**Role Summary:** We are looking for a skilled professional with 3–5 years of experience in monitoring, analysis, and incident handling using Palo Alto Cortex XDR/XSIAM. The ideal candidate will be responsible for managing alerts, conducting investigations, and optimizing detection capabilities within the Cortex platform. **Key Responsibilities:** + **Monitoring & Analysis:** + Review and analyze alerts generated by Cortex XDR/XSIAM. + Perform triage and determine the relevance and severity of events. + Identify patterns, anomalies, and potential risks in data. + **Incident Handling:** + Investigate and respond to events and alerts. + Conduct root cause analysis and document findings. + Coordinate with internal teams for resolution and follow-up. + **Platform Optimization:** + Fine-tune detection rules and response playbooks. + Ensure efficient data ingestion and alert accuracy. + Collaborate with engineering teams to enhance platform performance. + **Proactive Analysis:** + Conduct exploratory analysis to identify potential issues. + Leverage threat intelligence and contextual data to improve detection. + Develop custom queries and dashboards for visibility and reporting. + **Documentation & Reporting:** + Maintain detailed logs and reports of investigations. + Provide insights and recommendations to improve processes. **Required Qualifications:** + 3–5 years of relevant experience in monitoring, analysis, or incident response. + Hands-on experience with Palo Alto Cortex XDR/XSIAM. + Strong understanding of endpoint, network, and cloud data. + Familiarity with detection frameworks and analytical tools. + Good scripting knowledge (e.g., Python, PowerShell) is a plus. + Strong analytical and communication skills. **Preferred Certifications:** + PCCSA or PCNSE (Palo Alto Networks) + CompTIA Security+, CEH, or equivalent (optional) Cognizant is an equal opportunity employer. All qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard to sex, gender identity, sexual orientation, race, color, religion, national origin, disability, protected Veteran status, age, or any other characteristic protected by law.