Principal Consultant, Offensive Security, Proactive Services (Unit 42)

Our Mission

At Palo Alto Networks® everything starts and ends with our mission:

Being the cybersecurity partner of choice, protecting our digital way of life.
Our vision is a world where each day is safer and more secure than the one before. We are a company built on the foundation of challenging and disrupting the way things are done, and we’re looking for innovators who are as committed to shaping the future of cybersecurity as we are.

Who We Are

We take our mission of protecting the digital way of life seriously. We are relentless in protecting our customers and we believe that the unique ideas of every member of our team contributes to our collective success. Our values were crowdsourced by employees and are brought to life through each of us everyday - from disruptive innovation and collaboration, to execution. From showing up for each other with integrity to creating an environment where we all feel included.

As a member of our team, you will be shaping the future of cybersecurity. We work fast, value ongoing learning, and we respect each employee as a unique individual. Knowing we all have different needs, our development and personal wellbeing programs are designed to give you choice in how you are supported. This includes our FLEXBenefits wellbeing spending account with over 1,000 eligible items selected by employees, our mental and financial health resources, and our personalized learning opportunities - just to name a few!

Your Career

The Principal Consultant on the Offensive Security team is focused on assessing and challenging the security posture across a comprehensive portfolio of clients. The individual will utilize a variety of tools developed and act as a key team member and leader in client engagements. They will be the client’s advocate for cybersecurity best practices and will provide strong recommendations in this domain. 

Your Impact

• Assist in the development of internal infrastructure design for research, development, and testing focused on offensive security
• Conducts periodic scans of networks to find and detect vulnerabilities
• Performs client penetration testing to find any vulnerabilities or weaknesses that might be exploited by a malicious party, using open-source, custom, and commercial testing tools
• Ability to assist in scoping engagements by clearly articulating various penetration approaches and methodologies to audiences ranging from highly technical to executive personnel
• Report generation that clearly communicates testing and assessment details, results, and remediation recommendations to clients
• Develop scripts, tools, and methodologies to automate and streamline internal processes and engagements
• Conducts IT application testing, cybersecurity tool and systems analysis, system and network administration, and systems engineering support for the sustainment of information technology systems. (mobile application testing, penetration testing, application, security, and hardware testing)
• Conduct threat hunting and/or compromise assessment engagements to identify active or dormant indicators of compromise (IoCs) using Unit 42 and Palo Alto Networks’ threat hunting tools (and/or client owned hunting instrumentation where applicable)
• Assist Unit 42 Leadership in the development of security standards and best practices for the organization and recommend security enhancements as needed
• Able to conduct cyber risk assessments using frameworks or standards like NIST CSF, ISO 27001/2, PCI, CIS Top 20, CMMC, or other industry measurement tools
• Conduct cloud penetration testing engagements to assess specific workloads (i.e., AWS, GCP, Azure, containers, or other PaaS and SaaS instances) for vulnerabilities and subsequently attempt to exploit identified weaknesses after receiving permission from client stakeholders  
• Provide recommendations to clients on specific security measures to monitor and protect sensitive data and systems from infiltration and cyber-attacks including response and recovery of a data security breach
• Ability to perform travel requirements as needed to meet business demands (on average 30%)

Your Experience 

• 6+ years of professional experience in an offensive security role, resulting in subject matter expertise in at least three core service offerings - network penetration testing, phishing, web application penetration testing, red team exercises, physical penetration tests, source code analysis, wireless penetration testing
• Experience managing a team of consultants
• Demonstrate a deep understanding of how malicious software works (i.e.-malware, trojans, rootkits, etc.)
• Ability to modify known and/or craft custom exploits in a manner that evades detection from prominent EDRs
• Strong knowledge of tools and techniques used to conduct network, wireless, and web application penetration testing
• Familiarity with web application penetration testing and code auditing to find security gaps and vulnerabilities
• Knowledge and experience in conducting cyber risk assessments using industry standards
• Experience with penetration testing, administering, and troubleshooting major flavors of Linux, Windows, and major cloud IaaS, PaaS, and SaaS providers (i.e., AWS, GCP, and Azure)
• Experience with scripting and editing existing code and programming using one or more of the following - Perl, Python, ruby, bash, C/C++, C#, or Java
• Experience with industry standard tools, including Nessus, OpenVAS, Mythic, Metasploit, Burp Suite Pro, Cobalt Strike, and Bloodhound
• Knowledge of application, database, and web server design and implementation
• Knowledge of network vulnerability assessments, web and cloud application security testing, network penetration testing, red teaming, security operations, or 'hunt'
• Knowledge of open security testing standards and projects, including OWASP & MITRE ATT&CK
• Ability to scope new opportunities with prospective clients, including drafting statements of work and proposals
• Identified ability to grow into a valuable contributor, specifically
  • have an external presence via public speaking, conferences, and/or publications
  • have credibility, executive presence, and gravitas
  • be able to have a meaningful and rapid delivery contribution
  • have the potential and capacity to understand all aspects of the business and an excellent understanding of PANW products
  • be collaborative and able to build relationships internally, externally, and across all PANW functions, including the sales team
• Bachelor’s Degree in Information Security, Computer Science, Digital Forensics, Cyber Security, or equivalent years of professional experience or equivalent military experience to meet job requirements and expectations

• Mandatory DoD Security Clearance Requirements

• This position requires an active DoD clearance at the Top Secret/Sensitive Compartmented Information (TS/SCI) level; Counterintelligence Scope Polygraph preferred but not required

• Mandatory Location and Onsite Support Requirements

• All applicants must live near a major US military installation to facilitate support for an ongoing DoD contract; close proximity to Fort Meade is preferred.  Any proposed military installation other than Fort Meade shall be subjected to approval by our client.  Questions regarding approved locations can be coordinated with either the PANW recruiter or Unit 42 interviewers during the early phases of a candidate’s evaluation process. 
• The candidate will be required to work onsite within a classified workspace at a US military installation for the first year of employment.  Continued onsite work may be required in response to client requirements or contract renewal.

The Team

Unit 42 Consulting is Palo Alto Network's security advisory team.  Our vision is to create a more secure digital world by providing the highest quality incident response, risk management, and digital forensic services to clients of all sizes. Our team is composed of recognized experts and incident responders with deep technical expertise and experience in investigations, data breach response, digital forensics, and information security. With a highly successful track record of delivering mission-critical cybersecurity solutions, we are experienced in working quickly to provide an effective incident response, attack readiness, and remediation plans with a focus on providing long-term support to improve our clients’ security posture.

Compensation Disclosure

The compensation offered for this position will depend on qualifications, experience, and work location. For candidates who receive an offer at the posted level, the starting base salary (for non-sales roles) or base salary + commission target (for sales/commissioned roles) is expected to be between $151000 - $208000/YR. The offered compensation may also include restricted stock units and a bonus. A description of our employee benefits may be found here.

Our Commitment

We’re problem solvers that take risks and challenge cybersecurity’s status quo. It’s simple: we can’t accomplish our mission without diverse teams innovating, together.

We are committed to providing reasonable accommodations for all qualified individuals with a disability. If you require assistance or accommodation due to a disability or special need, please contact us at  accommodations@paloaltonetworks.com.

Palo Alto Networks is an equal opportunity employer. We celebrate diversity in our workplace, and all qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard to age, ancestry, color, family or medical care leave, gender identity or expression, genetic information, marital status, medical condition, national origin, physical or mental disability, political affiliation, protected veteran status, race, religion, sex (including pregnancy), sexual orientation, or other legally protected characteristics.

All your information will be kept confidential according to EEO guidelines.