Penetration Tester

GUNNISON CONSULTING GROUP, INC; Washington (District of Columbia); On-site; USD 75,000 - 87,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

3 weeks Personal Leave

11 paid holidays

Training & Certifications - $2,500/yr

401(k) company match

Medical, Dental and Vision Insurance

Life and Disability Insurance

Public Transportation Subsidies

Job summary

Gunnison Consulting Group is seeking a Penetration Tester to plan and execute security assessments across web apps, infrastructure, cloud environments, and client networks. You will develop test plans, perform vulnerability analyses, and map findings to NIST SP 800-53 controls to enhance security posture.

You will conduct hands-on testing with Burp Suite, Nessus, and other tools, generate clear reports, and coordinate remediation with client teams.

Qualifications

• 4+ years of hands-on cybersecurity assessment experience, including manual penetration testing and host vulnerability assessments.
• Ability to independently execute security assessments from planning through remediation verification.
• Current penetration testing or ethical hacking certification (e.g., CEH, OSCP, PenTest+) or equivalent.
• Strong ability to investigate and validate vulnerabilities beyond automated scanners.
• Experience with OWASP testing guidance and identifying SQLi, XSS, CSRF, auth weaknesses, and privilege escalation.
• Experience with CIS Benchmarks and validation of configurations.
• Experience assessing databases and COTS apps for vulnerabilities.
• Familiarity with NIST SP 800-53, CVE/NVD/CVSS usage for risk prioritization.
• Ability to communicate findings clearly to technical and non-technical stakeholders.

Responsibilities

• Plan and execute security tests across web apps, infrastructure, and cloud environments.
• Develop and maintain repeatable security test plans and methodologies.
• Perform vulnerability and risk analyses and map findings to NIST SP 800-53 controls.
• Produce clear, actionable reports with evidence and remediation steps.
• Brief stakeholders and track remediation verification and follow-up testing.

Skills

Security testing

Vulnerability analysis

Reporting & remediation

Team collaboration

NIST guidance

Education

Bachelor's degree in cybersecurity or related field

Tools

Burp Suite

Tenable Nessus

Tenable Security Center

AppDetective

DbVisualizer

Scuba

Kali Linux

SQLmap

PlexTrac

HCL AppScan

Qualys

Acunetix

Job description

Description

Salary range: $75,000 - $87,000/year

The Penetration Tester supports security assessments by planning and executing tests on web applications, infrastructure, cloud environments, and other technologies connected to the client network. Responsibilities include developing test plans, performing vulnerability and risk analyses, automating testing processes, and mapping findings to NIST SP 800-53 controls to ensure compliance and improve security posture.

• Conduct security testing of IT assets, web applications, infrastructure assets and technologies, mobile applications, custom developed software implementations, virtual technologies, COTS products, cloud implementations, common application platforms, and other technologies connecting to or interacting with the Judiciary network.
• Develop and maintain a repeatable methodology for performing security testing. Security test planning should include, but is not limited to: threat modeling, map business requirements to the applicable security requirements, determine appropriate security controls, test scenarios and test cases.
• Develop the Security Test Plans.
• Perform security testing, vulnerability analysis, and risk analysis in accordance with an industry-proven, repeatable methodology.
• Evaluate the effectiveness of security controls as they relate to the applicable security controls of the system tested.
• Relate test results to controls in NIST SP 800-53, as reflected in the JISF.
• Develop, maintain and use customized testing scripts (testing automation) for individual and team use.
• Develop and deliver reports as required.

Requirements

• 4+ years of hands-on cybersecurity assessment experience, including manual penetration testing, web application security testing, and host vulnerability assessments.
• Demonstrated ability to independently execute security assessments from planning and preparation through testing, findings validation, reporting, and remediation verification.
• Current penetration testing or ethical hacking certification, such as CEH, CompTIA PenTest+, OSCP, or an equivalent credential.
• Strong hands‑on proficiency with Burp Suite for manual web application testing. Must be able to investigate and validate vulnerabilities beyond automated scanner results.
• Experience identifying and validating web application vulnerabilities, including SQL injection, cross‑site scripting, cross‑site request forgery, authentication and authorization weaknesses, and privilege escalation, using OWASP testing guidance.
• Hands‑on experience with Tenable Nessus and Tenable Security Center/VSS, including configuring assessments, interpreting results, validating findings, and distinguishing actionable vulnerabilities from false positives.
• Experience performing manual host configuration and security compliance assessments against CIS Benchmarks, including validating settings and documenting deviations.
• Experience assessing databases and commercial off‑the‑shelf applications for vulnerabilities and insecure configurations, using tools such as AppDetective, DbVisualizer, Scuba, or comparable products.
• Working knowledge of networking concepts, protocols, and operating system security sufficient to investigate findings and explain their technical impact.
• Experience applying NIST security guidance, including NIST SP 800‑53, and using CVE, NVD, and CVSS information to evaluate vulnerability severity and prioritize remediation.
• Ability to develop security test plans and produce clear, technically accurate reports documenting affected assets, reproducible findings, supporting evidence, risk, and actionable remediation recommendations.
• Experience briefing technical findings to application owners, system administrators, developers, and customer stakeholders, and conducting follow‑up testing to verify corrective actions.
• Ability to manage concurrent assessments, meet reporting deadlines, maintain assessment records, and perform peer reviews of findings and deliverables.

Preferred Qualifications

• HCL AppScan experience.
• Qualys experience.
• PlexTrac experience, particularly assessment reporting, findings management, and reporting workflow improvement.
• Federal security assessment experience, particularly with the Judiciary Information Security Framework, NIST Risk Management Framework, or CSAM.
• Experience with Acunetix, Kali Linux, SQLmap, or comparable application security testing tools.
• Experience mentoring junior testers and improving assessment procedures, reporting templates, or testing workflows.
• Bachelor’s degree in cybersecurity, computer science, information technology, or a related technical field.

Clearance: Ability to obtain and maintain a Public Trust required.

The salary range for this position depends upon multiple factors including location, the individual's knowledge, skills, competencies, and experience, and contract‑specific budget constraints and organizational requirements. Gunnison Consulting Group's total compensation package also includes bonus and profit‑sharing opportunities, depending on company and employee performance. Available employee benefits include:

• 3 weeks of Personal Leave your first year
• 11 paid Holidays each year
• 5 days of Flexible Time Off each year
• 401(k) company match at 50% up to 10% of your salary
• Medical, Dental and Vision Insurance
• Life and Disability Insurance
• Public Transportation Subsidies
• Certifications and Training Allowance - $2,500/year!

Why Join Gunnison?

• Gunnison takes on ambitious projects. We target fun, challenging work that requires creative thinking and innovation.
• Quality is our top priority.
• Gunnison employee benefits meet or exceed what other companies in the Washington, D.C. metropolitan area offer.
• There is a great sense of camaraderie at Gunnison. This is an atmosphere we will maintain as we continue to grow.
• We are growing rapidly and the opportunity for individual professional growth with Gunnison is outstanding.
• We hire for careers at Gunnison, not to fill a position.

Equal Opportunity Employer. Must be eligible for employment in the United States. We are unable to sponsor candidates at this time.

In 1994 Gunnison began serving the greater Washington, D.C. metro area, focused on tackling our customers' most ambitious technology projects. By creating a culture dedicated to enabling our customers and employees to achieve more than they ever thought they could, the company has thrived for over 25 years.