Incident Response Engineer Jobs in California

Incident Response Engineer jobs in California sit at the center of one of the most active cybersecurity hiring markets in the country, with demand concentrated in enterprise technology, defense contracting, financial services, and healthcare across roles from junior analysts through principal engineers. The largest hiring volume runs through the San Francisco Bay Area, Los Angeles, and San Diego, where employers like Google, Northrop Grumman, and Kaiser Permanente maintain deep security teams. Cloud security incident response, threat hunting, and SIEM engineering are the sub-areas drawing the strongest California demand. Find a role that fits below and apply directly.

Find Jobs

Overview

Open roles16
Top employerGoogle
Top citySan Francisco, CA
Cities hiring8
Work type43% Hybrid
Top industryInvestment

Showing 5 of 16+ Incident Response Engineer jobs

Meta
Software Engineering Director, AI for Incident Response
We won't show you this job again
Meta
Added 6d ago
Software Engineering Director, AI for Incident Response
Meta
Menlo Park, California
Business Operations
Business Strategy
Project Management
$271k - $347k/yr
10,000+

Have you applied for this role?

Allied Universal
Security Guard Enhanced Part Time Armed Incident Response Patrol
We won't show you this job again
Allied Universal
Added 1w ago
Security Guard Enhanced Part Time Armed Incident Response Patrol
Allied Universal
Los Angeles, California
Healthcare Administration
Patient Services & Wellbeing
Physical Therapy
CPR Certification
10,000+

Have you applied for this role?

Anthropic
Incident Response Manager - Privacy
We won't show you this job again
Anthropic
Added 1w ago
Incident Response Manager - Privacy
Anthropic
San Francisco, California
Cloud & DevOps
Cloud Engineering
Network Engineering
Systems Administration
$1 - $2/hr
Hybrid
Bachelor's degree
51-200

Have you applied for this role?

County of Los Angeles
Administrative Manager 10, Isd - Incident Response and Coordination Manager
We won't show you this job again
County of Los Angeles
Added 2w ago
Administrative Manager 10, Isd - Incident Response and Coordination Manager
County of Los Angeles
Los Angeles County, CA
Business Operations
Compliance & Risk
Project Management
$120k.68 - $161k.16/yr
10,000+

Have you applied for this role?

Fluidstack
Incident Response Manager
We won't show you this job again
Fluidstack
Added 2w ago
Incident Response Manager
Fluidstack
San Francisco, California
Engineering (Non-Software)
Project Management
Technical Program Management
$172k - $258k/yr
On-Site

Have you applied for this role?

See All 16 Incident Response Engineer Jobs in California

Find roles in California that match your experience and apply in just a few clicks.

Find Jobs

Incident Response Engineer Jobs by City in California

Where California roles are concentrated, by current openings.

San Francisco
6 jobs
Irvine
2 jobs
Ontario
1 job
Hawthorne
1 job
Sunnyvale
1 job
Menlo Park
1 job
Los Angeles
1 job
Santa Clara
1 job

Incident Response Engineer Job Market in California

A snapshot from current California openings, updated as new roles post.

Who's Hiring

Google
Google2 open roles
Twitch
Twitch2 open roles
Meta
Meta1 open role

Top Industries Hiring

  • Investment & Asset Management

What California Employers Look For

The qualifications that appear most often in incident response engineer jobs across California.

  • Bachelor's degree in computer science, information security, or a closely related field
  • Hands-on experience with SIEM platforms such as Splunk, Microsoft Sentinel, or Chronicle
  • Relevant certification such as GCIH, GCFE, CEH, or CISSP recognized by California employers
  • Demonstrated ability to lead end-to-end incident investigations from triage through post-mortem
  • Proficiency in scripting languages such as Python or PowerShell for automation and log analysis
  • Familiarity with cloud environments including AWS, Azure, or Google Cloud and their security tooling

Incident Response Engineer Jobs in California: Frequently Asked Questions

How do you become an incident response engineer in California?

Most California employers expect a bachelor's degree in computer science, cybersecurity, or information systems, though equivalent self-taught backgrounds paired with recognized certifications are accepted at many organizations. California does not issue a state license for this role, so the credential that carries the most weight with California hiring teams is an industry certification such as the GIAC Certified Incident Handler (GCIH) or CISSP. Building hands-on experience through a SOC analyst or security operations role is the most reliable path into incident response engineering in this state.

How much do incident response engineers make in California?

Incident response engineers in California earn a median of about $134,440 a year, based on May 2025 Bureau of Labor Statistics wage data, ranging from around $58,340 for the lowest 10% to over $222,690 for the top 10%. Pay rises with experience, specialty, and employer.

Which companies hire incident response engineers in California?

Employers hiring incident response engineers in California right now include Google, Twitch, and Meta, based on current listings on Migrate Mate as of October 2026. California's concentration of major tech headquarters, defense contractors, and large healthcare systems means consistent year-round demand for this role across a wide range of sectors.

Which California cities have the most incident response engineer jobs?

San Francisco, Irvine, and California account for the most incident response engineer openings in California. The Bay Area leads because of its density of cloud and enterprise technology companies, Los Angeles draws from entertainment, finance, and defense contractors based in the region, and San Diego benefits from the large military and defense technology presence anchored there.

Are there remote incident response engineer jobs in California?

Yes, and more than most security roles, because much of the work centers on log analysis, tool management, and investigation workflows that run entirely through cloud platforms. About 71% of incident response engineer openings tied to California are remote or hybrid as of October 2026, reflecting how broadly distributed security teams have become. Threat intelligence, SIEM engineering, and detection engineering sub-roles tend to be the most remote-accessible, while forensic and on-site IR work remains largely in-person.

How can I get hired as an incident response engineer in California with little or no experience?

The most realistic entry path is landing a SOC analyst or cybersecurity analyst role first, then moving laterally into incident response once you have live triage experience. Large California employers like Northrop Grumman, Palo Alto Networks, and Kaiser Permanente run associate security programs and early-career pipelines that accept candidates without prior professional experience. Earning the CompTIA Security+ or GCIH certification before you apply strengthens your application considerably, and building a portfolio through capture-the-flag competitions or a home lab is a concrete signal California hiring managers look for when evaluating entry-level candidates.

Where can I find and apply to incident response engineer jobs in California?

You can find and apply to incident response engineer jobs in California on Migrate Mate, which lists current California openings. Search the listings, find roles that fit your experience and target location, and apply directly to the ones that match.

See All 16 Incident Response Engineer Jobs in California

Find roles in California that match your experience and apply in just a few clicks.

Find Jobs