OT Cybersecurity Specialist/Engineer

Role: OT Cybersecurity Specialist/Engineer

Locations : UAE/Hybrid

Job Purpose

To provide managed OT Cybersecurity services that operate, maintain, protect and enhance the cybersecurity posture of Oil & Gas OT/ICS environments. The Specialist ensures continuous availability, integrity, resilience and regulatory compliance of OT Cybersecurity systems across Oil & Gas sites, acting as a senior technical authority and SME.

Operate & Maintain (OM) Services

• Provide advanced technical support to ensure optimal performance, availability and reliability of OT/ICS cybersecurity systems.
• Operate, administer and maintain specialised OT cyber-defence technologies: antivirus/endpoint protection, application whitelisting, OT firewalls, IPS/IDS, data diodes, secure remote access, secure file transfer and passive OT monitoring tools.
• Perform installation, configuration, tuning, backup, restoration and patching per approved operational procedures.
• Maintain accurate OT cybersecurity asset inventories and CMDB records.
• Administer user accounts, access privileges, network rights and authentication mechanisms.
• Establish, maintain and update OT cybersecurity baseline configurations aligned with customer policies and standards, and verify baseline compliance.
• Define, monitor and report OT cybersecurity operational metrics and KPIs.
• Develop and standardise SOPs and method statements for health checks, configuration/access reviews, performance validation and security effectiveness testing.
• Provide technical support in establishing framework agreements with Control System and OT Cybersecurity OEMs (scope development, BOQ, technical evaluation criteria, bid review, technical queries and evaluation reports).
• Develop detailed Preventive Maintenance plans (procedure, checklist, PM report review) and suggest checklist improvements for optimisation.
• Develop yearly budget planning and provisioning.

Protect & Defend (PR) Services

• Detect, analyse and respond to cybersecurity threats affecting OT systems and industrial networks.
• Develop and maintain standard remediation plans for OT cybersecurity threats and vulnerabilities.
• Liaise with customer Group OT Cybersecurity teams to assess threat notifications, advisories and vulnerability disclosures.
• Support mitigation planning and validation with system owners and site stakeholders.
• Supervise and support OT Cybersecurity Incident Response activities and investigations.
• Support Threat and Vulnerability Management across OT architectures and systems.
• Oversee updating and validation of rules, signatures and detection logic.
• Recommend corrective actions to remediate process gaps, threats and vulnerabilities.

Securely Provision (SP) Services

• Provide OT cybersecurity support across project lifecycles: DGS, FEED, FDS, DDS, EPC phases and cybersecurity FAT/SAT/SIT activities.
• Define and review OT cybersecurity requirements for new, expansion and modification projects.
• Guide technical teams in the implementation and assessment of OT cybersecurity solutions.
• Ensure compliance with customer OT Cybersecurity standards, policies, guidelines and regulatory obligations.
• Lead technical specification and selection of OT cybersecurity technologies to ensure ecosystem compatibility.
• Develop OT cybersecurity blueprints and implementation roadmaps to achieve target maturity levels.
• Advise on automation and optimisation opportunities and support lifecycle management of deployed solutions.

Governance, Advisory, Compliance & Delivery

• Act as SME for OT/ICS Cybersecurity across OIL & GAS sites and collaborate with HSE, Enterprise Risk, Emergency Response Centres and Site Control Rooms.
• Participate in evaluation of emerging OT cybersecurity technologies, products and third-party services.
• Lead development, review and updates of OT cybersecurity documentation (policies, standards, baselines, guidelines, procedures and playbooks).
• Capture and share lessons learned and best practices; mentor and guide OT cybersecurity engineers.
• Ensure services comply with OIL & GAS OT cybersecurity policies, standards and regulatory requirements, and support internal and external audits.

Qualifications

• Bachelor’s degree in computer science, Information Systems, Electronics Engineering or a related technical discipline (or equivalent technical experience).

Experience, Knowledge & Skills

• At least 15 years’ experience in information security services, of which at least 10 years within the oil & gas industry’s process control systems security solutions.
• Strong technical background; process-oriented with a visionary approach.
• Trained on multiple DCS/PLC systems and familiar with OT protocols including Modbus, Vnet and OPC.
• Experience with multiple industrial control system OEM solutions (Honeywell, GE, ABB, Yokogawa, Schneider Electric, Emerson, Siemens, etc.).
• Experience hardening and securing industrial control HMI and engineering systems.
• In-depth expertise in OS, network/system architecture, IT architecture design and security technologies.
• Deep understanding of IT/OT protocols (TCP/IP, UDP, DNP3, Modbus, IEC 61850, OPC, OPC UA, PROFINET) and packet analysis.
• Excellent knowledge of IT/Cybersecurity standards (NESA IAS, ISO 27001, ISA 62443, NIST).
• Excellent written and verbal communication skills in English.