IT Security Operations Engineer

IT Security Operations Engineer

EMBL-EBI - European Bioinformatics Institute

Hinxton, United Kingdom

Your role

The IT Security Operations Engineer will play a key role in the day-to-day operation and continuous improvement of EMBL-EBI’s cybersecurity capabilities. Working alongside infrastructure, platform and service teams, you will be responsible for vulnerability management, incident response, security monitoring, operational security processes and the implementation of technical security controls.

This is a hands-on technical role focused on protecting EMBL-EBI’s IT environment while continually improving security operations through automation, process optimisation and collaboration across the organisation.

Key Responsibilities

• Lead the EMBL-EBI vulnerability management programme, including identification, prioritisation, remediation tracking and reporting activities over all technology assets.
• Work with IT Operations, Infrastructure and Service Delivery teams to reduce our external attack surface and technology risk across the enterprise.
• Support the day-to-day operation of EMBL-EBI’s cybersecurity services and controls.
• Investigate, respond to and coordinate security incidents, working closely with technical teams to minimise operational impact.
• Monitor security events and alerts from security tooling, investigating suspicious activity and escalating where appropriate.
• Maintain and improve operational security processes, procedures and documentation.
• Support the deployment, configuration and optimisation of security technologies.
• Work with infrastructure and platform teams to implement security improvements across on-premise and cloud environments.
• Collaborate with our European security teams and third-party service providers.
• Develop and maintain operational security metrics, dashboards and reporting.
• Automate routine security tasks and improve operational efficiency through scripting and workflow optimisation.
• Perform security assessments and support risk remediation activities.
• Assist with the implementation and maintenance of security standards, policies and technical baselines.
• Contribute to disaster recovery, business continuity and operational resilience initiatives.
• Participate in security projects supporting the wider cybersecurity strategy.
• Monitor emerging cyber threats and recommend improvements to strengthen EMBL-EBI’s security posture.
• Provide practical security advice and guidance to technical teams across the organisation.

Skills & Attributes

• Passionate about improving operational security and reducing cyber risk.
• Collaborative, approachable and service-oriented.
• Able to prioritise effectively in a fast-paced operational environment.
• Strong attention to detail and commitment to continual improvement.
• Comfortable balancing security requirements with operational needs.
• Curious, proactive and keen to develop new technical skills.
• Able to communicate clearly with a wide range of stakeholders.

You have

• Experience working in an IT Security Operations, Cyber Security or Infrastructure Security role.
• Strong understanding of vulnerability management processes and remediation workflows.
• Experience investigating and responding to security incidents.
• Familiarity with security monitoring technologies, SIEM platforms and endpoint security solutions.
• Knowledge of operating system security across Mac, Windows and Linux environments.
• Experience with identity and access management concepts.
• Understanding of networking fundamentals and common security protocols.
• Experience administering or supporting enterprise security technologies such as endpoint protection, email security, firewalls and vulnerability scanners.
• Experience writing scripts using PowerShell, Python, Bash or similar languages to automate operational tasks.
• Strong analytical, troubleshooting and problem-solving skills.
• Excellent communication skills with the ability to work effectively across technical and non-technical teams.

You may also have

• Experience securing public cloud platforms.
• Knowledge of Microsoft 365 security technologies.
• Experience with vulnerability management platforms such as Tenable, Qualys or Rapid7.
• Familiarity with SIEM and security automation platforms such as Microsoft Sentinel, Splunk or Elastic.
• Experience implementing endpoint detection and response (EDR/XDR) technologies.
• Understanding of Identity Governance and Privileged Access Management.
• Knowledge of cyber security frameworks and implementing and maintaining effective security controls.
• Experience working in scientific research, higher education or the public sector.