Senior Detection Engineer

The Senior Detection Engineer plays a pivotal role in strengthening the WTW’s cyber defense capabilities by designing, implementing, and optimizing threat detection strategies across cloud and on-prem environments. This role focuses on building scalable detection logic, enhancing visibility, log source SIEM onboarding and enabling rapid response to emerging threats.

Working closely with the Global Information and Cyber Security Defense (ICSD) team, the engineer will lead efforts to develop and fine-tune detection rules, integrate telemetry sources, and support threat hunting, GSOC, and incident response. The ideal candidate combines deep technical expertise with a proactive mindset to stay ahead of adversaries and continuously improve detection coverage.

This role also contributes to the broader Cyber Defense Security Engineering team, helping to build and maintain a resilient security infrastructure that supports the WTW’s mission and growth.

Roles and Responsibilities:

• Design, develop, and maintain detection logic across SIEM, EDR, and cloud-native platforms to ensure comprehensive threat visibility.
• Collaborate with Threat Intelligence, Threat Hunting, Incident Response, and GSOC teams to identify detection gaps and enhance coverage.
• Conduct threat modeling and develop detection use cases based on evolving attacker TTPs.
• Continuously refine the detection engineering process, including rule tuning, framework improvements, and lifecycle management.
• Support proactive threat hunting by building and executing custom queries and scripts.
• Automate detection workflows and contribute to detection-as-code pipelines for scalability and efficiency.
• Monitor emerging threats and adversary behaviors, integrating findings into the detection strategy.
• Maintain accurate documentation and playbooks to support consistency, transparency, and knowledge sharing across teams. Evaluate new and existing log sources for relevance, data quality, and security value.
• Design onboarding strategies tailored to each log source type (e.g., firewalls, EDRs, cloud platforms, identity providers).
• Implement and manage Sentinel data connectors, including native, custom, and API-based integrations.
• Ensure ingested logs are normalized using KQL and enriched with contextual data for effective detection.
• Validate log ingestion, troubleshoot parsing issues, and tune data flows to optimise performance and cost.
• Maintain onboarding playbooks and contribute to internal knowledge bases to support scalable onboarding practices.
• Work closely with different stakeholders to ensure seamless integration and alignment with detection use cases.

Required Qualifications:

• 5+ years of experience in cybersecurity, with a strong focus on threat detection engineering or threat hunting.
• In-depth knowledge of SIEM platforms such as Microsoft Sentinel, Splunk, and Google SecOps; proficiency in Microsoft Sentinel is a plus.
• Proficient in detection rule languages, including KQL, YARA, and SPL.
• Skilled in scripting and automation using Python, PowerShell, or Bash.
• Hands-on experience with malware analysis, reverse engineering, and digital forensics.
• Strong understanding of adversary tactics and techniques, with practical experience using the MITRE ATT&CK framework and threat modeling methodologies.
• Experience with cloud security and cloud-native detection strategies across platforms like AWS, Azure, or GCP.

Other Knowledge, Skills and Abilities

• Strong communication and collaboration skills, with proven experience working in cross-functional global teams.
• Strong problem-solving and critical thinking skills for addressing security issues and finding effective solutions.
• Outstanding written and verbal communication skills.
• Ability to work both independently and collaboratively in a fast-paced environment.
• Strong communication skills, with the ability to explain security concepts to non-technical stakeholders.

Certifications (Preferred):

• GIAC Certified Detection Analyst (GCDA)
• MITRE ATT&CK Defender (MAD) Certifications
• Certified Information Systems Security Professional (CISSP)
• Microsoft Certified: Security Operations Analyst (SC-200)
• CompTIA Security+ / CySA+ / CASP+
• Any other relevant security certification

Compensation and Benefits

Base salary range and benefits information for this position are being included in accordance with requirements of various state/local pay transparency legislation. Please note that base salaries may vary for different individuals in the same role based on several factors, including but not limited to location of the ro