Cyber Threat Engineer

Cyber Threat Engineer - Contract - Vienna, VA - $65.00 - $69.21/hr. The final salary or hourly wage, as applicable, paid to each candidate/applicant for this position is ultimately dependent on a variety of factors, including, but not limited to, the candidate's/applicant's qualifications, skills, and level of experience as well as the geographical location of the position. Applicants must be legally authorized to work in the United States. Sponsorship not available. Our client is seeking Cyber Threat Engineer in Vienna, VA.

ROLE DESCRIPTION
We are requesting approval for a contract billet for a Cyber Threat Engineer to support the core functions of the Threat Intelligence and Emerging Risk (TIER) team. This position will provide dedicated engineering capacity to develop, automate, integrate, and maintain the tools and processes TIER analysts use for threat hunting and operationalizing threat intelligence. The role will support threat intelligence ingestion and enrichment workflows, automated data processing, YARA and SIGMA rule development, technical integrations, and reusable threat-hunting capabilities.

Dedicated engineering support will reduce manual effort, improve the scalability and consistency of TIER operations, and allow analysts to focus more directly on threat intelligence and emerging-risk activities. The Cyber Threat Engineer is a mid-level cybersecurity engineering role responsible for developing and maintaining the tools, automation, integrations, and technical processes that support TIER threat intelligence and threat-hunting activities. Working from TIER-defined requirements, the engineer will independently design, test, document, and maintain reusable technical solutions.

The position enables threat analysis and hunting through engineering rather than serving as the primary threat analyst. Develop and maintain tools, scripts, and automated workflows that enable TIER threat-hunting and intelligence operations. Build repeatable processes for collecting, ingesting, enriching, transforming, and operationalizing threat intelligence data. Develop, test, document, and maintain YARA rules and supporting detection processes. Create Python-based utilities and script automation that reduce manual effort and improve workflow scalability.

Translate analyst requirements into technical solutions, integrations, automated processes, and reusable capabilities. Apply the MITRE ATT&CK framework when developing threat-hunting tools, detections, and supporting processes. Integrate internal and external threat intelligence sources into TIER workflows and supporting tools. Validate and perform quality assurance for tools, scripts, rules, integrations, and automation before operational use. Troubleshoot and maintain TIER tools, data pipelines, integrations, and automated workflows.

Maintain technical documentation and procedures needed to sustain developed capabilities. SKILLS & REQUIREMENTS
Bachelor's degree in cybersecurity, computer science, information technology, information systems, engineering, or a related technical discipline preferred; relevant experience may be considered in lieu of a degree. Master's degree in cybersecurity, information assurance, computer science, or a comparable technical discipline strongly preferred; comparable advanced technical qualifications or demonstrated expertise may be considered.

Demonstrated experience in cybersecurity engineering, security automation, or threat engineering. Direct experience supporting Cyber Threat Intelligence or threat-hunting function required. Demonstrated experience with Python (3+ years), script-based automation, and YARA and SIGMA rule development. Practical experience applying the MITRE ATT&CK framework to cybersecurity or threat-hunting use cases. Security+, CySA+, GCIH, GCIA, or comparable cybersecurity certifications preferred, but not required.

Strong cybersecurity engineering, automation, troubleshooting, and technical problem-solving skills. Ability to translate analyst requirements into reliable, reusable, and maintainable technical solutions. Ability to independently develop, test, document, and maintain scripts, integrations, automation, and supporting processes. Understanding of threat intelligence and threat-hunting concepts and workflows. Effective communication and collaboration with threat analysts and defensive cybersecurity partners.

Strong attention to quality, repeatability, maintainability, and documentation.
5-10 years exp
3+ years Python development/scripting and security automation
Hands-on Cyber Threat Intelligence (CTI) and/or threat hunting experience
Strong YARA + SIGMA rule development experience
Experience with MITRE ATT&CK for detections/threat hunting
Build/maintain APIs, integrations, data pipelines, automation, and threat-intel ingestion/enrichment workflows
Experience integrating threat intelligence feeds / IOCs into security tooling
Strong troubleshooting, testing/QA, and technical documentation skills
Security+, CySA+, GCIH, GCIA preferred
Main knockout areas: no meaningful Python, no CTI/threat-hunting background, or purely analytical threat-intel experience without hands-on engineering/automation.

Benefits/Other Compensation
Medical, Dental, Life Insurance, 401K. Why Hays? You will be working with a professional recruiter who has intimate knowledge of the industry and market trends. Your Hays recruiter will lead you through a thorough screening process in order to understand your skills, experience, needs, and drivers. You will also get support on resume writing, interview tips, and career planning, so when there's a position you really want, you're fully prepared to get it. Nervous about an upcoming interview? Unsure how to write a new resume?

Visit the Hays Career Advice section to learn top tips to help you stand out from the crowd when job hunting. Hays is committed to building a thriving culture of diversity that embraces people with different backgrounds, perspectives, and experiences. We believe that the more inclusive we are, the better we serve our candidates, clients, and employees.

We are an equal employment opportunity employer, and we comply with all applicable laws prohibiting discrimination based on race, color, creed, sex (including pregnancy, sexual orientation, or gender identity), age, national origin or ancestry, physical or mental disability, veteran status, marital status, genetic information, HIV-positive status, as well as any other characteristic protected by federal, state, or local law. One of Hays' guiding principles is 'do the right thing'. We also believe that actions speak louder than words.

In that regard, we train our staff on ensuring inclusivity throughout the entire recruitment process and counsel our clients on these principles. If you have any questions about Hays or any of our processes, please contact us. In accordance with applicable federal, state, and local law protecting qualified individuals with known disabilities, Hays will attempt to reasonably accommodate those individuals unless doing so would create an undue hardship on the company.

Any qualified applicant or consultant with a disability who requires an accommodation in order to perform the essential functions of the job should call or text . Drug testing may be required; please contact a recruiter for more information.
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