Information Security Officer

Department of Behavioral Health and Developmental Services; Richmond (VA); On-site; USD 85,000 - 106,000; Full time

Job summary

Department of Behavioral Health and Developmental Services in Virginia seeks an Information Security Officer to lead the agency’s incident response program. You will coordinate with VITA, oversee incidents from detection to closure, and guide remediation and reporting while protecting PHI and agency operations.

You will orchestrate cross‑functional responses to malware, phishing, data loss, insider threats, and other security events, provide guidance to staff, and support audits, tabletop

Qualifications

• Experience leading or coordinating cybersecurity incident response in a large enterprise, government, healthcare, or public sector.
• Knowledge of the cybersecurity incident lifecycle (identification to closure).
• Experience responding to ransomware, phishing, data loss, PHI/PII breaches, and related events.
• Ability to analyze security alerts, logs, and threat intel to drive actions.
• Experience supporting forensic investigations and chain-of-custody documentation.

Responsibilities

• Lead the agency’s incident response program and coordinate with VITA and other stakeholders.
• Oversee incidents from identification through triage, containment, eradication, recovery, remediation, and closure.
• Prepare incident documentation, timelines, reports, and executive briefings; provide guidance on reporting and evidence handling.

Skills

Incident response coordination

Security incident lifecycle

Threat & vulnerability analysis

Forensic support

Communication under pressure

Education

CISSP

CISM

Security+

Tools

ServiceNow

SIEM

Forensic tools

Job description

Title: Information Security Officer

State Role Title: Info Technology Specialist II

Hiring Range: $85,000-$105,970

Pay Band: 6

Agency: Dept Behavioral Health/Develop

Location: Central Office

Agency Website: www.dbhds.virginia.gov

Recruitment Type: General Public - G

Job Duties

The Department of Behavioral Health and Developmental Services (DBHDS) is seeking a highly qualified cybersecurity incident response professional to lead the agency’s incident response program in alignment with VITA procedures, Commonwealth security requirements, and applicable regulations. This role serves as the primary DBHDS point of contact with VITA and oversees incidents from identification through triage, containment, eradication, recovery, remediation, and closure while assessing severity, business impact, affected systems, data exposure, and risks to agency operations.

The position coordinates responses to malware, ransomware, phishing, compromised accounts, unauthorized access, data loss, denial of service events, insider threats, exploited vulnerabilities, and potential PHI breaches. Responsibilities include analyzing security alerts and logs, supporting forensic investigations and evidence preservation, maintaining chain of custody documentation, and assisting with root cause analysis. The role also prepares incident documentation, timelines, reports, briefings, and corrective action tracking, and provides guidance on incident reporting, escalation, and evidence handling to agency personnel.

Additional duties include maintaining incident response policies, procedures, playbooks, and communication processes; coordinating quarterly tabletop exercises in accordance with SEC 530; supporting audits, assessments, FOIA requests, subpoenas, investigations, and ServiceNow ticketing; and providing 24/7 on call support for urgent incidents. The position collaborates with infrastructure, identity, vulnerability management, applications, business units, CSBs, vendors, and VITA to support continuity planning, disaster recovery testing, cyber resilience activities, post incident reviews, compliance efforts, and continuous improvement of DBHDS’s incident response capabilities.

Minimum Qualifications

• Experience leading or coordinating cybersecurity incident response in an enterprise, government, healthcare, or public sector environment.
• Knowledge of the cybersecurity incident lifecycle, including identification, triage, containment, eradication, recovery, and closure.
• Experience responding to major incident types such as ransomware, phishing, compromised accounts, unauthorized access, data loss, DDoS, insider threats, and PHI/PII breaches.
• Ability to analyze and interpret security alerts, logs, endpoint and network activity, vulnerability data, and threat intelligence.
• Experience supporting forensic investigations, evidence preservation, chain-of-custody processes, and root cause analysis.
• Ability to prepare accurate documentation, incident reports, timelines, executive briefings, and corrective action tracking.
• Strong communication, analytical, organizational, and judgment skills, with the ability to work effectively under pressure and protect confidential information.

Additional Considerations

• Experience working within Virginia state government, VITA, or another centralized public sector cybersecurity organization.
• Professional certifications such as CISSP, CISM, Security+, CySA+, GCIH, GCIA, or GCFA.
• Experience in environments handling PHI or sensitive client information (healthcare, behavioral health, human services).
• Familiarity with Commonwealth security standards, SEC 530 requirements, NIST guidance, or similar frameworks.

Contact Information

Name: ShaKiera Miles
Phone: N/A
Email: [e-mail] - Inquiries Only/No Submissions, to include resumes.

In support of the Commonwealth’s commitment to inclusion, we are encouraging individuals with disabilities to apply through the Commonwealth Alternative Hiring Process. To be considered for this opportunity, applicants will need to provide their AHP Letter (formerly COD) provided by the Department for Aging & Rehabilitative Services (DARS), or the Department for the Blind & Vision Impaired (DBVI). Service-Connected Veterans are encouraged to answer Veteran status questions and submit their disability documentation, if applicable, to DARS/DBVI to get their AHP Letter. Requesting an AHP Letter can be found at AHP Letter or by calling DARS at 800-552-5019.

Note: Applicants who received a Certificate of Disability from DARS or DBVI dated between April 1, 2022- February 29, 2024, can still use that COD as applicable documentation for the Alternative Hiring Process.

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