Incident Response Analyst, Cybersecurity Operations Detection & Response - Global SOC L3 Response

McDonald’s growth strategy, Accelerating the Arches, encompasses all aspects of our business as the leading global omni-channel restaurant brand. As the consumer landscape shifts we are using our competitive advantages to further strengthen our brand. One of our core growth strategies is to Double Down on the 3Ds (Delivery, Digital and Drive Thru). McDonald’s will accelerate technology innovation so 65M+ customers a day will experience a fast, easy experience, whether at one of our 25,000 and growing Drive thrus, through McDelivery, dine-in or takeaway. 

McDonald’s Global Technology is here to power tomorrow’s feel-good moments.That’s why you’ll find us at the forefront of transformative technology, exploring new and innovative ways to serve our millions of customers and spread happiness one delicious Hot Fudge Sundae-dipped fry at a time. Using AI, robotics and emerging tech, we’re digitizing the Golden Arches. Combine that with our unparalleled global scale, and we’re reshaping all areas of the business, industry and every community that is home to a McDonald’s restaurant. We face complex tech challenges every day. But that’s where our diverse and talented teams come in. They’re made up of the best and brightest from all over the globe, and they thrive in the space where feel-good meets fast-paced.  

Check out the McDonald’s  Global Technology Technical Blog to learn how technology and our global team are directly enabling the Accelerating the Arches strategy. 

As a L3 Response Analyst within the Security Operations Center (SOC), your responsibilities include using defensive measures and information gathered from various sources to identify, analyze, and report cybersecurity events, ensuring the protection of McDonald's information assets. You play a crucial role in supporting the Incident Response process, responding to crisis situations, and mitigating immediate and potential cyber threats. Your expertise in security operations, event monitoring, eDiscovery, forensics, and incident response will be key in this role. The role works directly within Global Cyber Security (GCS), the organization responsible for our Cybersecurity Operations & Incident Response program and critical services, ensuring our leadership makes informed risk-based decisions. 

Working within the Incident Response team and coordinating with other Cyber Operations teams to identify and report on security incidents as they occur and overseeing end-to-end remediation. Activities will include triaging security events, network and endpoint analysis, malware reverse engineering, threat hunting, vulnerability escalation, and resolving security incidents from detection to remediation. As part of the Security Operations team, you will create and implement standard operating procedures, playbooks, and processes to help streamline response monitoring, investigations, and analysis research. The role works directly within GCS, the organization responsible for our Cybersecurity Operations & Incident Response program and critical services, ensuring our leadership makes informed risk-based decisions.

In addition to the above SecOps/Incident Response functions, we are looking for someone who has experience and training in using forensic techniques to aid cybersecurity investigations. These include:

• Conduct analysis of log files, evidence, and other information to determine the best methods for identifying the perpetrators of network intrusions.
• Confirm what is known about an intrusion and discover new information, if possible, after identifying the intrusion via dynamic analysis.
• Provide technical summaries of findings in accordance with established reporting procedures.
• Examine recovered data for information relevant to the issue at hand.
• Perform file signature analysis and file system forensic analysis.
• Collect and analyze intrusion artifacts (e.g., source code, malware, and system configuration) and use discovered data to enable mitigation of potential cyber defense incidents within the enterprise.
• Utilize forensic tool suites (e.g., EnCase, Sleuthkit, FTK) and conduct forensic analyses in multiple operating system environments.
• Analyze anomalous code as malicious or benign and conduct bit-level analysis.
• Analyze memory dumps to extract information and identify obfuscation techniques.
• Conduct deep analysis of captured malicious code (e.g., malware forensics) and reverse engineering.
• Review existing investigative processes and tools in order to improve and mature current process, tooling, and other analyst skillsets

McDonald's is investing heavily in technology to drive our growth. We are looking at how to use technology to improve the customer experience and build new customer experiences. We are also exploring technologies that can help us reduce or eliminate repetitive tasks and make employees’ jobs more exciting and rewarding. With all the new projects and initiatives, it is an exciting time to be on the cybersecurity team, helping to make a safer and Better McDonald's.

