What are the responsibilities and job description for the Basic Red Team Operator position at Geospatial And Cloud Analytics Inc?
The Basic Red Team Operator supports OPTEVFOR Cyber Operational Test & Evaluation (OT&E) activities by conducting penetration testing and red team operations under the guidance of intermediate or advanced red team operators. The role contributes to test planning, preparation, execution, and post-test activities in support of cooperative vulnerability penetration assessments, adversarial assessments, and cyber tabletop events.
Qualifications
- Certified Ethical Hacker (CEH) certification or equivalent/higher offensive cybersecurity certification
- Minimum of one (1) year of experience performing penetration testing, red teaming, and/or exploitation development
- Proficiency in at least two operating systems, including Windows, Linux, or Unix variants
- Proficiency with at least one offensive security tool, such as:
- Metasploit
- Cobalt Strike
- Core Impact
- Ability to operate independently to conduct penetration testing or red team activities under guidance from senior or intermediate operators
- Ability to independently generate red team reports and supporting documentation
Key Responsibilities
Orientation and Tooling
- Become proficient in OPTEVFOR Cyber Test & Evaluation CONOPS, SOPs, policies, and guidance
- Research and submit operational requirements for acquisition of cyber tools and equipment in accordance with the 01D tool approval process
- Support development and execution of tactics, techniques, and procedures (TTPs) for penetration testing and red team operations
Test Planning
- Participate in OPTEVFOR cyber test planning activities, including:
- Conducting open-source research and reviewing system-under-test (SUT) documentation to understand mission, architecture, interfaces, and critical components
- Identifying attack surfaces and potential threat vectors
- Participating in checkpoint meetings
- Supporting development of test objectives
- Reviewing test plans to ensure objectives are feasible and executable
- Participating in test planning site visits
Test Preparation
- Support preparation for cyber OT&E execution, including:
- Participation in site pre-test coordination visits and delivery of test site in-briefs
- Reviewing approved test plans
- Adding relevant information and artifacts to the test library
- Conducting focused research on SUTs and presenting findings to the red team
- Preparing OPTEVFOR Red Team test assets and environments
Test Execution
- Execute assigned cyber test events, including Cooperative Vulnerability Penetration Assessments, Adversarial Assessments, and Cyber Tabletops, in support of Operational Testing, Developmental Testing, risk reduction events, and other assigned events
- Employ OPTEVFOR-provided and NAO-approved commercial and open-source cyber assessment tools, including but not limited to:
- Core Impact, Nmap, Burp Suite, Metasploit, Nessus
- Apply ethical hacking techniques to exploit discovered vulnerabilities and misconfigurations associated with:
- Operating systems (Windows, Linux, Unix)
- Network protocols and services (HTTP, FTP, DNS, PKI, HTTPS)
- Execute assigned tasks independently with oversight from intermediate or advanced operators
- Ensure all testing is conducted safely, in accordance with approved test plans and OPTEVFOR policies
- Adhere to JFHQ-DoDIN deconfliction procedures
- Verify accuracy and completeness of collected test data
Post-Test Activities
- Participate in the post-test iterative process, including development of deficiency and risk documentation
- Document lessons learned and contribute to continuous improvement of red team operations
- Participate in capture-the-flag events, cyber off-sites, red team huddles, and technical exchange meetings; develop required products and materials to support these activities
- Attend OPTEVFOR-required meetings in support of OT&E activities
DCWF Knowledge, Skills, Abilities, and Tasks (KSATs)
Tasks & Abilities
- Analyze target operational architectures to identify access vectors
- Conduct network reconnaissance, scouting, and vulnerability analysis
- Perform on-net and off-net activities to control and exfiltrate data
- Conduct open-source intelligence (OSINT) collection
- Deploy and utilize exploitation tools (e.g., backdoors, sniffers)
- Exploit network, security, and endpoint devices using approved methods
- Facilitate access via physical or wireless means
- Identify network strengths, weaknesses, and vulnerabilities
- Translate customer requirements into operational actions
Skills
- Interpreting vulnerability scan results
- Extracting and analyzing packet capture data
- Using remote command-line and GUI tools
- Processing collected data for follow-on analysis
- Verifying file integrity
- Determining patch levels and identifying patch signatures
Knowledge
- Computer hardware components and architectures (CPU, NICs, storage)
- Auditing and logging procedures
- Programming fundamentals
- Malware concepts
- Network infrastructure devices (routers, switches, firewalls)
- Exploitation tool structures and techniques
- System administration concepts for Windows and Unix/Linux
- Network architectures, protocols, and services (TCP/IP, DNS, web, mail)
- Virtual machine technologies
- Collection management processes, capabilities, and limitations