Senior Cybersecurity Ops Analyst — Threat Hunting

DEFEND; Wellington; On-site; NZD 120,000 - 170,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Hybrid work environment

Kiwisaver 3.5%

Health Insurance (Southern Cross)

Home office allowance

EAP services

Job summary

DEFEND is looking for a Senior Cybersecurity Operations Analyst in New Zealand, with Wellington or Auckland placement. You will lead investigations, hunt threats, reduce cyber risk, and help customers strengthen their security posture.

You’ll work with top NZ cybersecurity professionals and shape the future of managed security services nationwide. You’ll own end-to-end vulnerability management, communicate risk to stakeholders, and drive remediation initiatives while continually improving

Qualifications

• Experience with vulnerability management platforms (e.g.Qualys, CrowdStrike).
• Hands-on threat hunting and security operations expertise.
• Scripting/automation skills (Python, PowerShell, or AI).

Responsibilities

• Own end-to-end vulnerability management across infrastructure, endpoints, and applications
• Identify, prioritise, and communicate risk—from everyday exposures to zero-day threats
• Conduct proactive threat hunting using modern query languages (KQL, CQL)
• Investigate and respond to real-world security incidents across identity, endpoint, and network layers
• Automate security operations using Python, PowerShell, Bash, and/or emerging AI techniques
• Partner with stakeholders to drive remediation and risk reduction
• Deliver high-quality reporting and insights that influence decision-making
• Contribute to cloud security posture and hardening initiatives
• Continuously improve playbooks, processes, and detection capability

Skills

Vulnerability management

Threat hunting

Security operations

Scripting/Automation

Communication

Tools

Qualys

CrowdStrike

SIEM

EDR

Job description

DEFEND is looking for a Senior Cybersecurity Operations Analyst in New Zealand, with Wellington or Auckland placement. You will lead investigations, hunt threats, reduce cyber risk, and help customers strengthen their security posture.

You’ll work with top NZ cybersecurity professionals and shape the future of managed security services nationwide. You’ll own end-to-end vulnerability management, communicate risk to stakeholders, and drive remediation initiatives while continually improving