Senior Cloud Security Specialist (AWS)

We are seeking a Senior Cloud Security Specialist to support the Security Engineering team within the IT division. This is a contract position based in Washington, Washington, with a duration of 3+ years. The successful candidate will bring deep expertise in AWS cloud services and cloud-native security tools to help the team execute its strategy for designing, deploying, and maintaining effective security solutions across cloud, local, and hybrid environments.

Responsibilities

• Conduct regular security reviews of cloud infrastructure deployed by engineering teams
• Evaluate infrastructure-as-code against security standards
• Review and validate compliance with security policies and best practices
• Assess adherence to AWS Well-Architected Framework security pillar
• Identify and document security misconfigurations and non-compliant controls
• Develop and maintain security posture dashboards
• Create or update security configuration guides and playbooks
• Offer technical consultation to engineering teams on secure implementation
• Implement AWS security controls and services to ensure proper security hardening and other security engineering tasks
• Develop and update AWS security configuration standards
• Conduct security training sessions for engineering teams
• Present findings and recommendations in team meetings
• Identify opportunities to automate security assessments
• Recommend security tooling improvements

Qualifications

• Required

• Minimum 5 years hands-on AWS security experience

• Demonstrated experience implementing secure, scalable AWS cloud architectures following industry best security practices and security frameworks

• Demonstrated federal experience and comprehensive knowledge in adopting and implementing federal cybersecurity requirements, including but not limited to the NIST Cybersecurity Framework, OMB Memorandum M-22-09, and NIST SP 800-53

• Deep analytical, problem-solving, and troubleshooting experience to independently resolve complex security challenges

• Proven ability to provide technical security consultation and advisory services with a proactive approach to identifying potential issues, raising questions, and engaging in open dialogue with team members and stakeholders

• Strong understanding of security concepts and technologies related to Identity and Access Management (IAM), security engineering, network security design, security operations, security architecture, general engineering processes, cloud security, data loss protection, zero trust, DevSecOps, and vulnerability management

• Technical skills in AWS cloud security, security engineering, DevSecOps, scripting, and Infrastructure-as-Code (IaC)

• Self-motivated and able to work independently

• Strong attention to detail

• Preferred

• AWS Certified Security - Specialty

• AWS Certified Solutions Architect - Professional or Associate