About the job

Job summary

Digital Forensics Software Engineers within the Advanced Data Acquisition (ADA) team focus on the Agency’s toughest technological challenges.  We are seeking energetic and enthusiastic professionals with an investigative mindset who cannot rest until a problem is solved.

***To be considered, you will need to successfully complete SC Enhanced clearance before commencing the role and achieve DV clearance within the first 12 months in post.***

Job description

On a typical day, you may be required to carry out research and development to defeat the latest device security, engineer new ways to extract data or produce custom wordlists to aid password recovery.  There is only one guarantee; no two days will be the same.

Collaborative working is crucial to success in this specialist field, so you will be encouraged to share your solutions with the wider Digital Forensics community both nationally and internationally, therefore travel throughout the UK and overseas will be necessary.

This role requires individuals to have an active interest in evolving technologies, who can maintain and develop their technical skillset, knowledge and awareness of the rapidly advancing technology and digital forensic landscapes. At the NCA, we celebrate diversity and are committed to creating an inclusive environment. We welcome neurodivergent thinkers and offer reasonable adjustments to those who need them.

Learn more about this role

To learn more about this role, please register for the following event:

From 18:00 on 29th November 2023 and 17th January 2024, we are hosting MS Teams events where you can hear from NCA officers and be given the opportunity to ask questions about the role.

Attendance is by invitation only. To register, please email central.recruitment@nca.gov.uk ASAP with the subject NCA Digital Forensics Recruitment Event followed by the date of the event you want to attend.

Person specification

Responsibilities:

• Research and development into emerging and novel techniques or tools for extracting data from mobile devices, whilst ensuring the integrity of the information obtained; 
• Maintenance  and enhancement of existing tools;  
• Develop, deploy and protect sensitive techniques and tactics;
• Advise upon the use, and disclosure, of sensitive tactics whilst enabling operational activity;
• Analysis of new operating system features and applications in order to find ways to recover data or security credentials;
• Static and dynamic reverse engineering, fuzzing and source code review;
• Gather evidence and intelligence with a proactive approach for criminal investigations; 
• Collation of custom wordlists and mutation rules in order to maximise the possibility of successful password recovery;
• Maintain a portfolio of technical competencies in relation to the acquisition of digital data;
• Effective exhibit management, ensuring evidential continuity and integrity; 
• Maintain accurate records and reporting for evidential production, including testimony at court as required; 
• Develop and maintain knowledge of the latest techniques; 
• Incorporate new techniques into the team’s toolset.
• Foster and enhance relations with partners from across government, academia and industry, leading to collaborative projects.

Benefits

Alongside your salary of £30,740, National Crime Agency contributes £8,299 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, Experience and Technical skills.

If you wish to apply for this vacancy, you must submit your application by;

Tranche 1: Sunday 17th December 2023 at 23.55
Tranche 2: Sunday 14th January 2024 at 23.55
Tranche 3: Sunday 11th February 2024 at 23:55
Tranche 4: Sunday 10th March 2023 at 23:55

You will be asked to complete a CV as part of the application process,  Please see the candidate information pack for more information.

During your application process your CV will assess the following criteria:

• STEM degree or equivalent 

Once submitted your application will be acknowledged by the Government Recruitment Service.

 Please note depending on the volume of applications a Longlist at sift may be conducted on following criteria:

• STEM degree or equivalent 

Candidates must pass this criteria for their application to be progressed.

A panel will then assess your application to select those demonstrating the best fit for the role by considering the evidence you have provided against the criteria set out in the Entry Criteria section.

Failure to address any or all of these may affect your application.

Sift results are expected to be released:

Tranche 1: Week commencing Monday 8th January 2024 
Tranche 2: Week commencing Monday 29th January 2024
Tranche 3: Week commencing Monday 26th February 2024
Tranche 4: Week commencing Monday 25th March 2024 

Interviews will take place throughout;

Tranche 1: January and February 2024
Tranche 2: February 2024
Tranche 3: March 2024
Tranche 4: April 2024 

Locations to be confirmed. Please be advised that the type of interview (eg. virtual/face-to-face) may be subject to change and successful candidates will be notified of this prior to attending. However the interview is conducted, the interview criteria will remain as shown on page 17 of the Candidate Information Pack.

The above sift and interview dates are an indicative timeline.

Should you be successful at sift but cannot attend on the interview date(s) listed the recruitment team cannot guarantee an alternative date. Please contact the recruitment team.

You will then be asked to attend an interview in order to have a more in-depth discussion of your previous experience and professional competence.

Full details of the assessment process will be made available to shortlisted candidates.