The ideal candidate for this role should possess a solid understanding of cybersecurity practices, cloud technologies, detection and response frameworks, and incident handling procedures (containment, eradication, recovery, and lessons learned). They should excel in adhering to and enforcing the use of established incident response playbooks and practices, possess an acute attention to detail, and collaborate effectively across global cross-functional teams. The candidate must have:

• Advanced proficiency in computer networking concepts, protocols, and network security methodologies.
• Strong expertise in analyzing and mitigating cyber threats and vulnerabilities.
• Advanced competence in authentication, authorization, and access control methods.
• Proficiency in utilizing and developing intrusion detection methodologies and techniques for detecting host and network-based intrusions.
• In-depth knowledge of system and application security threats and vulnerabilities, with the ability to develop and implement mitigation strategies.
• Advanced understanding of network attacks, their relationship to threats and vulnerabilities, and the ability to develop countermeasures.
• Proficiency in adversarial tactics, techniques, and procedures, with the ability to anticipate and counteract them.
• Expertise in conducting eDiscovery and forensic investigations, including the collection, preservation, analysis, and presentation of digital evidence in support of incident investigations.
• Comprehensive knowledge of the stages of a cyber-attack and the ability to develop and implement defense strategies at each stage.
• Proficiency with Windows, MacOS, and/or Linux operating systems, with the ability to perform advanced security configurations and troubleshooting.
• Experience in leading and mentoring junior analysts, providing guidance and support to enhance their skills and performance.
• Ability to develop and implement advanced threat detection and response strategies.
• Effective communication skills, with the ability to provide detailed reports and recommendations to senior management.
• Continuously monitor and analyze system activity using security operations tools to identify malicious activity.
• Characterize and analyze network traffic and logs to identify potential threats to McDonald’s assets.
• Provide timely detection, identification, and analysis of possible attacks and intrusions, differentiating them from benign activities and reviewing tuning recommendations to improve alert efficacy.
• Collaborate with key stakeholders to validate security events and provide security response expertise to remediate cyber security incidents.
• Perform event correlation to gain situational awareness and assess the effectiveness of observed attacks.
• Conduct security operations and incident response trend analysis and reporting.
• Conduct eDiscovery and Forensic investigations in support of incident investigations.
• Mentor analysts to promote their performance and career growth in alignment with department and organizational objectives.
• Develop and implement remediation plans in conjunction with incident response requirements.
• Support threat hunting efforts across market networks, identifying indicators of compromise (IOCs) and evidence of compromise.
• Lead and mentor junior analysts, providing guidance and support to enhance their skills and performance.

Benefits eligible: Yes
Bonus eligible: Yes
Long term incentive eligible: Yes
The expected salary range for this role is $129,800- $165,490 per year.

• Bachelor’s degree or equivalent experience in Computer Science, Cybersecurity, Information Technology, Software Engineering, Information Systems, or Computer Engineering.
• 5+ years of experience working in a security operations or incident response role, focusing or specializing with forensic capabilities

Desired Skills:

• Professional certification such as GIAC, GCIH, GCIA, ITIL, GCFE, GCFA
• Familiarity with NIST Risk Management Framework and NIST Cybersecurity Framework, Cyber Kill Chain.
• Experience working with case management tools, SOAR, email security solutions, SIEM, and EDR technologies, along with forensic tooling like autopsy, velociraptor, ghidra
• Experience working with complex multinational companies and distributed business models.
• Experience developing automation through scripting languages such as Python.

Benefits eligible: This position offers health and welfare benefits, a 401(k) plan, adoption assistance program, educational assistance program, flexible ways of working, and time off policies (including sick leave, parental leave, and vacation/PTO). Eligibility requirements apply to some benefits and may depend on job classification and length of employment. 

Bonus eligible: This position is eligible for a bonus, calculated based on individual and company performance.

Long term Incentive eligible: This position is eligible for stock or other equity grants pursuant to McDonald’s long-term incentive plan.

McDonald’s is an equal opportunity employer committed to the diversity of our workforce. We promote an inclusive work environment that creates feel-good moments for everyone. McDonald’s provides reasonable accommodations to qualified individuals with disabilities as part of the application or hiring process or to perform the essential functions of their job. If you need assistance accessing or reading this job posting or otherwise feel you need an accommodation during the application or hiring process, please contact [email protected]. Reasonable accommodations will be determined on a case-by-case basis.

McDonald’s provides equal employment opportunities to all employees and applicants for employment and prohibits discrimination and harassment of any type without regard to sex, sex stereotyping, pregnancy (including pregnancy, childbirth, and medical conditions related to pregnancy, childbirth, or breastfeeding), race, color, religion, ancestry or national origin, age, disability status, medical condition, marital status, sexual orientation, gender, gender identity, gender expression, transgender status, protected military or veteran status, citizenship status, genetic information, or any other characteristic protected by federal, state or local laws. This policy applies to all terms and conditions of employment, including recruiting, hiring, placement, promotion, termination, layoff, recall, transfer, leaves of absence, compensation and training.

Nothing in this job posting or description should be construed as an offer or guarantee of employment.