Senior Incident Response Analyst, MDR

Openkrill; United States; Remote; USD 130,000 - 190,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Remote-first working model

Hybrid/onsite options (where needed)

Wellbeing programs

Volunteer and charity initiatives

Sustainability initiatives

Global fitness and trivia competitions

Job summary

Sophos is seeking a highly skilled Senior Incident Response Analyst to support MDR customers within the Critical Incident Response Team (CIRT). You will lead complex engagements, guiding containment decisions and providing advanced technical leadership to ensure top-tier customer outcomes.

As a Senior Incident Response Analyst 2, you will serve as a primary Advisor or Commander for high-severity incidents, coordinating across analysts and collaborating with SOC, Threat Intelligence, and

Qualifications

• 5+ years of incident response, MDR, or cyber security investigations with leadership of complex incidents
• Advanced expertise in endpoint and network forensics, log analysis, and adversary tradecraft
• Strong ability to communicate technical findings to executive stakeholders

Responsibilities

• Lead complex investigations involving advanced adversaries and multi-vector intrusions
• Act as Incident Advisor or Commander for high-severity engagements
• Direct and coordinate investigative, forensic, and containment activities across analysts
• Define engagement strategy, priorities, and containment approaches
• Synthesize technical findings into actionable guidance for customers and internal stakeholders
• Provide mentorship to IR and SOC analysts
• Collaborate with SOC, Threat Intelligence, and Detection Engineering teams
• Lead or contribute to post-incident reviews and improve playbooks and tools
• Maintain accurate time and activity tracking for visibility and capacity planning

Skills

Incident response leadership

Endpoint forensics

Network forensics

Log analysis

Customer communication

Mentorship

High-pressure handling

Adversary tradecraft

IR strategy & containment

Education

Advanced incident response certifications (GCFA, GCED, GCIH, OSCP)

Job description

About Us

Sophos is a cybersecurity leader defending 600,000 organizations globally with an AI-driven platform and expert-led services. Sophos meets organizations wherever they are in their security maturity and grows with them to defeat cyberattacks. Its solutions combine machine learning, automation, and real-time threat intelligence with frontline human expertise from Sophos X-Ops to deliver advanced, 24/7 threat monitoring, detection, and response.

Sophos offers industry-leading managed detection and response (MDR) alongside a comprehensive portfolio of cybersecurity technologies - including endpoint, network, email, and cloud security, extended detection and response (XDR), identity threat detection and response (ITDR), and next-gen SIEM. Together with expert advisory services, these capabilities help organizations proactively reduce risk and respond faster, with the visibility and scalability needed to stay ahead of evolving threats.

Sophos goes to market with a global partner ecosystem, including Managed Service Providers (MSPs), Managed Security Service Providers (MSSPs), resellers and distributors, marketplace integrations, and cyber risk partners, giving organizations the flexibility to choose trusted relationships when securing their business. Sophos is headquartered in Oxford, U.K. More information is available at www.sophos.com.

Role Summary

Sophos is seeking a highly skilled Senior Incident Response Analyst to support Managed Detection and Response (MDR) customers within the Critical Incident Response Team (CIRT).

As a Senior Incident Response Analyst 2, you will lead complex and high-impact incident response engagements, operating across Responder, Advisor, and Commander roles as required. You are trusted to provide advanced technical leadership, shape investigative strategy, guide containment decisions, and ensure high-quality customer outcomes during critical security incidents.

What You Will Do

• - Lead complex investigations involving advanced adversaries, multi-vector intrusions, or cross-environment compromise
• - Serve as the primary Incident Advisor or delegated Commander for high-severity engagements
• - Direct and coordinate investigative, forensic, and containment activities across multiple analysts
• - Define engagement strategy, investigative priorities, and containment approaches based on risk and impact
• - Validate and synthesize technical findings into clear, actionable guidance for customers and internal stakeholders
• - Provide technical mentorship and oversight to IR and SOC analysts
• - Collaborate closely with SOC, Threat Intelligence, and Detection Engineering teams to validate detections and close visibility gaps
• - Lead or contribute to post-incident reviews, driving improvements to playbooks, tools, and response workflows
• - Maintain accurate time and activity tracking to support operational visibility and capacity planning

What You Will Bring

Essential:

• - 5+ years of experience in incident response, MDR, or cyber security investigations, including leadership of complex incidents
• - Advanced expertise in endpoint and network forensics, log analysis, and adversary tradecraft
• - Strong understanding of enterprise network architecture and IT infrastructure
• - Proven ability to lead investigations, validate findings, and design effective containment strategies
• - Experience communicating technical findings to customers, including senior and executive stakeholders
• - Demonstrated mentorship and leadership across incident response teams
• - Ability to operate effectively under high-pressure, time-sensitive conditions
• - Willingness to work some weekends and holidays as part of a rotation

Desired:

• - Advanced incident response or forensic certifications (GCFA, GCED, GCIH, OSCP, or equivalent)
• - Experience acting as Incident Advisor or Commander during critical engagements
• - Publications, presentations, or recognized contributions within the cybersecurity field
• - Experience influencing detection strategy, tooling improvements, or service design
• - Strong customer-facing presence with experience briefing executives during incidents

In Canada, the base salary for this role ranges from $131,000 to $219,000. In addition to base salary, we offer additional compensation including bonus eligibility and a comprehensive benefits package. A candidate’s specific pay within this range will depend on a variety of factors, including job-related skills, training, location, experience, relevant education, certifications, and other business and organizational needs.

What's Great About Sophos?

• Sophos operates a remote-first working model, making remote work the primary option for most employees. However, some roles may necessitate a hybrid approach. While we are a remote first organization, applicants must have legal authorization to work in the jurisdiction where the position is posted, without requiring employer sponsorship.
• Our people – we innovate and create, all of which are accompanied by a great sense of fun and team spirit
• Employee-led diversity and inclusion networks that build community and provide education and advocacy
• Annual charity and fundraising initiatives and volunteer days for employees to support local communities
• Global employee sustainability initiatives to reduce our environmental footprint
• Global fitness and trivia competitions to keep our bodies and minds sharp
• Global wellbeing days for employees to relax and recharge
• Monthly wellbeing webinars and training to support employee health and wellbeing

Our Commitment To You

We’re proud of the diverse and inclusive environment we have at Sophos, and we’re committed to ensuring equality of opportunity. We believe that diversity, combined with excellence, builds a better Sophos, so we encourage applicants who can contribute to the diversity of our team. All applicants will be treated in a fair and equal manner and in accordance with the law regardless of gender, sex, gender reassignment, marital status, race, religion or belief, color, age, military veteran status, disability, pregnancy, maternity or sexual orientation. We want to give you every opportunity to show us your best self, so if there are any adjustments we could make to the recruitment and selection process to support you, please let us know.

Data Protection

If you choose to explore an opportunity, and subsequently share your CV or other personal details with Sophos, these details will be held by Sophos for 12 months in accordance with our Privacy Policy and used by our recruitment team to contact you regarding this or other relevant opportunities at Sophos. If you would like Sophos to delete or update your details at any time, please follow the steps set out in the Privacy Policy describing your individual rights. For more information on Sophos’ data protection practices, please consult our Privacy Policy Cybersecurity as a Service Delivered | Sophos