Security Analyst

The Security Analyst is a hands-on role within the South Carolina Department of Health

and Human Services (SCDHHS) Office of Cybersecurity (OCS) that will play an integral

role in the active defense of the systems and networks at SCDHHS.

The Security Analyst will support the establishment, implementation and/or enhancement

of Information Systems’ Security and Compliance efforts based on Federal, State and

Agency Policy/Standards. The Security Analyst must have foundational technical

knowledge of IT systems’ security, network security and administrative tasks, be a strong

oral and written communicator, and be eager to interact with SCDHHS technical staff,

business unit representatives, stakeholders and vendors.

WHY IS THIS POSITION OPEN (new role, increased workload, new dept, resignation, promotion)?

If backfill Position – What separated the candidate you initially selected from all the other

resumes presented?

36 MONTH RENEWAL

WHAT TYPES OF STAFFING CHALLENGES OR HEADACHES HAVE YOU EXPERIENCED IN THE PAST?

• Recruiters submitting clearly unqualified candidates

o Such as non-technical consultants for HANDS-ON positions

• Commuting candidates not understanding the challenges of an onsite position
• Proven experience in similar efforts and environments is mandatory
• This position requires excellent written and verbal communications skills,

particularly the ability to accurately assess, document and report on technical

processes and routines

SCOPE OF THE PROJECT:

The SCDHHS Office of Cybersecurity (OCS) is tasked with performing ongoing

enterprise cybersecurity threat monitoring and incident response capabilities. A strong

candidate for this position should possess experience or knowledge in the following:

• Cyber Threat Response and Incident Handling
• Cyber Security Operations
• Penetration Testing
• Network Security

POSITION TITLE: SECURITY ANALYST (CONSULTANT)

PRE-EMPLOYMENT CHECKS (drug, credit, criminal, motor vehicle)?

Criminal/ E-Verify/Credit and DHHS Confidentiality form.

DAILY DUTIES / RESPONSIBILITIES:

The Security Analyst is primarily responsible for assessing and evaluating the

organization’s information & cyber security solutions and processes, as well as providing

technical advisory to influence the design and implementation of security information

technology systems and networks. The Security Analyst will guide junior analyst

(Security Analyst I and II) to identify and address risks and lead the response to

information security issues.

Candidates should be self-starters, creative problem solvers and have an eagerness to

implement tactics, techniques and procedures which make the most effective use of

Agency staff, resources, products and technologies quickly.

Technical Knowledge:

Understanding of information technology and security concepts.

Experience or knowledge of operating systems (e.g., Android, iOS, Linux, Windows,

MVS, VMWare), cloud computing, networks, hardware and software platforms, and

protocols as they relate to information security.

Experience or knowledge in performing vulnerability assessments, including scanning,

analysis of results, and manual validation.

Experience with secure networking technologies such as network firewalls and IDS/IPS

technologies, Network Security Monitoring expertise, and Security Information and

Event Management (SIEM) systems.

Experience in information security incident response and risk management.

Experience managing and responding to information security risks, threats and incidents.

Threat and vulnerability management; awareness of current threats to confidentiality,

integrity, and availability of data and controls to mitigate threats

Strong working knowledge of applicable internal and/or external regulatory policies,

standards, procedures and controls (e.g., Centers for Medicaid and Medicare (CMS)

ARC-AMPE, National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST), Control Objectives

for Information and Related Technology (COBIT), and Federal Risk and Authorization

Management Program (FedRAMP).

Experience or knowledge with development and integration of RMF tasks and artifacts

into the System Development Life Cycle (SDLC) is ideal.

Experience or knowledge in security as related to multi-tenant, cloud services and vendor

interface management would be considered desirable for this position.

Working knowledge of TCP/IP and the functioning of its component protocols, ability to

read, and analyze, using various toolsets such as tcpdump, wireshark, etc; how they work

and what information they produce will be beneficial in this role.

Understanding basic defense-in-depth principles such as secure system configuration,

network segmentation and malicious code protection is a plus.

