Senior Cybersecurity Analyst

AeroVironment•San Diego, CA

2d•$100,500 - $153,250

About The Position

The Senior Cybersecurity Analyst leads the investigation, containment, and remediation of cybersecurity incidents across the organization. This role is a technical escalation point for complex security events, coordinates response activities with IT, engineering, legal, and business stakeholders, and guides less-experienced analysts. The position requires expertise in endpoint and network forensics, SIEM and EDR technologies, threat hunting, incident leadership, and security automation. The analyst leads investigations from initial triage through containment, eradication, recovery, and closure; analyzes endpoint, identity, email, network, and cloud telemetry; collects and preserves digital evidence; coordinates containment and remediation; and communicates technical findings and recommendations. The role also leads post-incident reviews, maintains response playbooks and procedures, improves detection and automation with security engineers, mentors analysts, and participates in an on-call rotation, including after-hours response to critical incidents as required.

Requirements

At least 5 years of experience in cybersecurity incident response, security operations, digital forensics, or a related discipline.
Demonstrated experience leading investigations and responses to complex incidents, including ransomware and malware, phishing and business email compromise, account compromise and credential theft, insider threats, data exfiltration, and unauthorized access and privilege escalation.
Strong knowledge of incident response processes, including preparation, detection, analysis, containment, eradication, recovery, and lessons learned.
Experience using SIEM platforms, EDR tools, network monitoring and intrusion detection systems, vulnerability management platforms, and digital forensic and malware analysis tools.
Proficiency analyzing operating system logs, authentication logs, network traffic, endpoint telemetry, and cloud security events.
Knowledge of common attack techniques and frameworks, including MITRE ATT&CK, the Cyber Kill Chain, and the NIST Incident Response Framework.
Experience with scripting or automation using PowerShell, Python, Bash, or similar tools.
Ability to write clear incident reports, technical findings, executive summaries, and after-action reports.
Ability to participate in an on-call rotation and respond effectively during high-severity incidents.
Strong communication, analytical, decision-making, and incident leadership skills.
Ability to maintain confidentiality and handle sensitive information appropriately.
U.S. citizenship is required.
Must qualify as a U.S. person under ITAR/EAR requirements or be eligible for an export license; some positions require current U.S. citizenship due to contract requirements.

Nice To Haves

Bachelor's degree in Cybersecurity, Information Technology, Computer Science, or a related field, or equivalent practical experience.
Professional certifications such as GIAC Certified Incident Handler (GCIH), GIAC Certified Forensic Examiner (GCFE), GIAC Certified Forensic Analyst (GCFA), GIAC Network Forensic Analyst (GNFA), CISSP, Security+, or Certified Ethical Hacker (CEH).
Experience leading incident response across enterprise, manufacturing, aerospace, defense, or other regulated environments.
Experience with Microsoft Azure, AWS, or Google Cloud.
Experience investigating identity and access systems, including Active Directory, Entra ID, Okta, or similar platforms.
Knowledge of security and privacy requirements such as NIST 800-61, NIST 800-53, ISO 27001, CMMC, ITAR, or FedRAMP, as applicable.
Experience with threat hunting, malware triage, reverse engineering, and memory and disk forensics.
Experience developing incident response playbooks, detection logic, automation, and operational metrics.
Prior experience mentoring junior analysts or coordinating cross-functional response teams.
Active U.S. security clearance, or the ability to obtain and maintain one.

Responsibilities

Lead complex cybersecurity investigations from initial triage through containment, eradication, recovery, and closure, ensuring timely execution and thorough documentation.
Serve as the primary technical lead for escalated security incidents, setting investigation priorities, assigning tasks, and coordinating response activities across analysts and technical teams.
Analyze endpoint, identity, email, network, and cloud telemetry to establish incident scope, attack vectors, affected assets, adversary activity, and potential business impact.
Develop incident timelines and identify root causes, persistence mechanisms, lateral movement, and indicators of compromise.
Collect, preserve, and analyze digital evidence according to evidence-handling, chain-of-custody, and retention procedures.
Coordinate containment and remediation with IT, engineering, application owners, and business stakeholders while balancing incident urgency with operational requirements.
Investigate phishing, account compromise, malware, ransomware, unauthorized access, data exfiltration, and suspected insider threats within approved investigative authority.
Use Microsoft Sentinel, Microsoft Defender, and other security platforms to correlate alerts, develop investigative queries, and validate findings.
Conduct threat hunting based on incident findings, threat intelligence, and adversary techniques to identify previously undetected activity.
Maintain accurate incident records and provide technical findings, executive summaries, status updates, and actionable recommendations.
Escalate significant incidents through established channels and coordinate with leadership, Legal, Human Resources, Privacy, and Compliance as appropriate.
Lead post-incident reviews, identify control gaps, and track corrective actions through verified completion.
Develop and maintain investigation playbooks, response procedures, escalation criteria, and evidence-collection guidance.
Partner with security engineers to improve detection coverage, reduce false positives, and automate repeatable investigative and response tasks.
Mentor analysts, review investigation quality, and strengthen team capabilities through case reviews, exercises, and knowledge sharing.
Participate in the on-call rotation and lead after-hours response to critical security incidents as required.