Senior/Principal R&D Cybersecurity Researcher - Cyber Threat Center at Sandia National Laboratories

Job description

About Sandia: Sandia National Laboratories is the nation’s premier science and engineering lab for national security and technology innovation, with teams of specialists focused on cutting-edge work in a broad array of areas. Some of the main reasons we love our jobs: • Challenging work with amazing impact that contributes to security, peace, and freedom worldwide • Extraordinary co-workers • Some of the best tools, equipment, and research facilities in the world • Career advancement and enrichment opportunities • Flexible work arrangements for many positions include 9/80 (work 80 hours every two weeks, with every other Friday off) and 4/10 (work 4 ten-hour days each week) compressed workweeks, part-time work, and telecommuting (a mix of onsite work and working from home) • Generous vacation, strong medical and other benefits, competitive 401k, learning opportunities, relocation assistance and amenities aimed at creating a solid work/life balance* World-changing technologies. Life-changing careers. Learn more about Sandia at: sandia.gov *These benefits vary by job classification. What Your Job Will Be Like: Are you passionate about research dedicated to keeping systems safe and thwarting cyber intrusions? Are you dreaming of a chance to develop protective technologies, conduct threat assessments, and analyze government, military, and civilian computer networks? If so, this is the opportunity for you to join Sandia's unique multidisciplinary team committed to solving the information security challenges facing our nation. As part of our team, you will engage in work across the technology spectrum including embedded, mobile, desktop, enterprise, and cloud systems, as well as globally connected networks of networks. On any given day, you may be called on to: • Perform manual and automated reverse engineering, vulnerability assessment, malware analysis, and intrusion detection. • Manage network operations, ensure information protection and resiliency, and implement authentication and authorization. • Apply cryptography techniques to secure systems and data. • Conduct side channel analysis to identify potential security weaknesses. • Perform failure analysis to diagnose and resolve hardware and software issues. • Gather and analyze threat intelligence to support security operations. • Develop and utilize modeling, simulation, and emulation tools for system evaluation. • Apply data science, information theory, and streaming and behavioral analytics to extract insights. • Ensure hardware and software trust and assurance throughout development and deployment. • Design, develop, and maintain real-time operating systems (RTOS) and embedded systems, including Internet of Things (IoT) devices. • Deploy and manage virtualization technologies (system and network) and cloud platforms. • Support mobile devices, smart technologies, and autonomous systems integration and security. • Operate and secure industrial control systems and SCADA systems. • Research, develop, and implement Artificial Intelligence (AI) and AI security solutions. • Applicants on this requisition may be interviewed by multiple organizations at Sandia National Laboratories. Due to the nature of the job, the selected candidate must be able to work onsite. Applicants on this requisition may be interviewed by multiple organizations at Sandia National Laboratories. Salary Range: $117,500 - $235,700 *Salary range is estimated, and actual salary will be determined after consideration of the selected candidate's experience and qualifications, and application of any approved geographic salary differential. Qualifications We Require: • A Bachelor's degree in a relevant discipline and five (5) years of directly relevant experience, or an equivalent combination of directly relevant education and engineering or scientific experience that demonstrates the knowledge, skills, and ability to perform independent research and development. • Ability to obtain and maintain a DOE Q and SCI clearance which may require a polygraph test. Qualifications We Desire: The ideal R&D S&E Cybersecurity candidate for Sandia National Laboratories will in addition possess the following: • Graduate degree in Computer Science/Engineering, Electrical Engineering, Computer Information Systems, Computer Forensics, Mathematics or a directly related field where an independent research project was a graduation requirement (e.g., independent project, thesis, or dissertation). • Experience in one or more of the following: reverse engineering, software vulnerability assessment, web application assessment, computer networking, computer architecture, compilers, hardware analysis, microelectronics, or similar computer security topics. • Proficiency in scripting or high-level programming. • Familiarity with secure-system design principles and information assurance principles. • Excellent communication skills and a demonstrated ability to develop technical ideas and results and present them in oral and written form in a concise manner. Also, for this posting we are seeking individuals with the following experience: • Assembly or operating system programming, application layer programming, Dev-Ops programming, and/or network layer programming. • High consequence high trust systems, mobile systems, embedded systems, OT/ICS/SCADA devices and systems, virtualization technologies, or firmware environments. • Experience with one or more of the following: operating system design and security, driver development, low- level software debugging, hypervisor implementations, or memory management, • Demonstrated experience and application of one or more of the following fields: data science, machine learning, information theory, and streaming and behavioral analytics, and network protocols. • Defining new research directions, crafting research proposals, and presenting results of that research in a relevant area of cybersecurity. • Cyber relevant experience in Artificial Intelligence (AI) to include: • AI Security, data engineering, and machine learning models. • Active DOE Q or DoD TS security clearance and SCI security clearance, and have the willingness to take a polygraph exam, if requested. About Our Team: As a Federally Funded Research and Development Center (FFRDC), Sandia National Laboratories is continually asked to help address the country's most pressing national security needs. In the Threat Intelligence Center, the mission of the Information Operations Program is to assess, design, implement and influence the development of national security-related information systems and technologies in support of Defense and Intelligence customers and their national security missions. When applying to this requisition, you may be interviewed and/or hired into one of several groups contributing to the Information Operations mission in the Threat Intelligence Center: • Cyber-Physical Mission R&D: The Cyber-Physical Mission R&D Group performs research and development to assess and protect Cyber-Physical Systems (CPS). We maintain a wide variety of skillsets and capabilities, which enables us to analyze CPS from a system view down to individual components. We provide innovative research and development in the cyber-physical domain for national security missions. • Cyber Intelligence Research: Work in Cyber Intelligence Research Group involves the development and application of various software and hardware tools to analyze complex information systems and technologies for vulnerabilities as well as the development and transfer of solutions for the Nation's most critical information system challenges. These activities include research and development in computer security, computer network security, and vulnerability assessments. • Microelectronics Protection Technologies: The Microelectronics Protection Technologies Group assesses, designs, and influences national-security-related information systems and technologies by developing and applying tools to analyze microelectronic devices and next layer assemblies for vulnerabilities; and developing and transferring solutions to help protect the nation's most critical systems. • Emerging Cyber Capabilities: The Emerging Cyber Capabilities (ECC) Group develops emergent, innovative cyber capabilities. Work within ECC involves synthesizing operational, experimental, threat, and vulnerability data into complex systems understanding for the assessment and protection of high consequence national security systems. The mission of this subprogram is diverse and adaptive, anticipating the evolving threat environments of our national security partners. Posting Duration: This posting will be open for application submissions for a minimum of three (3) calendar days, including the 'posting date'. Sandia reserves the right to extend the posting date at any time. Security Clearance: Sandia is required by DOE to conduct a pre-employment drug test and background review that includes checks of personal references, credit, law enforcement records, and employment/education verifications. Applicants for employment need to be able to obtain and maintain a DOE Q-level security clearance and SCI access, both of which require US citizenship. SCI access may also require a polygraph examination. If you hold more than one citizenship (i.e., of the U.S. and another country), your ability to obtain these levels of access may be impacted. Applicants offered employment with Sandia are subject to a federal background investigation to meet the requirements for access to classified information or matter if the duties of the position require a DOE security clearance. Substance abuse or illegal drug use, falsification of information, criminal activity, serious misconduct or other indicators of untrustworthiness can cause a clearance to be denied or terminated by the DOE, resulting in the inability to perform the duties assigned and subsequent termination of employment. EEO: All qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard to race, color, religion, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, national origin, age, disability, or veteran status and any other protected class under state or federal law. NNSA Requirements for MedPEDs: If you have a Medical Portable Electronic Device (MedPED), such as a pacemaker, defibrillator, drug-releasing pump, hearing aids, or diagnostic equipment and other equipment for measuring, monitoring, and recording body functions such as heartbeat and brain waves, if employed by Sandia National Laboratories you may be required to comply with NNSA security requirements for MedPEDs. If you have a MedPED and you are selected for an on-site interview at Sandia National Laboratories, there may be additional steps necessary to ensure compliance with NNSA security requirements prior to the interview date. Job ID: 699435 Job Family: RD Regular/Temporary Position: R Full/Part-Time Status: F

