About the job

Job summary

HMRC is the UK’s tax, payments and customs authority and we have a vital purpose: we collect the money that pays for the UK’s public services and help families and individuals with targeted financial support.

Covert Operational Digital Exploitation (CODE) sits within HMRC’s wider Fraud Investigation Service (FIS) responsible for the department’s civil and criminal investigation work. FIS ensures that HMRC has an effective approach to taking on the most serious tax evasion and fraud

CODE is the specialist support business area responsible for the provision of enhanced digital and covert specialist technological support to FIS investigations.

Working across Law Enforcement and government, CODE provides investigative tools and covert techniques to front-line investigations and works with key partners to develop and provide access to new technology and systems which enable investigators to respond to serious and complex tax evasion and crime.

See what it’s like to work at HMRC: find out more about us or ask our colleagues a question. Questions relating to an individual application must be emailed as detailed later in this advert.

Job description

The Cybercrime Team is responsible for tackling the ever-changing cybercrime threats to HMRC.  We achieve this through our intelligence operations and relationships, criminal investigations, forensic analysis and cyber security expertise to provide data and actionable insight, informing system and process hardening and countermeasures to improve the resilience of HMRC digital services.  We collect the evidence and data that enables confident decision-making, strengthening the security of the systems used by millions of people, which collect the money that pays for the UK’s Public Services.  We also support interventions directly to undermine the most significant and influential criminal groups, and those that provide the technology and services that enable them.

Cybercrime investigation involves a range of investigative techniques being deployed in real time to identify attacks and adversaries. These include conventional intelligence and investigative methodologies as well as sophisticated technical data and forensic analysis. You will be supporting our criminal investigators, technical investigators, and business management team in delivering successful criminal justice outcomes, protecting and improving the security of HMRC digital services. 

As a Cybercrime Investigation Support officer, you will provide support within the team, based across various Regional Centres, in the following areas:

• Cybercrime Investigation.
• Cybercrime Technical Investigation.
• Cybercrime Knowledge management.

These roles will require occasional travel and overnight stays to various Regional Centres.

The successful candidate will:

• Assist in aspects of Cybercrime Investigations.
• Assist in reviewing digital forensic material.
• Schedule and maintain case management records.
• Maintain digital records of Investigations.
• Assist in authoring reports.
• Assist in identifying fraud by analysing data outputs from digital systems.
• Handle evidence and write witness statements which may result in presenting evidence in Court.

You will help to build HMRC capability in digital investigation by drawing operational learning from investigations to build and share knowledge and create efficiencies in future cases.

You will keep up to date with cybercrime and security research and raise awareness of relevant material within the team. Attend training courses as required, which may include overnight stay.

During your probation you will be expected to develop your skills and knowledge within the three areas of the Cybercrime team and pass SANS SEC301 – Introduction to Cyber Security.

Additional Information

This role requires security clearance to SC. Any job offer is conditional to the attainment of the security clearance to SC and thus, the security clearance is mandatory. Please be aware that those who do not attain one will not be allowed to carry on in this particular post. If you do not attain your security clearance subsequent to appointment, we will look to redeploy you to another role within HMRC.

Applicants who wish to work alternative working patterns are welcome to apply. The preferred working pattern may or may not be available, agreement will be subject to business need, and any request to work an alternative working pattern should be made prior to your acceptance of the provisional offer.

Appointment will be conditional upon satisfactory conduct and discipline checks and security vetting.

Candidates must live within reasonable daily travel, of Stratford or Nottingham Regional Centres.

Person specification

Essential Criteria

• Demonstrate a strong interest in Cybercrime and fraud detection.
• Demonstrate that you are an excellent team player, be able to work effectively with others, not only during the delivery of work but also in supporting colleagues working in challenging and fast-moving environment.
• Demonstrate strong IT skills such as Microsoft Office 365.
• Familiar with how the web works.
• Experience in producing verbal and written reports for various stakeholders.
• Demonstrate practical and pragmatic with a problem-solving mind-set and an eye for precision and detail.

Desirable Criteria

•  Excellent ability to communicate complex information to a variety of audiences both verbally and written.
• The ability to work independently, prioritising work accordingly.
• Familiar with HMRC systems e.g. FCMS, CIP, SPLUNK, ETMP, SA.
• Familiar with programming or data handling.
• Familiarity with the Criminal justice system and disclosure.
• Qualifications relating to Cyber Security, Computer Forensics or Civil/Criminal Investigation.
• Driving Licence

Training Requirements

SANS SEC301

Benefits

Alongside your salary of £28,341, HM Revenue and Customs contributes £7,652 towards you being a member of the Civil Service Defined Benefit Pension scheme. Find out what benefits a Civil Service Pension provides.

Things you need to know

Selection process details

This vacancy is using Success Profiles (opens in a new window), and will assess your Behaviours, Strengths, Experience and Technical skills.

As part of the application process, you will be asked to complete a CV and Personal Statement.

Further details around what this will entail are listed on the application form.

The CV should provide your job history, qualifications, previous skills and experience (max 250 words per section). Please ensure you have provided reasons for any significant gaps in employment history within the last two years. 

The Personal Statement (max 500 words) should explain how your technical and personal skills, qualities and experience make you suitable for the role, demonstrating how you meet the essential criteria and the behaviour Working Together. It is crucial that you provide reference to the essential criteria set out in the person specification. 

Please note that the Personal Statement is an important part of your application and is as much the means by which you will be assessed as your CV.  

