About the job
The Microsoft Threat Analysis Center (MTAC) is looking for a Senior Threat Context Analyst with proficiency in Arabic and experience in investigating influence and/or AI threats emanating from the Middle East. MTAC is part of Microsoft Global Affairs within Corporate, External, and Legal Affairs (CELA), from which we inform Microsoft executives and customers on influence and AI threats overlaid with a deep understanding of geopolitical events in the Middle East. The Senior Threat Context Analyst will contribute to MTAC’s mission to detect, assess, and disrupt digital threats to Microsoft, its customers, and democracies worldwide. The analyst will leverage their language skills and geopolitical knowledge to research and develop reports on malicious nation-state influence and cyber-enabled and AI-enabled influence operations from the Middle East. In this role, the analyst will leverage Arabic language and regional, cultural, and geopolitical knowledge to inform attribution analysis and develop assessments about how influence and occasionally cyber operations fit into security policies of nations or groups based in the Middle East. This will require collecting and analyzing social media press content in Arabic, as well as other open-source information, to quickly and efficiently capture the most relevant findings. The analyst will also synthesize data/intelligence from multiple sources to draw conclusions about Middle East-based AI threats to write and brief for executive audiences. The position will require effective written composition ability, professional briefing skills, and rigorous attention to detail.
Responsibilities
Investigate, research, and assess Arabic-language malign influence threats at tactical and strategic levels by drawing on information from social media accounts, foreign policy priorities and perspectives from open-source reporting, and the activity of other Middle East-based actors.Quickly and efficiently write reports based on those findings for executive audiences.Develop engaging presentations and brief various stakeholders under tight deadlines. Follow innovative, non-intrusive, law-abiding methods for detecting and assessing the most advanced and prolific threats in the information environment.
Qualifications
Minimum
Master's Degree in Mathematics, Analytics, Engineering, Computer Science, Marketing, Business, Economics or related field AND 1+ year(s) experience in data analysis and reporting, business intelligence, or business and financial analysis OR Bachelor's Degree in Statistics, Finance, Mathematics, Analytics, Engineering, Computer Science, Marketing, Business, Economics or related field AND 2+ years experience in data analysis and reporting, business intelligence, or business and financial analysis OR equivalent experience.
Preferred
4+ years of work experience tracking Middle Eastern geopolitical issues and producing analytic products on the region.Proficiency in reading and listening in Arabic (both Modern Standard and at least one dialect).Experience in using AI platforms and applications to automate workstreams. Experience in common database query languages (e.g. SQL, KQL). Ability to read and write code in at least one language such as: PowerShell, Bash, Python, Ruby, Java etc.Experience living, studying, and/or working in the Middle East.Reading and listening proficiency in additional languages particularly Turkish, Persian, or Kurdish. Experience tracking Middle East threat capabilities, infrastructure, or operational techniques from groups based in the Levant, Arabian Peninsula, Iraq, or Iran.Experience leveraging language skills for open-source research, particularly social media research and analysis on platforms frequently used by Middle Eastern actors. Proven writing skills and proficient in Microsoft PowerPoint for presentations for executive audiences. Proficient in Microsoft Excel. Professional analytic experience working on influence, cyber, or AI threats in the Middle East.Ability to quickly and efficiently sift through data to identify trends, shifts, or key issues to incorporate into synthesized analysis for executive-level customers or decisionmakers.Proven cross-group collaboration with experience building relationships.