Information Systems’ Security Experience:

Experience working in a SOC environment is preferred.

Experience in operating and contributing to a security operations center responding to

alerts and anomalies, creating and interpreting dashboards and triaging cross-functional

teams is preferred.

Hands-on experience in the secure implementation, operation and on-going maintenance

of computer systems, software, hardware and networks is preferred.

General Duties and Responsibilities:

1. Assist in the day-to-day duties of SOC monitoring activities, tools and processes
2. Provide hands-on support of OCS security tools
3. Conduct threat hunts (specialized searches) for evidence of compromise
4. Monitor security technologies for alerts
5. Investigating incidents, gathering evidence, and analyzing data
6. Analyze anomalous activity and potential threats to Agency connected resources
7. Collaborate with OCS Staff and other agency staff, leadership, business partners

and other parties/stakeholders to support security and compliance risk mitigation

efforts

8. Other duties as assigned

REQUIRED SKILLS (RANK IN ORDER OF

IMPORTANCE):

1. 6+ years of experience in IT System

Security or System Administration

2. Experience with incident response

procedures and practices

3. Must have intermediate skills in

Microsoft Office products (Word,

Excel, PowerPoint, Visio) to

include working with templates and

style guidelines for branding

consistency

PREFERRED SKILLS (RANK IN ORDER OF

IMPORTANCE):

1. Prior Health Information

Technology experience

2. Centralized Log Management

experience

3. Familiarity with security regulatory

requirements and standards (such as

NIST 800 series, ARC-AMPE)

4. Experience performing or

supporting information security

compliance assessments and audits

5. Work and/or consulting experience

in federal, state, city or local

government

REQUIRED EDUCATION/CERTIFICATIONS:

1. High school diploma with six years

of relevant work experience

PREFERRED EDUCATION/CERTIFICATIONS:

1. Bachelor’s degree in information

technology, computer science,

related technical field- with a

minimum of 3 years relevant work

exp.

2. Information Security certifications

such as: CompTIA, ISC(2), SANS

GIAC, CCNA Security, or similar

INTERVIEW PROCESS (phone, video or in-

person, how many rounds of interviews, etc.)?

Virtual/Online

ADDITIONAL SKILLS::

1. Must be willing to learn and take on

new tasks

2. Willingness to work independently

and as a member of a team

3. Willingness to collaborate and

coordinate with multiple teams and

vendors

4. Ability to multitask and prioritize

tasks effectively in order to

effectively report on the status of

assigned work

5. Ability to multitask and prioritize

tasks effectively in order to meet

deadlines in a results-oriented

environment

6. Strong understanding of enterprise

operations & secure best practices

7. Strong written and verbal

communication skills.

8. Ability to accept changes and

constructive criticism and remain

flexible in dealing with leadership

and teams of varying technical and

business knowledge

Requirements

The Security Analyst is a hands-on role within the South Carolina Department of Health and Human Services (SCDHHS) Office of Cybersecurity (OCS) that will play an integral role in the active defense of the systems and networks at SCDHHS.

The Security Analyst will support the establishment, implementation and/or enhancement of Information Systems’ Security and Compliance efforts based on Federal, State and Agency Policy/Standards. The Security Analyst must have foundational technical knowledge of IT systems’ security, network security and administrative tasks, be a strong oral and written communicator, and be eager to interact with SCDHHS technical staff, business unit representatives, stakeholders and vendors.

DAILY DUTIES / RESPONSIBILITIES:

The Security Analyst is primarily responsible for assessing and evaluating the organization’s information & cyber security solutions and processes, as well as providing technical advisory to influence the design and implementation of security information technology systems and networks. The Security Analyst will guide junior analyst (Security Analyst I and II) to identify and address risks and lead the response to information security issues.

Candidates should be self-starters, creative problem solvers and have an eagerness to implement tactics, techniques and procedures which make the most effective use of Agency staff, resources, products and technologies quickly.

Technical Knowledge:

Understanding of information technology and security concepts.

