The Senior Cybersecurity Engineer at Vanderbilt University holds the crucial responsibility of devising and upholding robust defense mechanisms against cyber security threats. This role involves in-depth research into emerging security trends, comprehensive understanding of the current threat landscape, and the continual enhancement of technical solutions and operational procedures to mitigate risks to the institution. Additionally, the Sr. Cybersecurity Engineer evaluates and deploys security solutions across diverse environments, including on-premises and multi-cloud platforms such as AWS, Azure, and GCP, with a focus on bolstering threat prevention and detection capabilities. Collaboration with cross-functional teams is integral for crafting secure network designs and optimizing Identity and Access Management (IAM) frameworks. Furthermore, the role encompasses the maintenance of essential security tools like SIEM, IDS, EDR, and cloud security technologies. An ideal candidate must remain abreast of industry developments and possess the technical proficiency to design and implement cutting-edge security solutions, while also developing tools, scripts, and integrations to fortify the organization's security posture. The Sr. Cybersecurity Engineer should demonstrate autonomy in executing technical tasks, adept communication skills in conveying findings, and a commitment to mentoring junior team members.

 

About the Team:

Vanderbilt University Information Technology is a human-centric organization that advances our university by delivering innovative solutions and frictionless experiences through collaboration.

 

The Cybersecurity team within Vanderbilt University’s Information Technology department provides cybersecurity services to the institution and associated partners. This position will work closely with the Director of Security Engineering and Operations as a part of the Security Engineering and Operations team as well as with other members of Information Security and various entities both inside and outside of the university.

 

Duties and Responsibilities:

Act as a technical expert in researching, implementing, and supporting security solutions across various focus areas (endpoint, network, cloud, IAM, etc.). 

Improve, tune, and maintain the tools primarily used by Vanderbilt’s Security Operations Center (SOC) to make them stable and accurate. Evaluate and implement best practices across various systems, devices, and applications to determine what is needed to effectively prevent and detect threats. Research on adversary tools, tactics, and procedures (TTPs) and be able to engineer and construct defensive solutions against them. Write custom scripts/tools to integrate with both native and 3rd party products to create, enrich, and automate threat prevention, detection, and remediation abilities.

Work with other teams across the organization to enhance the security strategy of multiple IT disciplines and technologies.

Identify gaps in current deployments and implement solutions to improve monitoring, visibility, and response capabilities. Partner with Teams on new technology deployments to design and implement appropriate security controls.

Act as an overflow for the Security Operations Center and assist in alert monitoring, security analysis, digital forensic/incident response, and E-Discovery when needed.

Leverage learnings from these events to tune detection tools, improving key metrics for response and incident closure. Provide mentorship for associate and mid-level Security Engineers on the team.

 

Supervisory Relationships:

This position does not have supervisory responsibility, this position reports administratively and functionally to the Director, Security Operations and Engineering.

 

Qualifications

Bachelor’s degree is necessary Degree in Computer Science, Information Security, or related focus is preferred Relevant Cybersecurity certifications are preferred 5 years of relevant experience necessary Professional experience working on (or supporting) threat prevention, detection, and response teams is preferred Professional experience working with, engineering, configuring, or tuning two or more of the following technologies is necessary: Security Information and Event Management (SIEM), Cloud security solutions, Endpoint Detection and Response (EDR), Intrusion Detection/Prevention IDS/IPS Experience with developing scripts / tools is necessary, Python is preferred A deep understanding of adversary tools, tactics, and procedures (TTPs) is necessary Experience with frameworks such as MITRE ATT&CK is preferred Knowledge of threat modeling and penetration testing is preferred  Knowledge of the incident response lifecycle and the stages of a cyber-attack is preferred Knowledge of malware behavior, investigation, and containment strategies is preferred Knowledge of forensic artifacts across various operating system is preferred

 

Information Technology’s Guiding Principles:

Trust and Respect- VUIT cultivates a community built on trust, mutual respect, and inclusivity, where all members feel valued and supported. We prioritize honesty, dignity, empathy, and a willingness to listen and understand.  Professionalism- VUIT strives to maintain a culture of maturity, accountability, and integrity to best represent the University and self. Have a sense of humility and poise in your work and daily interactions. Collaborate- VUIT commits to being inclusive in solution design where we value sharing within and partnering across the university. We are intentional about including our colleagues and preventing silos.  Bias-to-Action- VUIT is seen as a changemaker by exhibiting a decisive, self-starter, take-action approach with a willingness to make decisions without excessive deliberation. Personal initiative is recognized as a key part of the creative process. Communicate- Communication (written, verbal and non-verbal), within and outside VUIT, is open, thoughtful, welcoming, clear, proactive, concise yet complete, always honest, and delivered kindly. Innovate- VUIT pledges to be bold and challenge the status quo by inspiring a culture of creativity that promotes growth and advancement for the university.  Celebrate Each Other- We are intentional in showing appreciation for the work of others by valuing and acknowledging meaningful contributions at all levels of the organization. Optimize- VUIT will practice continuous and thoughtful optimization of our solutions and services to increase our human and technological capacity. Capacity drives innovation.