Apollo.io Staff Engineer, Security Operations at Apollo.io leading detection and response strategy and execution. The role includes building detection systems, response automations, and leading complex security incidents.
Responsibilities
You’ll lead detection and response (D&R) strategy for Apollo’s Security team, and you’ll deliver it hands-on. You’ll build detection systems, response automations and investigation tools in weeks, not months. You’ll lead our most complex incidents. You’ll also set the standards and architecture that let the team catch and contain real threats without depending on any one person.
Strategy and influence
Own D&R strategy and turn it into multi-quarter initiatives tied to Security KRs. Report progress and risks to leadership in business terms.
Work with Engineering, Infrastructure and IT so logging, telemetry and response readiness are planned into their roadmaps early.
Set D&R standards: detections and response as code, review practices, playbook quality, and AI-assisted workflows.
Mentor engineers to own detections and lead incidents, and help raise the hiring bar.
Detection engineering and observability
Own detection architecture and the multi-quarter coverage plan: log sources, enrichment, correlation, alert routing, and cost at scale.
Own security observability: telemetry onboarding, signal quality, threat intel inputs and alert tuning.
Run the detection lifecycle: intake and prioritization, unit tests, replay against historical data, attack simulation, and regular reviews of coverage gaps, latency, false positives and MTTD.
Stay hands-on: ship MITRE ATT&CK-aligned detections, threat hunts and automations in Panther and Python via Git and CI/CD.
Incident response
Qualification
8+ years in detection and responseStrong PythonCloud and SaaS expertiseStaffAI-assisted triagePublic security work (detection contentHow success is measuredA D&R strategy tied to Security KRsPanther (SIEM)
Required
8+ years in detection and response, detection engineering, security engineering or incident response.
Track record of leading D&R strategy or multi-quarter initiatives with measurable results.
Hands-on experience designing detection architecture and shipping detection systems on a modern SIEM (Panther highly valued).
Strong Python, Git, CI/CD and detection-as-code skills.
Experience leading high-severity incidents in cloud and SaaS environments and improving the IR process behind them.
Cloud and SaaS expertise, ideally GCP, plus familiarity with tools like Google Workspace, Okta, GitHub, Slack, Atlassian, Cloudflare, CrowdStrike, Kandji and Snowflake.
Sound judgment with incomplete information, and the influence to align technical and non-technical leaders without formal authority.
Preferred
Staff, Lead or Principal-level experience at a high-growth cloud or SaaS company.
AI-assisted triage, investigation or response in production, with a clear view of its limits.
Public security work (detection content, open-source tools, talks, research) or certifications such as GCIA, GCIH or GCED.
How success is measured
A D&R strategy tied to Security KRs, with telemetry work committed in other teams’ roadmaps.
Better detection coverage and precision for top threats, and a tested IR process with faster MTTD/MTTR and fewer repeat incidents.
AI-assisted triage and response in production, with a measurable drop in manual toil.
Panther (SIEM), Python, GCP, Kubernetes, Docker, Terraform, Google Workspace, Okta, GitHub, Slack, Atlassian, Cloudflare, CrowdStrike, Kandji, Snowflake. AI tools: Claude, Claude Code, Cursor, Glean.
