Staff Threat Researcher

Overview

Serve as a highly technical subject matter expert on adversary tradecraft across endpoint, cloud, and identity environments, applying formal research methodologies to dissect and replicate complex cyber attacks and turn findings into attack automations and scalable detection recommendations. This is a remote role reporting to the Manager Threat Research in the Threat Research Team.

What you'll do

• Scope (with some guidance) and continuously refine research initiatives, applying an adversarial mindset to analyze emerging attack techniques, customer impact, and detection data sources across at least one operating system (Windows, macOS, Linux) and major Cloud/SaaS providers such as AWS, Microsoft 365, and Okta.
• Dive deep into the technical components and detection optics underlying specific threats to fully comprehend how adversaries control and manipulate variations of a given technique.
• Leverage endpoint and cloud expertise to engineer automated attack code, write test code to validate threat coverage, and develop proofs of concept for new detections.
• Collaborate across Zscaler to develop new detection methodologies and engineering recommendations, working closely with detection engineers, intelligence analysts, and threat hunters to prioritize and refine deliverables.
• Document and present research findings and operational deliverables in an accessible, actionable manner to internal and external audiences, and serve as a technical mentor for colleagues pursuing research.

What you'll need

• Foundational understanding of AI/ML technologies and experience leveraging, securing, or positioning AI-driven solutions to optimize outcomes within your functional domain.
• Experience working with commercial Endpoint Detection & Response (EDR) and/or Cloud-based detection platforms.
• Software development experience in at least one scripting language (e.g. PowerShell, Python, etc.) and one compiled language (e.g. C, C++, Go, etc.).
• Security experience in at least one cloud service provider (e.g. AWS, GCP, Azure) and Cloud architectures.
• Established record of public, community engagement (conference talks, blog posts, or webinars, etc.).
• Experience managing code with git/GitHub.

Nice to have

• Proven ability to leverage AI technologies and workflows to drive measurable operational efficiency.
• An established record of public community engagement, such as conference talks, technical blog posts, or webinars.

Details

• Remote role (#LI-Remote), listed locations include Bellevue, Washington; Santa Clara, California; and Remote - USA.
• Full-time position.
• Base pay range $122,500 – $175,000 USD, excluding commission/bonus/equity (if applicable) and benefits.