Cyber Defense Principal Engineer

Job description

Overview Alnylam is pioneering RNAi therapeutics and scaling rapidly across research, development, and global commercialization. The Director, Cyber Defense will play a critical role in designing and advancing our next-generation cyber defense capabilities, shaping how we detect, investigate, and respond to threats at scale. Reporting to the Senior Director, Cyber Defense, this senior individual contributor will define and execute the technical strategy to modernize and future-proof Alnylam’s security platforms. This role will lead the evolution of cyber operations technology, build scalable solutions, and drive enterprise-wide initiatives that strengthen the security and resilience of our systems and data. This is a hybrid position, primarily based in Cambridge, MA and includes participation in an on-call rotation, with flexibility to support incident response outside standard business hours, as needed. Responsibilities Define and execute the long-term strategy and technical roadmap for Alnylam’s cyber defense capabilities. Architect and scale core security platforms, including SIEM/SOAR, security data pipelines, automation frameworks, and detection infrastructure. Lead enterprise detection engineering, delivering advanced analytics and risk-based alerting across cloud, endpoint, identity, network, and SaaS environments. Build and integrate a unified cyber defense platform to enhance visibility, automation, and enterprise resilience. Establish scalable security standards, architectures, and operating principles across Cyber Defense and enterprise teams. Drive an engineering-first approach to detection and response, leveraging automation, AI-enabled workflows, and data-driven decision making. Serve as a senior technical advisor to leadership on cyber defense strategy, complex incident response, and enterprise risk. Qualifications 10+ years of experience across core cyber defense disciplines (e.g., security engineering, detection engineering, threat hunting, incident response, vulnerability management, offensive security) Strong programming and automation skills (e.g., Python, Go), with experience building custom security tooling, integrations, and detections Proven experience leading large-scale SIEM migrations or enterprise security platform transformations Deep expertise across modern security technologies (e.g., SIEM, SOAR, EDR/XDR, threat intelligence platforms, cloud security, and security data platforms) Hands-on experience applying AI/ML and automation to improve threat detection, investigation workflows, and incident response Advanced detection engineering capabilities, including behavioral analytics, threat hunting, and frameworks such as MITRE ATT&CK Experience designing or supporting insider threat and advanced monitoring programs Strong knowledge of vulnerability management, exposure reduction, and risk-based prioritization Excellent communication and influencing skills, with the ability to partner across engineering, infrastructure, legal, compliance, and business leadership teams Experience operating in complex, global enterprise environments About Alnylam We are the leader in RNAi therapeutics – a revolutionary approach with the potential to transform the lives of people with rare and common diseases. Built on Nobel Prize-winning science, Alnylam has delivered the breakthroughs that made RNAi therapeutics possible and are just at the beginning of what’s possible. Our deep pipeline, late-stage programs, and bold vision reflect our core values: fierce innovation, passion for excellence, purposeful urgency, open culture and commitment to people. We're proud to be a globally recognized top employer, where an authentic, inclusive culture and breakthrough thinking fuel one another. At Alnylam, we commit to an inclusive recruitment process and equal employment opportunity. Qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard to their sex, gender or gender identity, sexual orientation, race, color, ethnicity, national origin, ancestry, citizenship, religion, creed, physical or mental disability, pregnancy status or related conditions, genetic information, veteran or military status, marital or familial status, pol