Security Specialist - Akamai

PNC•Pittsburgh, PA

3d•Onsite

About The Position

At PNC, our people are our greatest differentiator and competitive advantage in the markets we serve. We are all united in delivering the best experience for our customers. We work together each day to foster an inclusive workplace culture where all of our employees feel respected, valued and have an opportunity to contribute to the company’s success. As an Security Specialist - Akamai within PNC's Enterprise Information Security organization, you will be based in Pittsburgh, PA. PNC is an in-office company that fosters a supportive culture where employees can thrive and achieve balance. We encourage candidates to connect with their recruiter and hiring manager to understand workplace expectations and ensure the role aligns with their goals. PNC will not provide sponsorship for employment visas or participate in STEM OPT for this position.

Requirements

3+ years in cybersecurity (application, network, or perimeter security)
Direct experience with Akamai Security Suite products and policy management (e.g., Kona Site Defender / WAF, Bot Manager, API Protection)
Experience working in Security Operations, Attack Surface Management, or application protection environment
Strong knowledge of web security (OWASP Top 10), HTTP/S, and application architecture
Strong understanding of web application security and common attack vectors (e.g., OWASP Top 10)
Experience analyzing network traffic, logs, and security events to identify threats
Ability to interpret and apply threat intelligence to security controls and detection strategies
Knowledge of API security and protection against automated and high-speed attack techniques
Familiarity with cloud and web-based application architectures
Experience defending against automated threats, bots, or scraping activity
Familiarity with financial services or highly regulated environments
Knowledge of Zero Trust concepts and modern application security frameworks
Strong problem-solving skills with the ability to balance security enforcement and customer experience
Effective communication skills with the ability to collaborate across security, infrastructure, and application teams
University / college degree, with 5+ years of industry-relevant experience. In lieu of a degree, a comparable combination of education, job specific certification(s), and experience (including military service) may be considered.

Nice To Haves

Willingness to participate in on-call/weekend/evening support is preferred.
Akamai Security Suite (e.g., Kona Site Defender / WAF, Bot Manager, API Protection)
SIEM and monitoring platforms
Web protocols (HTTP/S), networking fundamentals, and application architecture
Security tooling supports traffic inspection, rule tuning, and incident response
Ticketing and workflow systems (e.g., ServiceNow, Jira) for operational tracking and onboarding activities

Responsibilities

Design, implement, and maintain Akamai security controls, including Web Application Firewall (WAF) and Bot Manager policies
Monitor and analyze traffic patterns to identify anomalous behavior, malicious automation, and emerging threats
Tune and enforce security policies to proactively block unauthorized access, data harvesting, and application abuse
Partner with Security Operations and incident response teams to investigate, escalate, and remediate security events
Develop and maintain detection logic, playbooks, and standardized procedures for incident response and policy management
Support onboarding new applications by defining and validating security configurations, API protections, and endpoint coverage
Continuously optimize Akamai configurations to align with evolving threat intelligence and attack techniques
Validate protections on high-risk business functions such as authentication flows, account management, and transactional APIs
Ensure visibility, monitoring, and reporting capabilities support operational, audit, and regulatory requirements
Contribute to documentation, knowledge transfer, and process standardization across the Akamai Security team

Benefits

medical/prescription drug coverage (with a Health Savings Account feature)
dental and vision options
employee and spouse/child life insurance
short and long-term disability protection
401(k) with PNC match
pension and stock purchase plans
dependent care reimbursement account
back-up child/elder care
adoption, surrogacy, and doula reimbursement
educational assistance, including select programs fully paid
a robust wellness program with financial incentives
maternity and/or parental leave
up to 11 paid holidays each year
9 occasional absence days each year, unless otherwise required by law
between 15 to 25 vacation days each year, depending on career level; and years of service