WHAT DOES A LEAD SECURITY ANALYST DO?
Published: Jan 20, 2026 - The Lead Security Analyst investigates escalated alerts, performs deep analysis of potential incidents, conducts proactive threat hunting, and develops new detection rules to strengthen defensive capabilities. This role manages junior analysts, oversees SOC project delivery, supports client engagements, and ensures effective communication and escalation throughout the incident lifecycle. The lead also provides after-hours technical support and refines threat-hunting techniques through continuous research and tuning improvements.
A Review of Professional Skills and Functions for Lead Security Analyst
1. Lead Security Analyst Duties
- RMF Support: Support Team Lead by assisting with the management and execution of RMF activities for various information systems
- Process Facilitation: Facilitate movement of information systems through the RMF process
- Accreditation Maintenance: Maintain accreditations through continuous monitoring and annual reviews
- Problem Solving: Provide solutions to complex problems that require the regular use of expertise and creativity
- SME Service: Serve as Subject Matter Expert (SME) on one or more technologies/skills related to A&A activities
- Risk Assessment: Conduct risk and vulnerability assessments of information systems to identify vulnerabilities, risks, and protection needs
- Meeting Leadership: Actively lead and participate in regular A&A status meetings with government and contract personnel to facilitate progress and address potential issues of RMF system efforts
- Policy Response: Participate in sessions aimed at identifying, planning, and executing strategies in response to emerging cybersecurity/RMF policies
- Standards Awareness: Maintain awareness and knowledge of evolving security and risk management standards and communicate and apply relevant changes to existing processes
2. Lead Security Analyst Details
- ISSO Training: Provide training and support for team ISSOs
- Stakeholder Meetings: Lead or attend meetings with system stakeholders to discuss statuses of efforts
- Status Reporting: Submit weekly reports to DHA leadership regarding system/program status
- RMF Documentation: Develop, update, and/or review RMF documentation to include Security Plans, Implementation Plans, Plans of Action and Milestones (POA&Ms), and Risk Assessment Reports
- Boundary Coordination: Coordinate with other system SMEs to identify and develop authorization boundary diagrams, architecture diagrams, and hardware and software inventories
- Compliance Assessment: Assess system compliance against NIST, DoD, and DHA security requirements including the NIST 800-53 controls and DISA Security Technical Implementation Guides (STIGs) and Security Requirements Guides (SRGs)
- Evidence Production: Produce evidence to support the compliance status of NIST, DoD, and DHA security requirements
- Policy Development: Work with system administrators, engineers, and developers to create or update system/site policies, procedures, and process guides
- Vulnerability Analysis: Analyze vulnerability scans of information systems and assist in remediation tasks
3. Lead Security Analyst Responsibilities
- Policy Management: Develop and manage security policies and exceptions for various Endpoint Security Technologies (including Advanced Threat Protection, Admin Rights Management, Web Protection and Removable Media Protection)
- Escalation Support: Respond to GNOC, SOC, and Member Firm escalations to adequately support the Endpoint Security Services
- Queue Monitoring: Monitor the service queue for change requests and ensure changes are implemented within the agreed SLA, following strict internal change control processes
- Alert Review: Review security alerts, action and initiate escalations to other teams, including the Global Incident Response Team
- Playbook Contribution: Contribute to knowledge documents and playbooks outlining support procedures and workflows
- Issue Resolution: Assist with operational issue resolution
- Team Collaboration: Working with other internal Deloitte technology teams and vendors
- Ticket Support: Support ticket resolution and tracking
- DevSecOps Consulting: Responsible for DevSecOps security consulting services and consulting project management related work
- Gap Analysis: Responsible for the DevSecOps gap analysis of the project and providing the overall DevSecOps solution
- Technical Training: Provide DevSecOps technical training and implementation guidance for WPB
- Presale Support: Assist sales in doing pre-sale customer consultation work, such as pre-sale technical solutions and tenders, customer technical support, etc.
- Research Development: Responsible for the research of DevSecOps topics and the preparation of training materials
- Standards Preparation: Participate in the preparation of safety-related standards
- Security Awareness: Pay attention to the latest security developments, new security technologies and development trends of DevSecOps in the industry
4. Lead Security Analyst Accountabilities
- Alert Response: Respond to alerts escalated by shift analysts
- Incident Analysis: Perform detailed analysis and undertake an in-depth investigation into potential and confirmed security incidents
- Incident Escalation: Escalate incidents and act as a point of contact throughout
- Threat Hunting: Conduct threat hunting across client environments
- Technique Refinement: Develop and refine threat hunting techniques
- Alert Tuning: Review and action alerts flagged as tuning candidates
- Threat Research: Conduct proactive threat research
- Rule Development: Develop and implement new signatures/rules
- Analyst Management: Task and manage the delivery of junior analysts
- Project Oversight: Manage the delivery of SOC projects
- Client Support: Support client engagements and or service meetings, representing the business to external stakeholders
- Technical Escalation: Provide out-of-hours technical escalation support to shift analysts
5. Lead Security Analyst Functions
- CAP Review: Review the Agency’s implementation of CAPs and provide expert advice on the effectiveness of CAP implementations and Safeguard Review readiness of evidence and artifacts
- Compliance Review: Review the Agency’s SSR, SSPs and SSAs for compliance with Pub 1075
- Safeguard Support: Provide expert advice and assistance towards Safeguard Review readiness of security control implementation, evidence, and artifacts
- SCSEM Evaluation: Identify relevant IRS SCSEMs, evaluate the Agency’s compliance with relevant SCSEMs
- Technical Remediation: Provide technical advice and assistance in remediating non-compliance
- Review Coordination: Coordinate Safeguard Review preparation, by planning, coordinating, reporting, and communicating using the Agency’s project management methods
- CAP Development: Coordinate and assist with follow-up to the Safeguard Review, including development of CAPs to resolve findings
- Technical Consultation: Provide expert opinion for proposed technical solutions for agency applications and IT infrastructure activities regarding requirements from IRS Pub 1075
- Solution Research: Research potential technical solutions for bringing agency applications and infrastructure into Pub 1075 compliance
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