Senior Incident Response Consultant

About the role:

The Incident Response team is focused on supporting the IR lifecycle and providing indicators to the SOC that will assist in enhanced detection capabilities of network, log, and host data. You must have the technical chops to analyze intrusions, detect incidents, and assist in responding to our clients. You must be capable of working with our clients in a high-stress IR situation to effectively navigate through the IR lifecycle. You will be responsible for not only leading the technical analysis of an Incident Response investigation, but also for communicating effectively and providing off-hours support as needed. 

This is a hybrid role, and candidates must be located in the McLean, VA area. Employees are expected to work in the McLean office approximately 20% of the time for device collection and other business needs. 

Responsibilities: 

• Conduct forensic host, network, and application technical investigations 
• Triage active high-stakes security events, including reviewing and applying security controls to detect, respond, prevent, and remediate threats 
• Recognize and codify attacker tools, tactics, and procedures in indicators of compromise (IOCs) that can be applied to current and future investigations 
• Develop custom scripts, tools, or methodologies to enhance our incident response processes for a wide range of systems and technologies 
• Create comprehensive and accurate reports of forensic findings and IR activities for both technical and executive audiences 
• Effectively communicate investigative findings and strategy to client stakeholders, including technical staff, executive leadership, third-party stakeholders, underwriters, and legal counsel 
• Provide clients with immediate actionable 0-day cybersecurity advice to stop and mitigate the damage of ongoing attacks 
• Assist with the scoping of new engagements using a whole lifecycle approach, guiding the client from initial discovery through mitigation and remediation 

Technologies: 

Strong hands-on working knowledge of: 

• Windows OS and networking protocols 
• Windows disk and memory forensics 
• Unix OS and networking protocol 
• Network traffic analysis 
• Scripting and/or programming
• Experience with commercial EDR (SentinelOne, BlackBerry PROTECT, Carbon Black, CrowdStrike) and Forensic tool suites (FTK, AXIOM, EnCase) 
• Reverse engineering and malware analysis 

Knowledge and Skills:

• 4+ years of experience in a forensic and incident response role
• One or more of the following technical certifications preferred: GIAC Certified Incident Handler (GCIH), GIAC Certified Forensic Analyst (GCFA), GIAC Reverse Engineering Malware (GREM), MCFE, EnCE, or equivalent certifications 
• Demonstrated experience using analytical skills in a cybersecurity environment to triage and detect events that transpired and deal with Ransomware forensic investigations 
• Demonstrated ability to make decisions on remediation and countermeasures for challenging information security threats 
• Experience in a technical role for a consulting company 

If you have other combinations of relevant skills and experience that you expect make you the right candidate for this role, please let us know!

Compensation

The anticipated base salary range for this position is $110,000 - $136,000 annually. 

Actual compensation will be determined in good faith based on factors such as relevant experience, technical expertise, certifications, geographic location (where applicable), and internal equity. This position may also be eligible for bonus or other incentive compensation, as well as the benefits described below. 

Who we are

At Pondurance, we embrace, educate, and protect people by helping make our world a better and safer place.  We believe in inviting good people into our company who are driven to become great!  

Every person at Pondurance is encouraged to focus and grow in their individual areas of interest, passion, and career path. We have accessible leaders as Mentors who believe “None of us are as smart as all of us” (R. Pelletier). 

We believe everyone has the freedom to be themselves, especially at work, and so we embrace, support, and celebrate each other. Each one of us influences our company’s direction through speaking up; you have a voice, and we want you to use it.  

Do you want to be a part of something different? Do you want to influence real change? Do you want to be part of the solution? Then join us in redefining the security and cyber risk landscape.
 

What We Offer

The opportunity to apply your expertise, take on new challenges, and help customers address their biggest security objectives.

An inclusive culture of teamwork that embraces the diversity of our people and communities in which we work.

Some of the corporate benefits (there are more) for full-time employees include:

• Medical, dental, vision, disability, FSA, HSA, life, and AD&D insurance, 401(k) Plan. 
• Time off: PTO, sick, holiday, & parental leave details are available

To promote a healthy and safe work community, we require background and drug screenings as part of our hiring process. Details of our process will be provided upon request.  

We are an equal opportunity employer focused on celebrating diversity and inclusion. We believe that each individual should be treated equally without regard to race, color, identity, national origin, protected veteran status, religion, sex, including sexual orientation and gender identity, disability, or any other characteristic protected by law.