Cyber Security Consultant – SC Cleared

£680 per day (Inside IR35) | 12-Month Contract | London (2 Days per Month Onsite) | SC Clearance Required

Are you an experienced Cyber Security professional with a strong background in Governance, Risk & Compliance (GRC) and cloud security assurance? We’re supporting a leading consultancy delivering secure, mission-critical services within highly regulated environments and are seeking a Cyber Security Specialist to join a key security assurance programme.

This is an excellent opportunity to work on high-profile secure network environments, providing cloud security assurance, governance oversight, and security compliance guidance across a broad portfolio of cloud services.

The Role

As a Cyber Security Specialist, you will be responsible for overseeing the assurance and approval of cloud-based services operating within secure environments. Working closely with security teams, project stakeholders, governance forums, and government-facing organisations, you’ll ensure cloud services meet stringent security, risk and compliance requirements throughout their lifecycle.

You’ll play a key role in influencing secure cloud adoption, managing assurance activities, providing expert guidance, and ensuring alignment with UK Government and Defence security standards.

Key Responsibilities

• Lead the end-to-end cloud security assurance process from initial assessment through to final approval.
• Conduct security assurance activities for core cloud platforms and services.
• Provide oversight and guidance to consultants and project teams undertaking security assessments.
• Review cloud services against security standards, regulatory requirements and best practices.
• Monitor and support ongoing compliance, audit and through-life assurance activities.
• Track security risks, action plans and remediation activities.
• Provide subject matter expertise on cloud security, governance and risk management.
• Support security audits, accreditation activities and certification programmes.
• Manage third-party access approvals and ongoing security assurance requirements.
• Present findings, recommendations and risk assessments to governance boards and senior stakeholders.
• Engage with internal and external stakeholders, including government and defence-related organisations.

Essential Experience

• Proven experience in cloud security assurance within UK Government or Defence related environments.
• Strong understanding of:
  • NCSC Cloud Security Principles
  • NCSC Principles for Using SaaS Securely
  • ISN 2024/06
• Experience working with UK Government security frameworks and standards, including:
  • Cyber Essentials Plus
  • Def Stan 05-138
  • Secure by Design
  • Cyber Security Model
  • Industry Security Notices
• Knowledge of UK Government personnel and physical security requirements, including UKSV and NPSA guidance.
• Excellent stakeholder management and communication skills.
• Ability to effectively communicate security risks and controls to both technical and non-technical audiences.
• Strong organisational skills with the ability to manage multiple competing priorities.

Desirable Experience

• ISO 27017 and ISO 27018.
• Cloud Security Alliance (CSA) CCM and STAR.
• Familiarity with UK Nuclear industry regulations and ONR SyAPs.
• Experience supporting ISO 27001 audits and certification activities.