such as Python, PowerShell, Bash, or REST APIs.
Assist with improving security monitoring, reporting, inventory management, and operational dashboards.
Contribute to automation and standardization of application onboarding, WAF configuration, and certificate management processes.
Learn and adopt Infrastructure-as-Code and API-driven security management practices where appropriate.
Work closely with: Software Engineering, Cloud Engineering, Networking, Infrastructure, IAM, Enterprise Architecture, Compliance, Security Operations.
Partner with application teams during WAF/CDN onboarding, troubleshooting, security changes, and certificate activities.
Participate in technical discussions and architecture reviews alongside senior engineers.
Create and maintain technical documentation, troubleshooting guides, operational procedures, and runbooks.
Share knowledge and lessons learned with other members of the team.
Identify opportunities to improve existing processes and operational practices.
Follow established security standards, change management procedures, and operational processes.
Support PCI DSS and internal audit activities by gathering technical evidence and documentation.
Assist with periodic security reviews and control assessments.
Maintain accurate documentation for WAF configurations, certificates, application ownership, exceptions, and operational processes.
Support remediation activities identified through audits, vulnerability assessments, penetration testing, and security reviews.