Cybersecurity Specialist

Hamdan Bin Mohammed Smart University; Dubai; On-site; AED 250,000 - 380,000; Full time

Job summary

Hamdan Bin Mohammed Smart University seeks a hands-on Cybersecurity Specialist with expertise in penetration testing, security monitoring, vulnerability management, and governance. The role covers enterprise infra, SIEM platforms, cloud environments (Azure/AWS), AD, and web apps across the campus IT landscape.

You will review and strengthen security controls, participate in governance, risk assessments, and security audits, and collaborate with IT teams to elevate the university’s security

Qualifications

• Hands-on cybersecurity experience implementing and operating security controls in enterprise environments.
• Proven formal experience in penetration testing and vulnerability assessment across web, API, network and OS layers.
• Solid understanding of web apps, APIs, networks, and enterprise security principles.
• Experience with tools like Burp Suite, Nmap, Metasploit, and SIEM platforms.

Responsibilities

• Conduct penetration testing and security assessments of web apps, APIs, networks, servers, and AD environments.
• Identify vulnerabilities, assess risk, and provide remediation recommendations.
• Perform manual testing including OWASP Top 10 and OWASP API Top 10.
• Monitor security events via SIEM and security monitoring platforms.
• Support incident response, containment, remediation, and post-incident improvements.
• Develop and tune SIEM alerts, detection rules, and dashboards.

Skills

Penetration testing

Security monitoring

Vulnerability management

Cybersecurity governance

OWASP Top 10

Azure/AWS security

Active Directory security

Web applications security

Cloud security

Scripting & automation

Education

Bachelor’s degree in Cybersecurity/IT

OSCP/OSWE/OSEP

Hack The Box CPTS/CWES/CBBH

Cloud security certifications

Tools

Burp Suite

Nmap

Metasploit

Wazuh

Microsoft Sentinel

Splunk

PowerShell scripting

Python scripting

Job description

Job Purpose

We are seeking a hands‑on Cybersecurity Specialist with strong experience in penetration testing, security monitoring, vulnerability management, and cybersecurity governance. The ideal candidate should have a strong security background while also being comfortable working with enterprise infrastructure, SIEM platforms, cloud environments, servers, Active Directory, and web applications.

Key Responsibilities

• Conduct penetration testing and security assessments of web applications, APIs, networks, servers, Active Directory environments, and other enterprise systems.
• Identify vulnerabilities, assess their risk and exploitability, and provide practical remediation recommendations.
• Perform manual penetration testing, including assessments against OWASP Top 10 and OWASP API Security Top 10 risks.
• Monitor and investigate security events and alerts through SIEM and security monitoring platforms.
• Support security incident investigation, response, containment, remediation, and post‑incident improvement activities.
• Develop and tune SIEM alerts, detection rules, dashboards, and monitoring use cases.
• Support vulnerability management and coordinate remediation activities with infrastructure and development teams.
• Review the security of Microsoft Azure and AWS environments.
• Review Microsoft Azure and AWS environments and support the implementation of appropriate identity, network, logging, workload, and configuration security controls.
• Review and strengthen Microsoft Active Directory and Entra ID security, including privileged access, service accounts, authentication controls, Group Policy, and identity‑related risks.
• Support the implementation and operation of protective technologies such as endpoint security, web application firewalls, SIEM, vulnerability management, and identity security controls.
• Participate in security reviews of new applications, systems, infrastructure, and technology projects.
• Support cybersecurity governance, risk assessments, policies, standards, compliance activities, and security audits.
• Work closely with infrastructure, software development, networking, and other IT teams to improve the organization’s overall security posture.

Required / Preferred Experience

• Hands‑on cybersecurity experience involving the implementation, administration, or improvement of technical security controls in enterprise environments.
• Professional hands‑on experience in penetration testing and vulnerability assessment.
• Strong understanding of web application, API, network, operating system, and enterprise security.
• Experience with penetration testing tools such as Burp Suite, Nmap, Metasploit, or equivalent tools.
• Experience working with SIEM and security monitoring platforms. Wazuh, Microsoft Sentinel, Splunk, or similar platforms.
• Experience investigating cybersecurity alerts and security incidents.
• Experience working with Microsoft Azure and/or AWS, including an understanding of cloud identity, network, workload, and logging security.
• Strong understanding of Windows, Linux, TCP/IP, networking, authentication, and enterprise infrastructure.
• Good understanding of cybersecurity governance, risk management, policies, standards, and compliance requirements.
• Good knowledge of Microsoft Active Directory and identity security concepts, including authentication, privileged accounts, Group Policy, Kerberos, NTLM, LDAP, and service accounts.
• Previous cybersecurity experience within a UAE government, semi‑government, higher education, or regulated organization is highly desirable.
• Strong Advantages
• Web development experience, particularly an understanding of how modern web applications, APIs, databases, authentication, sessions, and backend services operate.
• Familiarity with development technologies such as Python, PHP, JavaScript, .NET, Java, Flask, Django, Node.js, or similar frameworks.
• Server administration experience across Windows and/or Linux environments, including web servers, services, permissions, hardening, logging, and troubleshooting.
• Strong knowledge of Microsoft Active Directory, including users and groups, Group Policy, Kerberos, NTLM, LDAP, privileged accounts, service accounts, and common Active Directory security risks.
• Active Directory penetration testing or security assessment experience.
• Experience with Microsoft Entra ID, Conditional Access, Privileged Identity Management, Defender, Sentinel, and Intune.
• Cloud security assessment and cloud configuration review experience.
• Strong web application and API penetration testing experience.
• Scripting or automation experience using PowerShell, Python, Bash, or similar technologies.

Qualifications & Certifications

• Bachelor’s degree in Cybersecurity, Computer Science, Information Technology, Computer Engineering, or a related field.
• OSCP/OSWE/OSEP is strongly preferred.
• Hack The Box certifications such as CPTS/CWES/CBBH/CDSA/CWEE/CAPE/COAE are considered a strong advantage.
• Additional certifications in cloud security, Microsoft security, incident response, penetration testing, infrastructure security, or cybersecurity governance are beneficial.

Key Competencies

• Strong technical and analytical problem‑solving skills.
• Ability to think from both an attacker and defender perspective.
• Strong understanding of how applications, servers, networks, identities, and security controls interact.
• Ability to investigate technical issues independently.
• Clear technical documentation and reporting skills.
• Ability to communicate cybersecurity risks to both technical and non‑technical stakeholders.
• Strong professional ethics, confidentiality, and attention to detail.