Associate Network Security Researcher

Carnegie Mellon University; Pittsburgh (Allegheny County); On-site; USD 120,000 - 160,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Medical insurance

Retirement plan

Tuition benefits

Paid time off

Life insurance

Transit pass

Job summary

Carnegie Mellon University in Arlington, VA; Pittsburgh, PA, seeks a network security researcher on the Network Situational Awareness team. You will research network threats to develop detection methods, tailor these for partner environments, and contribute to NetSA tool suite with new requirements and features.

You will also author publications and provide customer-specific training, using netflow data, application layer metadata, and evolving host-based and cloud telemetry to expand the team’s

Qualifications

• Bachelor’s Degree in CS or related with 3 years of relevant work experience.
• MS in CS or related with 1 year of relevant work experience.
• PhD in CS or related may substitute experience.

Responsibilities

• Gain insights from data to facilitate detections.
• Collaborate with partners to understand their data.
• Research new data sources to expand team expertise.
• Develop detection capabilities for NetSA tool suite.

Skills

Python/Go/Ruby/Java/Scala

Network fundamentals

Scripting & analytics

Education

Bachelor’s Degree in CS or related

MS in CS or related

PhD in CS or related

Tools

YAF

Zeek

Suricata

Job description

What We Do

Our team, within the Cyber Risk and Resilience Directorate researches, designs, and develops software tools for the collection, storage, and analysis of network data to provide security insights. We provide both the core network tools to facilitate this capability and prototypes of new methods to present the data most effectively. We work with data at a scale generally not experienced by most organizations, handling record counts in the tens of billions per day.

Position Summary

As a network security researcher on the Network Situational Awareness team, you will research network threats to develop methods of detection and tailor these for partner environments. Transition of this research will take the form of developing detection capabilities, providing new requirements and feature requests for our NetSA Security tool suite, writing publications, and providing customer‑specific training. The primary network data source for the team is netflow combined with application layer metadata, with an expanding focus on host‑based (e.g., EDR) and cloud telemetry.

Responsibilities

You will be responsible for gaining insights from data to facilitate detections, working with partners to help them better understand their data and researching new data sources to expand the expertise of the team.

Requirements

• Bachelor’s Degree in Computer Science or a relevant technical discipline with three (3) years of relevant work experience; or a MS in Computer Science or a relevant technical discipline with one (1) year of relevant work experience; or a PhD in Computer Science or other relevant technical discipline.
• Movement between buildings within the SEI and CMU community required.
• Willingness to travel to various locations to support the SEI’s overall mission, including national travel to sponsor sites, conferences, and offsite meetings on occasion.
• Subject to a background check and required to obtain and maintain a Department of War security clearance.

Knowledge, Skills and Abilities

Exposure to translating threat intelligence to avenues for research, prototyping, and curation of detection capabilities.

Solid knowledge of network fundamentals, common application layer protocols, and network‑based telemetry.

Proficiency in at least one scripting or programming language such as Python, Go, Ruby, C, Java, or Scala.

Solid problem‑solving and analytical skills, detailed research, and ability to document and communicate ideas and findings to diverse audiences.

Desired Experience

Hands‑on experience in a security research, threat hunting, detection engineering, or SOC Analyst role.

Some experience analyzing network telemetry such as netflow, application metadata, or PCAP from network sensors such as YAF, Zeek, Suricata, etc.

Exposure to cybersecurity data science methods and practices.

Awareness of open‑source and/or commercial Internet intelligence telemetry and datasets.

Awareness of the threat landscape and experience researching and investigating threats.

Experience presenting technical topics.

Benefits

• Comprehensive medical, prescription, dental, and vision insurance.
• Generous retirement savings program with employer contributions.
• Tuition benefits.
• Paid time off and observed holidays.
• Life and accidental death and disability insurance.
• Free Pittsburgh Regional Transit bus pass.
• Access to Family Concierge Team to help navigate childcare needs.
• Fitness center access.

Location

Arlington, VA; Pittsburgh, PA

Equal Opportunity Statement

Carnegie Mellon University is an Equal Opportunity Employer/Disability/Veteran.