Detection Researcher/Security Engineer (iOS Focused)

Zimperium; Milano; On-site; EUR 90,000 - 150,000; Full time

Job summary

Zimperium is seeking a highly skilled security engineer with deep expertise in mobile threat detection and iOS internals. You will conduct forensics analysis of potentially compromised devices to research, develop, and improve our detection capabilities against advanced mobile threats.

The role emphasizes analyzing iOS backups and sysdiagnose data, with strong coding in C, Python, Objective-C and Swift to deliver robust, secure tooling.

Qualifications

• Strong knowledge of iOS security internals and back-end forensics.
• Experience analyzing iOS backups and sysdiagnose data.
• Proven ability to write secure, efficient code and scripts.

Responsibilities

• Design and implement new detection techniques for iOS threats.
• Lead analysis of iOS internals to improve runtime and offline detection.
• Develop tooling to accelerate analysis, triage, and detection.
• Produce technical reports and remediation guidance.
• Publish technical blog posts to share insights with the security community.

Skills

iOS Internals

Forensics Analysis

Reverse Engineering

C Programming

Python

Swift

Objective-C

Security Research

Education

Bachelor's degree in CS or related field

Tools

IDA Pro

Ghidra

Hopper

SDKs (iOS)

XPC

IOKit

Job description

Zimperium® is the world leader in mobile security, purpose-built to protect the modern mobile enterprise. Trusted by leading organizations and governments, our AI-driven platform delivers real-time, on-device protection for mobile applications and devices. We help organizations stay ahead with proactive defense against evolving threats—including mobile-targeted phishing (mishing), malware, app vulnerabilities, and zero-day exploits. Our mission is to empower organizations to operate securely and confidently in today’s dynamic digital environment.

We are seeking a highly skilled and inquisitive security engineer with deep technical expertise in mobile threat detection and operating system internals. This role focuses on conducting forensics analysis of potentially compromised devices to research, develop, and improve our detection capabilities against advanced mobile threats. Experience in analyzing data from iOS backups and diagnose is at the core of the role. The ideal candidate combines strong technical depth with an open and adaptive research mindset, maintaining versatility across diverse security challenges. A strong ability to code for the iOS environment, alongside conducting and reviewing high-quality technical work, is essential for success in this position.

Location: Europe

Key Responsibilities:

• Design, prototype, and implement new detection techniques and algorithms for the iOS platform based on forensics data coming both from the runtime environment and the offline iOS sysdiagnose and backup files
• Lead and participate in structured brainstorming sessions to generate novel detection ideas against advanced mobile threats
• Analyze, document and make use of iOS internals features in an attempt to improve the runtime and offline detection capabilities
• Develop, maintain, and improve internal tooling and automation to accelerate analysis, triage, and detection development
• Review and interpret forensic data provided by customers, produce clear technical reports, and provide actionable guidance and remediation support
• Write and publish technical blog posts to raise awareness of emerging security risks and share insights with customers and the wider security community
  
  
  

Required Skills & Experience:

• Proven ability to collaborate effectively within a team environment, including forming and leading focused sub-groups to deliver specific project features or research objectives
• Strong knowledge of iOS operating system internals (e.g., diagnose, encrypted backup, daemons/services, sandboxing, code-signing), with a particular focus on the capability to use the data provided by the operating system to detect a compromised device
• Good previous experience in data analysis methods applied to forensics investigations
• Proficiency in reverse engineering using tools such as IDA Pro, Ghidra, Hopper, or equivalent, including experience writing scripts, leveraging their SDKs, and isolating and reporting technical issues
• Demonstrated ability to think both offensively and defensively, approaching analysis tasks with the mindset of both an attacker and a defender
• Solid programming experience in C, Python, Objective-C and Swift, with the ability to produce efficient, maintainable, and secure code
• Capability to reverse engineer proprietary protocols and interprocess communication mechanisms (e.g., XPC, mach messages, IOKit) is considered a plus
• Practical knowledge of jailbreak methods and iOS exploit classes (e.g., kernel exploits, sandbox escapes, code-signing bypasses), ideally experience in analyzing such exploits or exploit chains is a big plus
  
  
  

Zimperium is an Equal Opportunity employer. All qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard to race, color, religion, sex including sexual orientation and gender identity, national origin, disability, protected veteran status, or any other characteristic protected by applicable federal, state, or local law.