Experience or knowledge of operating systems (e.g., Android, iOS, Linux, Windows, MVS, VMWare), cloud computing, networks, hardware and software platforms, and protocols as they relate to information security.

Experience or knowledge in performing vulnerability assessments, including scanning, analysis of results, and manual validation.

Experience with secure networking technologies such as network firewalls and IDS/IPS technologies, Network Security Monitoring expertise, and Security Information and Event Management (SIEM) systems.

Experience in information security incident response and risk management.

Experience managing and responding to information security risks, threats and incidents.

Threat and vulnerability management; awareness of current threats to confidentiality, integrity, and availability of data and controls to mitigate threats

Strong working knowledge of applicable internal and/or external regulatory policies, standards, procedures and controls (e.g., Centers for Medicaid and Medicare (CMS) ARC-AMPE, National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST), Control Objectives for Information and Related Technology (COBIT), and Federal Risk and Authorization Management Program (FedRAMP).

Experience or knowledge with development and integration of RMF tasks and artifacts into the System Development Life Cycle (SDLC) is ideal.

Experience or knowledge in security as related to multi-tenant, cloud services and vendor interface management would be considered desirable for this position.

Working knowledge of TCP/IP and the functioning of its component protocols, ability to read, and analyze, using various toolsets such as tcpdump, wireshark, etc; how they work and what information they produce will be beneficial in this role.

Understanding basic defense-in-depth principles such as secure system configuration, network segmentation and malicious code protection is a plus.

Information Systems’ Security Experience:

Experience working in a SOC environment is preferred.

Experience in operating and contributing to a security operations center responding to alerts and anomalies, creating and interpreting dashboards and triaging cross-functional teams is preferred.

Hands-on experience in the secure implementation, operation and on-going maintenance of computer systems, software, hardware and networks is preferred.

General Duties and Responsibilities:

1. Assist in the day-to-day duties of SOC monitoring activities, tools and processes
2. Provide hands-on support of OCS security tools
3. Conduct threat hunts (specialized searches) for evidence of compromise
4. Monitor security technologies for alerts
5. Investigating incidents, gathering evidence, and analyzing data
6. Analyze anomalous activity and potential threats to Agency connected resources
7. Collaborate with OCS Staff and other agency staff, leadership, business partners and other parties/stakeholders to support security and compliance risk mitigation efforts
8. Other duties as assigned

REQUIRED SKILLS (RANK IN ORDER OF IMPORTANCE):

1. Must have hands-on experience or educational background in IT System Security or System Administration
2. Experience with incident response procedures and practices
3. Must be willing to learn and take on new tasks
4. Willingness to work independently and as a member of a team
5. Willingness to collaborate and coordinate with multiple teams and vendors
6. Ability to multitask and prioritize tasks effectively in order to effectively report on the status of assigned work
7. Ability to multitask and prioritize tasks effectively in order to meet deadlines in a results-oriented environment
8. Must have intermediate skills in Microsoft Office products (Word, Excel, PowerPoint, Visio) to include working with templates and style guidelines for branding consistency
9. Strong understanding of enterprise operations & secure best practices
10. Ability to absorb, retain and communicate processes
11. Strong written and verbal communication skills.
12. Ability to accept changes and constructive criticism and remain flexible in dealing with leadership and teams of varying technical and business knowledge

PREFERRED SKILLS (RANK IN ORDER OF IMPORTANCE):

1. Prior Health Information Technology experience
2. Centralized Log Management experience
3. Familiarity with security regulatory requirements and standards (such as NIST 800 series, ARC-AMPE)
4. Experience performing or supporting information security compliance assessments and audits
5. Work and/or consulting experience in federal, state, city or local government

REQUIRED EDUCATION/CERTIFICATIONS:

1. High school diploma with six years of relevant work experience

PREFERRED EDUCATION/CERTIFICATIONS:

1. Bachelor’s degree in information technology, computer science, related technical field- with a minimum of 3 years relevant work exp.
2. Information Security certifications such as: CompTIA, ISC(2), SANS GIAC, CCNA Security, or similar