Senior Researcher

Our Mission

At Palo Alto Networks®, we’re united by a shared mission—to protect our digital way of life. We thrive at the intersection of innovation and impact, solving real‑world problems with cutting‑edge technology and bold thinking. Here, everyone has a voice, and every idea counts. If you’re ready to do the most meaningful work of your career alongside people who are just as passionate as you are, you’re in the right place.

Who We Are

In order to be the cybersecurity partner of choice, we must trailblaze the path and shape the future of our industry. This is something our employees work at each day and is defined by our values:
Disruption, Collaboration, Execution, Integrity, and Inclusion. We weave AI into the fabric of everything we do and use it to augment the impact every individual can have. If you are passionate about solving real‑world problems and ideating beside the best and the brightest, we invite you to join us!

This role is remote, but distance is no barrier to impact. Our hybrid teams collaborate across geographies to solve big problems, stay close to our customers, and grow together. You will be part of a culture that values trust, accountability, and shared success where your work truly matters.

Unit 42 – Unit 42 brings together our world‑renowned threat researchers with an elite team of security consultants to create an intelligence‑driven, response‑ready organization. The Unit 42 Threat Intelligence team provides threat research that enables security teams to understand adversary intent and attribution, while enhancing protections offered by our products and services to stop advanced attacks. As threats escalates, Unit 42 is available to advise customers on the latest risks, assess their readiness, and help them recover when the worst occurs.

As a Senior Threat Intelligence Analyst on the Unit 42 National Security (NATSEC) team, you will be a key player in protecting our digital way of life. Working within a globally distributed team of elite researchers, you will be embedded in customer environments to identify and neutralize cyber threats. This role is crucial for delivering timely, actionable intelligence and shaping the future of cybersecurity by tracking the most sophisticated malicious actors.

• Provide timely and actionable intelligence to support customer requirements, ensuring alignment with their strategic security objectives.
• Leverage global datasets (e.g., netflow, malware, passive DNS) with a focus on the details to track malicious cyber actors, their infrastructure, and campaigns.
• Reverse engineer malware using static and dynamic analysis to identify root causes and develop effective countermeasures.
• Proactively collaborate and exchange information with a global team of threat intelligence analysts to analyze and develop coverage for emerging threats.
• Develop and present strategic threat assessments to support customer needs and inform their security posture.
• Communicate complex threat intelligence findings to product engineering teams to simplify concepts and improve detection efficacy across our product ecosystem.

• Bachelor's/Master's degree in Computer Science, Computer Engineering, or equivalent military experience; or 5+ years of experience as a cleared threat intelligence analyst.
• Proven experience tracking advanced cybercriminals and persistent threat (APT) groups.
• Experience working with law enforcement or government intelligence agencies.
• Familiarity with the cybercrime threat landscape, particularly in areas like Business Email Compromise (BEC).
• Proficiency in static and dynamic malware analysis using common industry tools (e.g., IDA Pro, Ghidra, x64dbg).
• Strong knowledge of tactics, techniques, and procedures (TTPs) used by threat actors, including deep familiarity with the MITRE ATT&CK Framework.
• Experience analyzing large‑scale data sets such as netflow, passive DNS, and malware telemetry to produce comprehensive threat assessments.

• Working knowledge of Big Query and proficiency in a scripting or programming language (e.g., Python, C, C++).
• Outstanding verbal and written…