In the event of a large number of applications an initial sift will be carried out on the CV. If you progress to full sift, we will then review your CV and Personal Statement with successful applicants progressing to interview.

Candidates who are successful at sift will be selected for interview and further tested against experience, behaviours, strengths and technical skills.

Your technical skills will be assessed by way of a ten-minute presentation at interview, followed by questions. The presentation brief will be sent out to those invited at interview.

Desirable criteria will only be used in the event of a tie break between candidate scores.

Interviews will take place within 5 weeks of the advert closing date and may be held by video conference. Interview dates will be confirmed.

We reserve the right to raise the score required at any stage of the process in order to manage numbers.

Eligibility

To check that you are eligible to apply, review this eligibility information

Important information for existing HMRC contractual homeworkers

Please note that this role is unsuitable for contractual homeworkers due to the nature and/or requirements of the role.

Reasonable Adjustments 

We want to make sure no one is put at a disadvantage during our recruitment process because of a disability, condition, or impairment. To assist you with this, we will reduce or remove any barriers where possible and provide additional support where appropriate. 

If you need a reasonable adjustment or a change to be made so that you can make your application, review this information on reasonable adjustments, and contact hmrcrecruitment.grs@cabinetoffice.gov.uk as soon as possible.

Diversity and Inclusion

At HMRC we are committed to creating a great place to work for all our colleagues and creating an inclusive and respectful environment that reflects the diversity of the society we serve.

Diverse perspectives and experiences are critical to our success and we welcome applications from all people from all backgrounds with the experience and skills needed to perform this role. We’re committed to creating a great place to work for all our colleagues here at HMRC. We want everyone to feel valued and supported to achieve their potential at HMRC.

For more information on how we make this happen, review this information on our culture and values

Applications received from candidates with a criminal record are considered fairly in accordance with the DBS Code of Practice and the Recruitment of ex-offenders Policy.

We welcome applications from those who need to work a more flexible arrangement and will agree to requests where possible after considering operational and customer service needs. We can’t guarantee that we can meet all requests to work flexibly, as agreement will be subject to business ability to accommodate, and any request to work a more flexible arrangement should be made prior to your acceptance of the provisional offer.

Customer facing roles in HMRC require the ability to converse at ease with members of the public and provide advice in accurate spoken English and/or Welsh where required. Where this is an essential requirement, this will be tested as part of the selection process. 

The Civil Service runs a Disability Confident Scheme (DCS) for candidates with disabilities who meet the minimum selection criteria.

The Civil Service also offers a Redeployment Interview Scheme to civil servants who are at risk of redundancy, and who meet the minimum requirements for the advertised vacancy. 

Locations 

HMRC has a presence in every region of the UK. For more information on where you might be working, review this information on our locations.

Security Update

For more information on the level of security checks we will carry out, review this information on security checks

Additional Security Information

Please note: in addition to the standard pre-employment checks for appointment into the Civil Service, all candidates must also obtain National Security Vetting at Security Check (SC) clearance level for this vacancy. You will normally need to meet the minimum UK residency period as determined by the level of vetting being undertaken, which for SC is 5 years UK residency prior to your vetting application. If you have any questions about this residency requirement, please speak to the vacancy holder for this post.

Further Information

The Civil Service values honesty and integrity and expects all candidates to abide by these principles. The evidence you provide in your application must relate to your own experiences.

Any instances of plagiarism or other forms of cheating will be investigated and, if proven, the relevant application/s will be withdrawn from the process. 

Duplicate applications for the same vacancy will also be withdrawn.

Transferring into HMRC from Civil Service If you are currently working for an ‘Other Government Department’ (OGD) and would like to consider the impact on your pay when joining HMRC, please see the attached document "Combined T&C and OGD Pay English”, found at the bottom of this advert. Further information on staff transfers can be found on gov.uk

Problems during the application process 

If you experience accessibility problems with any attachments on this advert, please contact the email address in the 'Contact point for applicants' section. 

If you think you’ve made a mistake on a short application form (e.g. you’ve ticked the incorrect eligibility box), please contact hmrcrecruitment.grs@cabinetoffice.gov.uk at least two working days before the vacancy closes. After this, we won’t be able to reopen your application.   

Please use the subject line to insert appropriate wording e.g. Please re-open my application - 331413 & vacancy closing date 17/01/24. Please note that we cannot amend or re-open your application if you have submitted your full application in the interests of fair and open recruitment.

For reasonable adjustments queries or requests, please see details within reasonable adjustments section above.

Feedback will only be provided if you attend an interview or assessment.

Security

Successful candidates must undergo a criminal record check. Successful candidates must meet the security requirements before they can be appointed. The level of security needed is security check (opens in a new window).

See our vetting charter (opens in a new window). People working with government assets must complete baseline personnel security standard (opens in new window) checks.

Nationality requirements

Open to UK nationals only.

Working for the Civil Service

The Civil Service Code (opens in a new window) sets out the standards of behaviour expected of civil servants.

We recruit by merit on the basis of fair and open competition, as outlined in the Civil Service Commission's recruitment principles (opens in a new window). The Civil Service embraces diversity and promotes equal opportunities. As such, we run a Disability Confident Scheme (DCS) for candidates with disabilities who meet the minimum selection criteria. The Civil Service also offers a Redeployment Interview Scheme to civil servants who are at risk of redundancy, and who meet the minimum requirements for the advertised vacancy.