Junior Cyber SOC Analyst Newcastle upon Tyne, England
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About the job
Benefits
Things you need to know
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Location
About the job
Job summary
Here at the Department for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities (DLUHC) we work on things that make a real difference to people’s lives.
Whether it's through the homes we live in, the work of our local councils, or the communities we’re all part of, our work is at the top of the political agenda. We have ambitious and far-reaching outcomes to achieve this year and, if you’re thinking of joining us, there’s never been a more exciting time.
We have over 3,500 staff who are based in 20 offices across the UK and this Cyber Security role sits in the heart of the Technology team within our Digital Directorate.
Our aim is to provide high quality Digital services for our staff using a mix of internal and external teams to deliver evergreen cloud services. Delivering this responsibility comes with a high demand for adoption of new technologies, systems and applications that require security review and scrutiny to ensure the department operates in a safe and secure environment that is overseen by centralised security products such as a SIEM, vulnerability scanners and security validation tools.
Security has never been more important in delivering services for our staff and citizens, the Department is committed to meeting the objectives set out in the Government Cyber Security Strategy and in the last 12 months has undertaken an ambitious cyber security improvement programme. Now is an extremely exciting time to join our Cyber team, as we’ve heavily invested and are recruiting for a number of positions to ensure we can continue to grow and mature our capabilities.
We’re actively looking for a Junior Cyber SOC Analyst to join our team. You will play a vital role in monitoring and analysing security events, assisting with incident response, and contributing to maintaining a secure environment for our IT estate. You will work closely with senior analysts and other cross-functional teams to gain hands-on experience in cybersecurity operations, incident investigation, reporting and response. This is an excellent opportunity for an aspiring cybersecurity professional to develop foundational skills and knowledge within a dynamic and supportive environment.
Job description
as a junior cyber security SOC analyst, you’ll
- monitor security events and alerts using Microsoft Sentinel and other security technologies.
- assist in analysing security incidents, investigating potential threats, and determining the root cause of security breaches or anomalies.
- respond to security incidents, including containment, mitigation, and recovery actions, ensuring minimal impact on operations.
- supporting cyber security phishing exercises and drafting a report for the outcome.
- drafting and publishing cyber security awareness articles on the department’s internet.
- stay up to date with the latest security threats, vulnerabilities, and industry trends, sharing knowledge and insights with the team.
- support vulnerability assessments, and security audits to identify weaknesses and recommend appropriate remediation actions.
- support incident response efforts by participating in containment, mitigation, and recovery actions, under the guidance of senior analysts.
- contribute to the documentation and reporting of security incidents, including analysis, findings, and recommendations.
- contribute to the continuous improvement of security monitoring capabilities, including log analysis, event correlation, and threat intelligence research.
- follow established procedures for incident ticket management, ensuring accurate and timely documentation of incidents and actions taken.
- adhere to the organization's security policies, procedures, and guidelines while handling sensitive and confidential information.
Person specification
as a junior cyber security SOC analyst, you’ll have:
- experience working in an enterprise IT environment
- some understanding of security technologies such as Microsoft Sentinel, Cisco and Meraki Firewalls, Zscaler, Microsoft Defender, End-point protection, Advance KQL, automation, playbooks, and workbooks.
- some understanding of cybersecurity principles, concepts, and best practices.
- strong problem-solving and analytical skills, with the ability to learn quickly and apply knowledge effectively.
- good communication skills, both written and verbal, with the ability to work collaboratively in a team environment.
- passion for cybersecurity and a desire to learn and grow in the field.
- ethical behaviour and high integrity when handling sensitive and confidential information.
- ability to work under pressure, handle multiple tasks simultaneously, and meet deadlines.
Behaviours
We'll assess you against these behaviours during the selection process:
- Changing and Improving
- Communicating and Influencing
- Working Together
- Delivering at Pace
Technical skills
We'll assess you against these technical skills during the selection process:
- At sift, through your CV we will be assessing Experience and Technical Ability’. At interview, we will be assessing your technical ability. Technical and Experience questions will be based around the essential skills and criteria as listed in the job desc
Benefits
- Learning and development tailored to your role
- An environment with flexible working options
- A culture encouraging inclusion and diversity
- A Civil Service pension with an average employer contribution of 27%
Transfers across the Civil Service on or after 4 October 2018:
Any move to DLUHC from another employer will mean you can no longer access childcare vouchers. This includes moves between government departments. You may however be eligible for other government schemes, including Tax-Free Childcare. Determine your eligibility at https://www.childcarechoices.gov.uk.
For further information about the benefits available to DLUHC employees, please see the attached Candidate Pack.
Things you need to know
Selection process details
We are for everyone
At DLUHC we value diversity and inclusion and actively encourage and welcome applications from everyone, including those that are underrepresented in our workforce. We promote equality of opportunity in all aspects of employment and a working environment free from discrimination, harassment, bullying and victimisation.
