ZR_1142_JOB

Cognitio Corp; McLean (VA); On-site; USD 140,000 - 190,000; Full time

Job summary

Zohorecruit in McLean, VA seeks a senior ISSO to support the assessment and authorization process for information systems. You will identify risks, implement patches, and collaborate with developers to secure a hybrid-cloud environment.

Applicants must hold an active TS/SCI with Polygraph and a bachelor’s degree in cybersecurity or related field, with 8+ years of experience in cybersecurity. Excellent communication and teamwork are essential.

Qualifications

• Active TS/SCI with Polygraph clearance.
• Bachelor’s degree in Cybersecurity, IT or related technical discipline.
• 8+ years of applied experience or 5 years cybersecurity with relevant degree.
• Strong verbal and written communication within a team.
• Experience with assessment and authorization tracking tools.
• Understanding of perimeter controls and network architectures.
• Experience with OS hardening (CentOS/RedHat/Windows).
• Proficient with vulnerability and risk assessment tools (Elasticsearch, Splunk, Rapid7, Nessus).
• Experience collaborating with stakeholders, developers, and leadership.
• Knowledge of NIST 800-53 and related controls.
• Familiar with TCP/IP, UDP, HTTP/S, SSH, LDAP.
• Experience securing cloud environments (AWS, Azure).
• Knowledge of network devices – IDS/IPS, firewalls.
• Open-source and commercial security tools experience.
• Ability to perform in fast-paced customer environments.

Responsibilities

• Support the assessment and authorization (A&A) process for information systems.
• Identify risks, vulnerabilities, anomalies; patch and audit to improve security posture.
• Collaborate with developers and engineers to create a secure hybrid-cloud environment.
• Document security posture, controls, and changes; report findings to stakeholders.
• Coordinate with ISSMs, leadership, and customers for risk-based decisions.
• Apply knowledge of CCPs and NIST-based requirements in daily tasks.

Skills

TS/SCI clearance

Cybersecurity expertise

Vulnerability assessment

Team communication

Networking basics

Education

Bachelor’s degree in Cybersecurity/IT/related discipline

Tools

Elasticsearch

Splunk

Rapid7 Nexpose

Jira

Confluence

AWS

Azure

Nessus

Nmap

Cisco

VMware

Citrix

Trellix

Job description

Mc Lean, United States | Posted on 07/14/2026

• Level of Position Senior-level (6-10 years)
• Job Type Full time
• Clearance TS/SCI Full Scope Polygraph
• Country United States

Job Description

Membersof the ISSO team support the assessment and authorization (A&A) process forinformation systems. The successful candidate will have requisite cybersecurity experience with methods and tools used to improve the security postureof critical systems such as identifying risks, vulnerabilities, anomalies,patching, auditing, automation, security hardening, best practices, andevaluating system changes. In addition, the candidate will collaborate withdevelopers and engineers on projects to create a secure hybrid-cloudenvironment.

Requirements

Mandatory Requirements:

• Candidate must have an active TS/SCI with a Polygraph
  
• Bachelor’s degree in Cybersecurity, IT, or other relatedtechnical discipline; or the equivalent combination of education, technicaltraining, or work/military experience
  
• Minimum eight (8) years applied experience or relevantdegree plus five (5) years of Cybersecurity expertise with demonstrated abilityto successfully shepherd IT projects of varying types through the authorizationlifecycle
  
• Strong verbal and written communication/cooperation within ateam context
  
• Supported control implementation assessment and reportingand monitoring processes using cyber security and assessment management systems
  
• Understanding of perimeter controls (firewalls), accesscontrol mechanisms, and network architectures
  
• Demonstrated essential understanding of methods forhardening operating systems (e.g., CentOS, RedHat, Windows)
  
• Skilled with and/or demonstrated technical aptitude withvulnerability and risk assessment tools such as Elasticsearch or Splunk SIEMs,Rapid7 Nexpose, and IDS/IPS monitoring and alerting
  
• Strong understanding of methodologies for researching anddocumenting software and hardware vulnerabilities
  
• Experienced working closely with stakeholders, developers,and external teams, including customer security manages (ISSMs), organizationalleadership, and key personnel
  
• Applied experience with the customer’s assessment andauthorization tracking tools
  
• Knowledgeable regarding Common Control Provider (CCP)requirements and methodology
  
• Demonstrated knowledge and experience with networkingtopologies and hardware, including commonly used/referenced network devices,IDS and IPS, etc.
  
• Applied experience with open-source and commercial tools andsystems such as nmap, Nessus, Rapid7, Splunk, Nipper, Elasticsearch, Jira,Confluence, Cisco, VMware, Citrix, or Trellix, as well as GOTS tools used bythe customer
  
• Demonstrated experience with the design and implementationof defense-in-depth solutions
  
• Skilled in cross-team collaboration and effectivecommunication to fulfill specific authorization requirements
  
• Demonstrated skill documenting processes and procedures inCONOPS and system security, contingency, configuration management and otherplans
  
• Demonstrated ability to facilitate customer concurrencesrequired for risk-based decisions, especially those requiring waivers
  
• Experience assisting the customer with decisions impactingthe security posture and compliance of their systems and networks withrequirement as documented in NIST 800-53 and its revisions
  
• Extensive familiarity with communications protocols, such asTCP/IP, UDP, HTTP/S, SSH, LDAP, etc.
  
• Demonstrated experience with security, monitoring andauditing cloud-based technologies, products and services, such as Amazon WebServices (AWS) or Microsoft Azure
  
• Knowledge of the customer's organization, their networksystems and infrastructure, processes and procedures, and request and approvaltools
  
• Ability to work within fast-paced customer environments
  

Desired Knowledge/Skills:

• Experiencein scripting/program languages such as Bash, PowerShell, or Python