Red Team Penetration Tester *

SimVentions, Inc - Glassdoor 4.6; Mount Victoria (MD); On-site; USD 120,000 - 190,000; Full time

Job summary

SimVentions, Inc. is seeking an experienced Red Team Penetration Tester to conduct penetration testing and offensive cybersecurity operations for U.S. Government and DoD systems.

The role requires active Secret clearance; Top Secret with SCI eligibility is preferred. Expect collaboration with blue teams to enhance cyber posture and prepare for potential DoD engagements. Funding for this position is anticipated in December 2026.

Qualifications

• Five years of software engineering applied to DoD or IT systems.
• Strong knowledge of Linux and Windows in enterprise networks.
• Experience with common penetration testing tools (Kali, Metasploit, NMAP, Cobalt Strike).
• Experience in Red Team operations or penetration testing in DoD contexts.
• Proficiency with Python, C/C++, Go, or similar for tooling or exploits.

Responsibilities

• Conduct penetration testing and offensive cybersecurity operations for DoD and US government systems.
• Collaborate with blue team and cybersecurity professionals to improve overall posture.
• Document findings and contribute to tool development and vulnerability emulation.
• Work within an environment requiring security clearances and compliance with government standards.

Skills

Linux

Windows

Penetration Testing

Red Team Operations

Python

AWS

Education

Active Secret Clearance

Top Secret Clearance (preferred)

Tools

Kali

Metasploit

NMAP

Cobalt Strike

Job description

Overview

SimVentions, consistently voted one Virginia's Best Places to Work, is looking for an experienced professional to join our team! As a Red Team Penetration Tester, you will be responsible for conducting penetration testing and conducting offensive cybersecurity operations for the U.S. Government and DoD systems. You will work collaboratively with Blue Team and Cybersecurity professionals to enhance overall cyber posture.

** This position anticipates funding in December 2026. **

Travel: Negligible Clearance

At minimum an ACTIVE Secret Clearance is required for this position. An ACTIVE Top Secret Clearance with SCI Eligibility is preferred. Applicants selected will be subject to a security investigation and may need to meet eligibility requirements for access to classified information. US Citizenship is required to obtain a clearance.

Requirements

Five (5) years' experience in software engineering applied to program development; modeling and simulation applied to DoD or Information Technology systems.

• Linux (firm grasp with demonstrated knowledge)


• Windows (foundational knowledge with good understanding of enterprise networks)

Strong working knowledge of common Penetration Testing (PENTEST) tools:

• 
  
  
  
  • Kali
  
  
  • Metasploit
  
  
  • NMAP
  
  
  • Cobalt Strike
  
  
  
  

Documented experience in at least one of the following:

• Penetration Testing (PENTEST)


• Red Team Operations


• Tool/Software Development (exploits/malware, C2, reverse engineering, bug bounties)


• Python, C, C Sharp, C++, Go, Perl, Powershell


• Web Dev/Web App Dev/Web Penetration testing
  
  
  
  • NSX, vCenter, vRealize Suite, Horizon View (VDI) and others
  
  
  • PAN-OS
  
  
  • FirePower, Nexus, IOS, ASA
  
  
  • ONTAP, SnapMirror
  
  
  • Active-Directory
  
  
  • Active Directory, SSO, MFA, Azure application integration, Identity Federation.
  
  
  • Automation using Powershell, PowerAutomate, Logic Apps, Graph API.
  
  
  • Experience with Palo Alto, Cisco, VMWare, NetApp and Microsoft products.
  
  
  • Entra ID (Azure AD), to include:
    
    
    
    • Microsoft Entra ID and Microsoft 365 in a hybrid environment.
    
    
    • Extending or integrating on premises AD with Entra ID.
    
    
    • Managing identity and access in Microsoft Entra ID.
    
    
    
    
  
  
  • Experience conducting Red Team operations in an MDE environment.
  
  
  • Experience with AWS, Cloud Audit, Serverless and Microservice Architecture
  
  
  • Experience working with AWS services (such as EC2, S3, KMS, RDS) and security best practices relevant to those services
  
  
  • Experience with Web Services penetration testing (RESTful and SOAP) Web Authentication protocols (e.g. OAuth2, SAML, LDAP)
  
  
  
  


• PHP, ASP, SQL db's, Java, HTML, No SQL


• Minimum certification one of the following:
  
  
  
  • Security+
  
  
  • CCNA Security
  
  
  • CySA+
  
  
  • GICSP
  
  
  • SSCP
  
  
  
  


• Minimum certification as penetration tester and possess one of the following certificates:
  
  
  
  • Offensive Security Certs:
    
    
    
    • Offensive Security Certified Professional (OSCP)
    
    
    • Offensive Security Certified Expert (OSCE)
    
    
    • Offensive Security Exploitation Expert (OSEE)
    
    
    • Offensive Security Wireless Professional (OSWP)
    
    
    
    
  
  
  • SANS Certs:
    
    
    
    • SEC560 - Network Penetration testing and Ethical Hacking (GPEN Certification)
    
    
    • SEC542 - Web App Penetration Testing and Ethical Hacking (GWAPT Certification)
    
    
    • SEC660 - Advance Penetration Testing. Exploit Writing, and Ethical Hacking (GXPN Certification)
    
    
    • SEC642 - Advanced Web App Penetration Testing and Ethical Hacking
    
    
    • SEC564 - Red Team Operations and Threat Emulation
    
    
    • OSD Sponsored Cyber Operation Academy Course (COAC) graduates.
    
    
    • Capture the Flag (CTF) participation (DEFCON, Over-The-Wire (OTW), Hack the Box, USS Secure CTF's)