Sr. Firewall Engineer

Socket.dev; Arlington (VA); On-site; USD 120,000 - 180,000; Full time

Job summary

Socket.dev in Arlington, VA is seeking a Senior Firewall Engineer to design, implement, and manage complex firewall solutions for a Department of Defense environment. This role is 100% on-site at the Pentagon, requiring deep expertise with Cisco ASA/Firepower, Juniper SRX, and Palo Alto technologies.

The candidate will monitor firewall performance, enforce security policies, and collaborate with IT and security teams to ensure robust, compliant network protections.

Qualifications

• Bachelor’s degree with 12+ years of directly relevant experience.
• Minimum of 3 years of firewall experience within a Department of Defense environment.
• Advanced experience managing firewall configurations across multiple devices.

Responsibilities

• Design, implement, and manage firewall solutions using Cisco ASA/Firepower, Juniper SRX, and Palo Alto technologies.
• Monitor firewall performance and security logs to identify, evaluate, and mitigate threats.
• Develop, maintain, and enforce network security policies and procedures.
• Perform system audits to ensure compliance with applicable standards and regulations.
• Collaborate with IT, security, and network teams to integrate firewall solutions across the environment.
• Troubleshoot and resolve network and firewall-related issues and document actions.

Skills

Firewall design

Security networking

Team leadership

DoD environment

Education

Bachelor’s degree

Tools

Cisco ASA/Firepower

Juniper SRX

Palo Alto

Job description

Description

Position Summary

The Senior Firewall Engineer supports the GSM-O effort and is responsible for designing, implementing, managing, and maintaining complex firewall solutions that protect the security and integrity of network infrastructure. This position is located at the Pentagon and requires 100% on-site support.

The role requires advanced experience with firewall technologies, including Cisco ASA/Firepower, Juniper SRX, and Palo Alto, along with a strong background in security networking within a Department of Defense environment.

Essential Duties and Responsibilities

• Design, implement, and manage firewall solutions using Cisco ASA/Firepower, Juniper SRX, and Palo Alto technologies.
• Monitor firewall performance and security logs to identify, evaluate, and mitigate potential threats.
• Develop, maintain, and enforce network security policies and procedures.
• Perform system audits to ensure compliance with applicable standards, requirements, and regulations.
• Collaborate with IT, security, and network teams to integrate firewall solutions across the environment.
• Troubleshoot and resolve network and firewall-related issues promptly and document actions within ticketing systems.
• Maintain and update firewall configurations, including security policies and firewall ACLs, as approved through Change Management.
• Serve as the focal point for all firewall tasks, operations, projects, and assessments.
• Ensure all assigned firewall tasks are delivered according to established timelines.
• Provide written reports and oral briefings to the Government Task Lead and PMO Team.
• Conduct annual performance assessments and periodic check-ins for assigned personnel.
• Validate and approve time charging for Leidos and vendor personnel, as applicable.
• Provide coaching, mentoring, and technical guidance to personnel supporting the Firewall Task Area.
• Develop and execute continual service improvement strategies to enhance operational processes and support strategic project, program, and business goals.

Minimum Qualifications (Knowledge, Skills, and Abilities)

• Bachelor’s degree and 12+ years of directly relevant experience. Additional military or relevant work experience may be considered in lieu of a degree.
• Minimum of 3 years of firewall experience within a Department of Defense environment.
• Demonstrated knowledge in planning, directing, and managing a firewall team in an organization of similar size and complexity.
• Demonstrated knowledge of perimeter and internal firewall implementation in both physical and virtual environments.
• Advanced experience managing standard baseline configurations across numerous firewalls.
• Advanced experience evaluating firewall rules to ensure maximum security while minimizing redundancy.
• Experience researching, evaluating, and fielding new and innovative firewall technologies.

Required Clearance and Certifications

• Must have, at minimum, an active DoD Top Secret security clearance with the ability to obtain TS/SCI. Active TS/SCI is preferred.
• Must have DoD 8570 IAT II or higher certification prior to start.
• Must have a Juniper, Cisco, or Palo Alto certification prior to start.

Physical Demands and Work Environment

The physical demands described here are representative of those that must be met by an employee to successfully perform the essential functions of this position. Reasonable accommodations may be made to enable individuals with disabilities to perform these functions.

While performing the duties of this position, the employee is regularly required to talk or hear. The employee frequently is required to use hands or fingers, handle or feel objects, tools, or controls. The employee is occasionally required to stand; walk; sit; and reach with hands and arms. The employee must occasionally lift and/or move up to 25 pounds. Specific vision abilities required by this position include close vision, distance vision, and the ability to adjust focus. The noise level in the work environment is usually low to moderate.

Travel - Up to 10%

Shift

• Hours and shift determined by location.

Note

This job description is not designed to cover or contain a comprehensive listing of activities, duties or responsibilities that are required of the employee for this job. Duties, responsibilities and activities may change at any time with or without notice. Employees will be required to follow any other job-related instructions and to perform any other job-related duties requested by any person authorized to give instructions or assignments. This document does not create an employment contract, implied or otherwise, other than an “at will” relationship.