Overview

DecisionPointseeks a Data Protection & Classification Specialist to support the data pillar of an enterprise Zero Trust program within a federal and DoD-aligned mission environment. This role develops andmaintainsdata classification models, encryption standards, tagging schemas, secure data workflows, and enforcement policies that govern data access and movement across hybrid systems.

The Data Protection & Classification Specialist ensures dataremainsproperly protected throughout its lifecycle by managing classification rules, aligning DLP controls, supporting encryption requirements, and enabling policy-driven data accessin accordance withZero Trust principles.

This position is fully remote.

Duties & Responsibilities

The Data Protection & Classification Specialist will:

• Develop andmaintainenterprise data classification models, taxonomies, and tagging rules.

• Support policy-driven data protection requirements aligned with the Zero Trust data pillar.

• Implement andvalidatedata encryption standards, data-at-rest protections, and secure data transit.

• Support data loss prevention (DLP) controls, rule tuning, and enforcement logic.

• Develop and refine data access decision rules based on mission needs, sensitivity levels, and Zero Trust principles.

• Identifysensitive data flows and design secure data movement patterns across systems and environments.

• Collaborate with cybersecurity, cloud, network, and application teams to enforce secure data handling controls.

• Conduct periodic data access audits and ensure proper tagging, classification, and control application.

• Support detection and remediation of improper data sharing, tagging anomalies, or policy violations.

• Document data protection standards, workflows, classification maps, and technical configurations.

• Support continuous monitoring by contributing to data-related risk assessments, compliance checks, and reporting cycles.

• Participate in modernization planning to align data protection with evolving Zero Trust capabilities.

Qualifications

Clearance Requirement

Must hold an active Top Secret clearance, supported by a Tier 5 background investigation.

Education (Required)

Bachelor27s degree in Cybersecurity, Data Management, Information Science, ora relateddiscipline.

Experience (Required)

• Minimum5 yearsof experience in data protection, data governance, information security, or Zero Trust 6aligned data operations.

• Experience developing or managing data classification, tagging schemas, or metadata models.

• Experience supporting encryption, DLP, or data access enforcement controls.

• Experience analyzing data flows,identifyingsensitive data, or enforcing secure data movement requirements.

• Experience collaborating with cybersecurity and IT teams on data protection policy implementation.

Technical Knowledge (Required)

• Strong understanding of data protection principles, classification models, metadata tagging, and DLP enforcement.

• Knowledge of encryption methods, secure storage patterns, and data-at-rest/data-in-transit protections.

• Familiarity with Zero Trust data pillar principles and policy-driven data security.

• Understanding of DoD data protection requirements and federal information security standards.

Technical Knowledge (Preferred)

• Experience with cloud-native data protection tools or DLP platforms.

• Familiaritywith data access monitoring, audit logging, or anomaly detection.

• Experience supporting data governance programs or metadata management tools.

Certifications

Required:

• Security+

Preferred:

• Additional DoD 8570/8140 data protection or cybersecurity certifications

• Cloud data protection or DLP platform certifications

Skills

• Strong analytical skills for evaluating data flows, protection gaps, and classification requirements.

• Excellent communication skills for coordinating across cybersecurity, engineering, and mission teams.

• High attention to detail for managing tagging schemas, classification rules, and access constraints.

• Ability to document data protection processes andmaintainclear governance artifacts.

• Ability to manage multiple data protection initiatives in a fast-paced mission environment.