Penetration Tester / Security Assessor

Penetration Tester/Security Assessor
Contract Position

***Preferred onsite 3x per week in Columbia, SC; Remote is also acceptable if required

Team: Cyber Threat Intelligence (SecOps)

• This team is made up of highly motivated senior cybersecurity practitioners who bring deep hands-on experience in penetration testing, assessment, threat hunting, forensics, and security operations
• The team works closely together to support ongoing security testing initiatives, validate risk across applications and infrastructure, and help strengthen the organization's overall security posture
• A key selling point for candidates is the team's collaborative culture, with members openly sharing intelligence, techniques, and findings and actively supporting one another in solving complex security problems
• This is a strong opportunity for someone who values working alongside experienced professionals in an environment that encourages knowledge sharing, continuous learning, and high-quality security work

Required Skills

• Linux
• Various penetration testing tools (BurpSuite, MetaSploit, Nessus)

Day to Day

• A penetration tester / security assessor typically spends the day planning and executing security tests against applications, systems, and infrastructure to uncover vulnerabilities before attackers do
• Much of the work involves using Linux-based environments and tools such as Burp Suite, Metasploit, and Nessus to perform web application testing, vulnerability scanning, exploitation validation, and manual verification of findings
• They often review scope, analyze prior results, run scans, investigate weaknesses, and document evidence to determine real-world risk

Soft Skills

• Strong verbal and written communication skills, with the ability to clearly explain security findings to both technical teams and non-technical stakeholders
• Ability to translate complex vulnerabilities into business-relevant risk and provide practical, understandable remediation guidance
• Professional presence and confidence when discussing assessment results, answering questions, and presenting recommendations
• Ability to document findings thoroughly, accurately, and in a polished manner suitable for reports and stakeholder communication

Not Looking For

• Someone whose experience is limited to running automated vulnerability scans without being able to validate, exploit, or explain the findings
• A candidate who relies entirely on tools like Nessus and cannot perform manual penetration testing against applications, systems, or infrastructure
• Someone who cannot distinguish false positives from legitimate security weaknesses or assess real-world risk
• A security analyst with only compliance or checklist-based assessment experience in place of hands-on penetration testing expertise