Network Engineer – Firewall & Load Balancing

Peraton is seeking an experienced Network Engineer to join our team of qualified and diverse individuals. The Network Engineer - Firewall & Load Balancing will support the DHS CBP Network Operations Center (NOC) by designing implementing securing and maintaining enterprise network security infrastructure. This role will provide hands-on support for mission critical network environments with a focus on F5 BIG-IP load balancing solutions Palo Alto Next Generation Firewalls (NGFW) and Cisco Firepower Threat Defense (FTD) managed through Firepower Management Center (FMC).

The ideal candidate will have experience managing complex enterprise security platforms troubleshooting network security issues implementing secure configurations and supporting hybrid infrastructure environments. The Network Security Engineer will collaborate with network operations cybersecurity teams and government stakeholders to maintain secure reliable and compliant network services.

Location: Onsite based in either Ashburn VA Springfield VA or Orlando FL. Candidates must reside near one of these locations to be considered.

Day to Day Roles and Responsibilities:

• Design configure maintain and troubleshoot enterprise network security infrastructure including firewalls load balancers VPN solutions and network security platforms.
• Administer and support F5 BIG-IP environments including Local Traffic Manager (LTM) Global Traffic Manager (GTM/DNS) virtual servers pools iRules SSL profiles health monitors and traffic policies.
• Perform SSL/TLS certificate management traffic optimization application delivery troubleshooting and load balancing configuration.
• Support F5 Advanced Web Application Firewall (WAF) policies and security configurations.
• Configure and manage Palo Alto Networks Next Generation Firewalls including security policies NAT QoS decryption and VPN configurations.
• Administer Palo Alto Panorama for centralized firewall management across enterprise environments.
• Configure and maintain Palo Alto security capabilities including App-ID User-ID Content-ID Threat Prevention URL Filtering and WildFire.
• Manage Cisco Firepower Threat Defense (FTD) devices using Firepower Management Center (FMC).
• Develop and maintain Access Control Policies (ACP) IPS policies malware inspection policies and Snort rule tuning within Cisco FMC.
• Perform firewall event analysis security monitoring incident investigation and troubleshooting activities.
• Support network engineering activities including VLANs segmentation routing protocols VPN connectivity and network performance optimization.
• Develop and maintain network documentation including diagrams standard operating procedures and technical runbooks.
• Support change management activities by ensuring network security changes are tested documented approved and implemented in accordance with established processes.
• Monitor network performance troubleshoot incidents perform root cause analysis and support service level agreement (SLA) requirements.
• Collaborate with cybersecurity teams to support Zero Trust architecture defense in depth strategies and security compliance requirements.

Basic Qualifications:

• Bachelors degree with 8years of experience Masters degree and 6 years of experience Associates degree with 10years of experience or High School Diploma/equivalent with 12years of experience.
• U.S. Citizenship (Required for CBP and government positions)
• Must have the ability to obtain a CBP Public Trust clearance.
• 5 years of hands-on experience supporting enterprise network engineering or network security environments.
• Experience administering and troubleshooting F5 BIG-IP solutions including LTM virtual servers pools SSL profiles and traffic management configurations.
• Experience configuring and managing Palo Alto Networks Next Generation Firewalls including security policies NAT VPNs and Panorama administration.
• Experience supporting Cisco Firepower Threat Defense (FTD) devices using Firepower Management Center (FMC).
• Strong understanding of network security concepts TCP/IP networking OSI model routing protocols VLANs VPNs and network segmentation.
• Experience using network monitoring and troubleshooting tools such as SolarWinds PRTG Splunk Wireshark or similar platforms.

Desired Qualifications:

• Active security clearance required; DHS clearance or prior DHS suitability preferred.
• Experience supporting DHS CBP federal government or other mission critical network environments.
• Experience with DISA STIGs NIST 800-53 security controls or federal cybersecurity compliance requirements.
• Experience supporting SD-WAN technologies such as Palo Alto Prisma SD-WAN or Cisco Viptela.
• Experience supporting cloud networking environments including AWS Azure and hybrid connectivity solutions.
• Experience with network automation and scripting using Python Ansible Terraform or similar technologies.
• Experience using IT Service Management platforms such as ServiceNow or Remedy.
• Experience supporting legacy Cisco ASA migration to Cisco Firepower Threat Defense.

• Preferred Certifications:

  • F5 Certified BIG-IP Administrator (F5-CA)
  • Palo Alto Networks Certified Network Security Engineer (PCNSE)
  • Cisco Certified Network Professional (CCNP) Security or CCNP Enterprise
  • Cisco Certified Internetwork Expert (CCIE) Security
  • CompTIA Security or equivalent security certification

Peraton is a next-generation national security company that drives missions of consequence spanning the globe and extending to the farthest reaches of the galaxy. As the worlds leading mission capability integrator and transformative enterprise IT provider we deliver trusted highly differentiated solutions and technologies to protect our nation and allies. Peraton operates at the critical nexus between traditional and nontraditional threats across all domains: land sea space air and cyberspace. The company serves as a valued partner to essential government agencies and supports every branch of the U.S. armed forces. Each day our employees do the cant be done by solving the most daunting challenges facing our customers. Visit to learn how were keeping people around the world safe and secure.