Please ensure that all examples provided in your application are taken directly from your own experience and that you describe the examples in your own words. Any instances of plagiarism including copying of examples/answers from internet sources will result in a withdrawal of your application. Further action, including disciplinary action, may be considered in such cases involving internal candidates. Providing false or misleading information would be contrary to the core values of honesty and integrity expected of all Civil Servants.

Multi-Location

Where more than one location is advertised, candidates will be appointed in merit order for each location. You will be asked to state your location preference on your application.

Please be aware that you can be posted to any location that you put in your preferences. If you would only like to be posted to one location, please confirm one location only. If you are posted to a location that you have requested and you do not accept that location, you may not be offered another role.

Please note, only advertised location can be offered. Notes populated in a free text box will not be taken into consideration.

Near Miss

Candidates who are judged to be a near miss at interview may be considered for other positions in the NCA which may be at a lower grade, but have a potential skills match.

Hybrid Working

Here at the NCA we have a hybrid working arrangement in place enabling officers to work a proportion of their role remotely. Eligibility and the degree of home working will vary depending on the requirements of the role. Further details can be discussed at offer stage.

Reasonable Adjustment

We are committed to ensuring our recruitment process is inclusive and accessible to all. As part of our application process you will be prompted to provide details of any reasonable adjustment to our recruitment process that you may need. If you have a disability or long-term condition (a physical or mental impairment that has a substantial and long term effect on your ability to carry out normal day-to-day activities protected under the Equality Act 2010) and need us to make any adjustments or do anything differently during the recruitment process, please let us know by emailing ncarecruitment.grs@cabinetoffice.gov.uk, we have a duty to make reasonable changes to our processes.

If you need a change to be made so that you can make your application, you should:

Complete the “Assistance required” section in the “Additional requirements” page of your application form to tell us what changes or help you might need further on in the recruitment process. For instance, you may need wheelchair access at interview, or if you’re deaf, a Language Service Professional.

Please contact us by emailing ncarecruitment.grs@cabinetoffice.gov.uk or calling 0117 372 0000 as soon as possible before the closing date if you wish to discuss any reasonable adjustments before applying.

Inclusion and Accessibility

The NCA embraces and values diversity in all forms. Being truly reflective of the communities we serve and building a culture where everyone can perform at their best is critical to leading the UK’s fight against serious and organised crime – something which affects us all. We want to recruit and retain the very best and broadest diversity of officers so the NCA welcomes applications from individuals from all backgrounds.

We are proud to be an inclusive, equal opportunities employer. As a Disability Confident Leader we are committed to ensuring that all candidates are treated fairly throughout the recruitment process.

If you are experiencing accessibility problems with any attachments on this advert, please contact ncarecruitment.grs@cabinetoffice.gov.uk

VETTING REQUIREMENTS SC

All security clearances require you to provide evidence of your UK footprint where you have been physically present in the UK.

The requirement for SC clearance is to have been present in the UK for at least 3 of the last 5 years.

Failure to meet the residency requirements will result in your security clearance application being rejected.

If you require SC clearance you will need to provide evidence of the below requirements.

Checks will be made against:

• Departmental or company records (personnel files, staff reports, sick leave reports and security records)
• UK criminal records covering both spent and unspent criminal records.
• Your credit and financial history with a credit reference agency
• Security Services records

 

VETTING REQUIREMENTS - DV 

All security clearances require you to provide evidence of your UK footprint where you have been physically present in the UK.

The requirement for DV is to have been present in the UK for at least 7 of the last 10 years.

Failure to meet the residency requirements will result in your security clearance application being rejected.

If you require DV clearance you will need to provide evidence of the below requirements.

Checks will be made against:

• successful completion of the BPSS
• UK criminal record and identity checks
• credit reference checks
• relevant personnel and medical checks (if required)

We encourage all candidates to thoroughly review the candidate pack which explains the role further before submitting an application.

If you have any specific queries about the role that are not covered by the candidate pack, please contact:

ncarecruitment.grs@cabinetoffice.gov.uk

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

Security

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

This job is broadly open to the following groups:

• UK nationals
• nationals of the Republic of Ireland
• nationals of Commonwealth countries who have the right to work in the UK
• nationals of the EU, Switzerland, Norway, Iceland or Liechtenstein and family members of those nationalities with settled or pre-settled status under the European Union Settlement Scheme (EUSS) (opens in a new window)
• nationals of the EU, Switzerland, Norway, Iceland or Liechtenstein and family members of those nationalities who have made a valid application for settled or pre-settled status under the European Union Settlement Scheme (EUSS)
• individuals with limited leave to remain or indefinite leave to remain who were eligible to apply for EUSS on or before 31 December 2020
• Turkish nationals, and certain family members of Turkish nationals, who have accrued the right to work in the Civil Service

Further information on nationality requirements (opens in a new window)

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.