We would strongly recommend that applicants get in touch with the vacancy manager to find out more information about this role.
We are for everyone
CV Declaration
We recruit based on your knowledge and skills, and not background, gender or ethnicity - this is called name blind recruitment.
Please remove references to your:
- name/title
- educational institutions
- age
- gender
- email address
- postal address
- phone number
- nationality/immigration status
Most of our campaigns utilise multiple assessors and so it is possible that your application would be viewed by different assessors.
At sift, through your CV we will be assessing:
Experience
Technical
The interview will be of a blended nature consisting of the following success profiles elements:
Behaviour
Technical
In full the campaign will test the below Success Profile Elements:
Behaviours
Experience
Technical
Technical and Experience questions will be based around the essential skills and criteria as listed in the job description.
We do not consider direct CV applications – you must apply for this role via the application link on Civil Service Jobs:
Please note that near miss offers may be made at the lower grade to candidates who do not meet the grade criteria for this campaign
HEO salary
- The salary for this role is £33,875 (London) or £30,792 (National).
- For existing civil servants, the usual policy on level transfer and promotion will apply and is non-negotiable.
Please note that the average employer pension contribution is based upon the National minimum salary for this role. Should your agreed starting salary for this role be different, the average employer pension contribution will be calculated accordingly. If you are a Secondee, this will not apply as you will remain on your home organisation’s terms and conditions.
Location
London, Birkenhead, Birmingham, Bristol, Cambridge, Darlington, Exeter, Hastings, Leeds, Manchester, Newcastle Upton Tyne, Nottingham, Plymouth, Truro, Warrington, Wolverhampton
Sift and Interview dates
Sifting is envisaged to take place W/C 04/09/2023 with interview dates to be confirmed. All interviews are currently being held remotely via videocall.
Reserve List
In the event that we identify more appointable candidates than we currently have posts available, we will hold applicant details on a reserve list for a period of 6 months from which further appointments can be made. This may include roles at a lower grade. Candidates placed on a reserve list will be informed of this. Those candidates who do not wish to remain on the reserve list should contact [email protected] to be removed from the reserve list.
SC (Security Check)
Important note
Successful candidates for roles based in our 2 Marsham Street building must meet the security requirements before they can be appointed. The level of security needed is Security Check and the process can take up to 8 weeks to complete.
Please note that successful candidates will need to pass the Security Check – this requires you to have been resident in the UK for the past 5 years. Please refer to the DLUHC Notes on Security Clearance section of our Candidate Pack for further information on Security Check (SC).
Candidates should also note that with effect from 1st August 2018 the department will also check all applicants who are successful at interview, against the Internal Fraud Database (IFD) held by the Cabinet Office. In accordance with the Civil Service Internal Fraud Policy, any applicant who is included on the IFD will be refused employment by DLUHC. Please see the Candidate Pack for further information on the Internal Fraud Database.
Before starting your application it’s very important to make sure that you are eligible to apply and meet the Civil Service nationality requirements. All candidates are expected to read the information provided in the DLUHC candidate pack regarding nationality requirements and rules
Candidate Pack Information
Please see attached Candidate pack for further information.
Internal Fraud Database
The Internal Fraud function of the Fraud, Error, Debt and Grants Function at the Cabinet Office processes details of civil servants who have been dismissed for committing internal fraud, or who would have been dismissed had they not resigned. The Cabinet Office receives the details from participating government organisations of civil servants who have been dismissed, or who would have been dismissed had they not resigned, for internal fraud. In instances such as this, civil servants are then banned for 5 years from further employment in the civil service. The Cabinet Office then processes this data and discloses a limited dataset back to DLUHC as a participating government organisations. DLUHC then carry out the pre employment checks so as to detect instances where known fraudsters are attempting to reapply for roles in the civil service. In this way, the policy is ensured and the repetition of internal fraud is prevented.
For more information please see- Internal Fraud Register
Feedback will only be provided if you attend an interview or assessment.
Security
See our vetting charter (opens in a new window).
Nationality requirements
This job is broadly open to the following groups:
- UK nationals
- nationals of the Republic of Ireland
- nationals of Commonwealth countries who have the right to work in the UK
- nationals of the EU, Switzerland, Norway, Iceland or Liechtenstein and family members of those nationalities with settled or pre-settled status under the European Union Settlement Scheme (EUSS) (opens in a new window)
- nationals of the EU, Switzerland, Norway, Iceland or Liechtenstein and family members of those nationalities who have made a valid application for settled or pre-settled status under the European Union Settlement Scheme (EUSS)
- individuals with limited leave to remain or indefinite leave to remain who were eligible to apply for EUSS on or before 31 December 2020
- Turkish nationals, and certain family members of Turkish nationals, who have accrued the right to work in the Civil Service
Working for the Civil Service
We recruit by merit on the basis of fair and open competition, as outlined in the Civil Service Commission's recruitment principles (opens in a new window).
Apply and further information
Contact point for applicants
Job contact :
Recruitment team