Requirements

Must-haves

On any given day, you may be called on to:
Perform manual and automated reverse engineering, vulnerability assessment, malware analysis, and intrusion detection.
Manage network operations, ensure information protection and resiliency, and implement authentication and authorization.
Apply cryptography techniques to secure systems and data.
Conduct side channel analysis to identify potential security weaknesses.
Perform failure analysis to diagnose and resolve hardware and software issues.
Gather and analyze threat intelligence to support security operations.
Develop and utilize modeling, simulation, and emulation tools for system evaluation.
Apply data science, information theory, and streaming and behavioral analytics to extract insights.
Ensure hardware and software trust and assurance throughout development and deployment.
Design, develop, and maintain real-time operating systems (RTOS) and embedded systems, including Internet of Things (IoT) devices.
Deploy and manage virtualization technologies (system and network) and cloud platforms.
Support mobile devices, smart technologies, and autonomous systems integration and security.
Operate and secure industrial control systems and SCADA systems.
Research, develop, and implement Artificial Intelligence (AI) and AI security solutions.
Applicants on this requisition may be interviewed by multiple organizations at Sandia National Laboratories.
Due to the nature of the job, the selected candidate must be able to work onsite.
Applicants on this requisition may be interviewed by multiple organizations at Sandia National Laboratories.
$117,500 - $235,700
Ability to obtain and maintain a DOE Q and SCI clearance which may require a polygraph test.
The ideal R&D S&E Cybersecurity candidate for Sandia National Laboratories will in addition possess the following:
Proficiency in scripting or high-level programming.
Familiarity with secure-system design principles and information assurance principles.
Excellent communication skills and a demonstrated ability to develop technical ideas and results and present them in oral and written form in a concise manner.

Nice-to-haves

None flagged.

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