Principal/Sr Principal Penetration Tester

RELOCATION ASSISTANCE: Relocation assistance may be available

CLEARANCE REQUIRED FOR START: Yes

CLEARANCE TYPE: Top Secret

TRAVEL: Yes, 10% of the TimeDescription

At Northrop Grumman, our employees have incredible opportunities to work on revolutionary systems that impact people's lives around the world today, and for generations to come. Our pioneering and inventive spirit has enabled us to be at the forefront of many technological advancements in our nation's history - from the first flight across the Atlantic Ocean, to stealth bombers, to landing on the moon. We look for people who have bold new ideas, courage and a pioneering spirit to join forces to invent the future, and have fun along the way. Our culture thrives on intellectual curiosity, cognitive diversity and bringing your whole self to work — and we have an insatiable drive to do what others think is impossible. Our employees are not only part of history, they're making history.

Northrop Grumman Mission Systems (NGMS) is seeking a Principal or Senior Principal Cyber Protection Engineer to join our team of qualified, diverse individuals conducting penetration and cybersecurity testing activities in San Antonio, TX.

In this role, the Cyber Protection Engineer assesses and tests system cybersecurity requirements, system security architecture, and system security layout. The candidate will operate in a team environment and collaborate across the organization (as required) to accomplish team goals by coordinating with customers and other testing organizations.

Essential duties:

• Conduct cloud-focused penetration testing and security assessment activities to identify vulnerabilities, attack paths, and potential threat vectors across cloud-native and hybrid environments.
• Support offensive security operations targeting cloud infrastructure, CI/CD pipelines, containerized workloads, applications, and enterprise services within AWS, Azure, and related platforms.
• Assists with development of attack methodologies, testing procedures, and technical analysis while collaborating with senior operators and engineers.
• Apply cybersecurity knowledge to evaluate cloud security posture, validate security controls, and contribute to technical reporting, operational recommendations, and remediation guidance.

This position can be filled at the Principal or Sr. Principal Level.

Basic Qualifications for Principal Engineer:

• Bachelor's Degree and 5 years of related experience; or a Master's degree and 3 years of related experience. Note: 9 years of related experience may be considered in lieu of degree.
• US Citizenship is required
• Active US Government Top Secret Security Clearance is required with the ability to obtain an SCI.
• Must possess a DoD 8570 Certification for IAT Level II or higher(Sec+, CCNA, CySA+ or CND).
• Experience conducting penetration testing, vulnerability analysis, or security assessments against cloud, enterprise, or hybrid environments.
• Experience with cloud platforms such as AWS and Azure, including familiarity with IAM, networking, storage, logging, and security services.
• Familiarity with CI/CD pipeline technologies and concepts, including GitHub Actions, GitLab CI/CD, Jenkins, Azure DevOps, or similar platforms.
• Experience or familiarity with containerization and virtualization technologies such as Docker, Kubernetes, or VMware.
• Knowledge of Windows and Linux operating systems, networking fundamentals, and common enterprise architecture.
• Experience using scripting or automation languages such as Python, Bash, or PowerShell to support testing, analysis, or operational workflows.
• Familiarity with offensive security methodologies, vulnerability management processes, and common attacker TTPs.

Basic Qualifications for Sr. Principal Engineer:

• Bachelor's Degree and 8 years of related experience; or a Master's degree and 6 years of related experience. Note:12 years of related experience may be considered in lieu of degree.
• US Citizenship is required
• Active US Government Top Secret Security Clearance is required with the ability to obtain an SCI.
• Must possess a DoD 8570 Certification for IAT Level II or higher(Sec+, CCNA, CySA+ or CND).
• Experience conducting penetration testing, vulnerability analysis, or security assessments against cloud, enterprise, or hybrid environments.
• Experience with cloud platforms such as AWS and Azure, including familiarity with IAM, networking, storage, logging, and security services.
• Familiarity with CI/CD pipeline technologies and concepts, including GitHub Actions, GitLab CI/CD, Jenkins, Azure DevOps, or similar platforms.
• Experience or familiarity with containerization and virtualization technologies such as Docker, Kubernetes, or VMware.
• Knowledge of Windows and Linux operating systems, networking fundamentals, and common enterprise architecture.
• Experience using scripting or automation languages such as Python, Bash, or PowerShell to support testing, analysis, or operational workflows.
• Familiarity with offensive security methodologies, vulnerability management processes, and common attacker TTPs.

Preferred Qualifications for both:

• Ability to analyze technical findings and contribute to assessment reports, presentations, and client deliverables, and communicate findings to both technical and non-technical stakeholders.
• Experience assessing cloud-native technologies, including Kubernetes, containers, serverless functions, or Infrastructure-as-Code deployments.
• Familiarity with cloud security assessment tools, vulnerability scanners, and offensive security frameworks.
• Familiarity with Terraform, Ansible, ARM templates, CloudFormation, or Infrastructure-as-Code concepts.
• Experience with logging, monitoring, and detection technologies such as Splunk, Sentinel, ELK, Defender, or CrowdStrike.
• Familiarity with RMF, A&A activities, STIGs, SCAP, ACAS, or cybersecurity compliance frameworks.
• Ability to rapidly learn emerging technologies, cloud attack methodologies, and evolving threat landscapes.
• Relevant certifications such as AWS Security Specialty, Azure Security Engineer Associate, PenTest+, CySA+, CEH, AZ-500, SC-200, CRTO, GPEN, GXPN, OSCP, or similar cybersecurity certifications preferred.

Primary Level Salary Range: $103,600.00 - $155,400.00Secondary Level Salary Range: $129,300.00 - $193,900.00

The above salary range represents a general guideline; however, Northrop Grumman considers a number of factors when determining base salary offers such as the scope and responsibilities of the position and the candidate's experience, education, skills and current market conditions.

Depending on the position, employees may be eligible for overtime, shift differential, and a discretionary bonus in addition to base pay. Annual bonuses are designed to reward individual contributions as well as allow employees to share in company results. Employees in Vice President or Director positions may be eligible for Long Term Incentives. In addition, Northrop Grumman provides a variety of benefits including health insurance coverage, life and disability insurance, savings plan, Company paid holidays and paid time off (PTO) for vacation and/or personal business.

The application period for the job is estimated to be 20 days from the job posting date. However, this timeline may be shortened or extended depending on business needs and the availability of qualified candidates.

Northrop Grumman is an Equal Opportunity Employer, making decisions without regard to race, color, religion, creed, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, marital status, national origin, age, veteran status, disability, or any other protected class. For our complete EEO and pay transparency statement, please visit http://www.northropgrumman.com/EEO. U.S. Citizenship is required for all positions with a government clearance and certain other restricted positions.