Senior Penetration Tester | SA

Location: Remote (South Africa) | Ideally GP

Type: Permanent | Mid to Senior Level

About Redherd

Redherd is a specialist cybersecurity recruitment and advisory firm working globally with security consultancies, product companies, and technology organisations. We partner closely with technically strong teams to identify high-impact security talent across offensive security, cloud security, vulnerability research, and threat intelligence.

About the Client

Our client is a respected cybersecurity consultancy delivering offensive security and cyber threat intelligence services to organisations across regulated industries including financial services, retail, and technology. The team works with clients both locally and internationally and operates with a strong emphasis on technical quality, research, and professional development.

Role Overview

We are seeking a Security Analyst / Penetration Tester to join a growing offensive security team. This role focuses on delivering high-quality penetration testing engagements across web applications, APIs, mobile platforms, infrastructure environments, and cloud systems.

The position is suited to security professionals who enjoy manual testing, deep technical analysis, and vulnerability discovery beyond automated scanning.

You will work across diverse client environments, performing security assessments, developing proof-of-concept exploits, and producing clear remediation guidance that helps organisations reduce real-world risk.

Key Responsibilities

Security Testing & Research

• Perform manual penetration testing across web applications, APIs, mobile platforms, infrastructure environments, and cloud systems.

• Identify and validate vulnerabilities including business logic flaws, authentication bypasses, and exploit chains.

• Conduct external and internal infrastructure testing, including network and Active Directory environments.

• Perform cloud security assessments across platforms such as AWS and Azure.

• Develop scripts or tooling to support testing workflows and improve efficiency.

Client Delivery

• Lead penetration testing engagements from planning through reporting and remediation guidance.

• Produce clear reports with risk ratings and practical remediation advice.

• Present findings to both technical and business stakeholders.

Team Collaboration

• Contribute to internal tooling, playbooks, and research initiatives.

• Mentor junior analysts and share knowledge within the team.

• Support occasional pre-sales activities, scoping discussions, and technical demonstrations.

Required Experience

• 2–6+ years of hands-on penetration testing experience.

• Strong understanding of OWASP Top 10, ASVS, and API Security Top 10.

• Experience performing manual testing and vulnerability chaining.

• Proficiency with security testing tools and scripting.

• Strong written reporting and client communication skills.

Nice to Have

• Certifications such as OSCP, CREST CRT/CPSA, GPEN, GXPN, OSWE, OSEP, eWPT/eWPTX.

• Experience with cloud security, containers, Kubernetes, or CI/CD security.

• Exposure to red teaming or intelligence-led testing.

• Experience working within regulated environments (ISO 27001, PCI DSS).

• Participation in CTFs, research, or open-source security projects.