AI Cyber Security Scientist

Barone Consulting LLC; Bethesda (MD); On-site; USD 140,000 - 190,000; Full time

Job summary

Barone Consulting LLC is seeking a SETA Support Specialist to support a government research organization focused on AI Cyber Security and high-risk research programs. The role emphasizes coordinating program lifecycles, evaluating technical deliverables, and producing leadership briefings; it requires deep cybersecurity and AI/ML security expertise in federal or large enterprise settings.

Applicants should have 8+ years in STEM and advanced degrees with experience in AI governance, data

Qualifications

• Bachelor’s degree in physics, mathematics, CS, cybersecurity, or engineering; Master’s/PhD preferred for advanced roles.
• 8+ years in science, technology, engineering or mathematics with cybersecurity focus.
• Expert knowledge of AI/ML security, data integrity, and adversarial threats; familiarity with AI governance frameworks.

Responsibilities

• Coordinate across government, academia, and industry teams throughout the program lifecycle.
• Review technical deliverables, milestones, and evaluation results for quality and risk.
• Track risks, dependencies, and integration issues across performers; prepare updates for leadership.
• Provide support for systems integration, modeling, data analytics, and architecture design.
• Stay current on AI security advances and perform technical studies as needed.
• Support Seedling concept evaluations and act as AI security SME to government partners.

Skills

AI Security

Adversarial ML

Cybersecurity

Python

LLMs

Data Analytics

Security Governance

Education

Bachelor's degree in physics, mathematics, computer science, cybersecurity, or relevant engineering fields

Master's degree or PhD in cybersecurity or related field

CISSP/CISM or equivalent senior cybersecurity certification

Tools

Python

Deep Learning Frameworks

AI/ML Security Tools

NIST AI RMF

Job description

We are seeking a Scientific, Engineering, and Technical Assistance (SETA) Support Specialist to join our team in support of a government research organization dedicated to investing in high-risk, high-payoff research programs to tackle some of the most difficult challenges of national security.

The successful candidate will support the government program managers in the execution of the lifecycle of various research programs to include development of source selection materials, execution assistance, closeout, and transition. The SETA should be competent in Research and Development (R&D) programmatic reviews and procedures. The candidate will also be responsible for ensuring that project management best practices are followed by the individual programs to include performers, independent verification and validation (IV&V) entities, and within the government research organization itself.

The research programs you would support focus on developing advanced AI Cyber Security capabilities and methods.

The successful candidate will have subject matter expertise in cybersecurity with significant demonstrated experience in AI/ML security, data science security, or a closely related field within a federal government or large enterprise environment.

Responsibilities:

Support the program managers in coordination, monitoring, communication, and integration of all technical aspects of the Program lifecycle that includes:

Coordinate across government, academic, and industry research teams.

Review and assess technical deliverables, milestones, and evaluation results.

Track risks, dependencies, and integration issues across performers.

Prepare reports, technical summaries, and briefings for senior leadership.

Serve as a liaison between performers, Test & Evaluation contributors, government and transition partners;

Provide support for program related requirements for systems integration, design, development, modeling and simulation, data analytics and architecture design;

Stay current on advances in technologies relevant to the research programs and perform technical studies as requested on topics of interest to the program managers.

Provide technical support and expertise on new concepts relevant to the program managers.

Support the evaluation of Seedling concepts

Qualifications

Required:

Bachelor’s degree in physics, mathematics, computer science, cybersecurity, or relevant engineering fields (electrical, computer, systems, software). A Master’s degree may be used in lieu of TWO (2) years of relevant work experience.

EIGHT (8) or more years of work experience in a science, technology, engineering or mathematics field.

Experiences should include, but not be limited to:

Progressive experience in cybersecurity with significant demonstrated experience in AI/ML security, data science security, or a closely related field within a federal government or large enterprise environment

Expert‑level knowledge of AI/ML security principles, adversarial ML concepts, and AI‑specific threat vectors including model poisoning, adversarial attacks/evasion, model inversion, and data integrity threats

Understanding of secure data architectures and pipelines for large‑scale analytics/intelligence production

Familiarity with AI governance, data quality, and mission assurance in operational settings

Demonstrated familiarity with federal AI governance frameworks and requirements, including NIST AI RMF, Executive Order 13960, Executive Order 14110, and other AI memoranda and guidance

Experience with AI red teaming, adversarial robustness testing, or AI penetration testing methodologies

Experience creating program plans, work breakdown structures, and milestone schedules

Master’s degree or PhD in cybersecurity, physics, mathematics, computer science, artificial intelligence, data science, or relevant engineering fields (electrical, computer, systems, software) with FOUR (4) or more years of work experience

Prior experience serving as an AI security SME or advisor supporting a federal civilian agency

Experience in the Intelligence Community (IC), including requirements, CONOPS, and transition

Experience managing a multi‑disciplinary R&D or T&E team

Experience as a Project Manager or Deputy Project Manager

Experience using LLMs and agentic tools in your daily workflows

Experience using Python, common deep learning frameworks, LLM software infrastructure, and cybersecurity tooling

Ability to proactively manage multiple, concurrent tasks

One or more of the following certifications: CISSP, CISM, CAISS, or equivalent senior‑level cybersecurity certification, supplemented by demonstrated AI/ML security expertise

Excellent writing and editing skills, including the ability to develop succinct, comprehensive, and understandable documents using complex data from multiple sources

Excellent slide development and PowerPoint skills, with the ability to visually communicate complex ideas at a high level for technically savvy but non‑expert audiences

Why Join Us?

This role offers the opportunity to be part of mission-critical programs advancing collection technologies and national security. You will collaborate with leading universities, research labs, and industry partners on groundbreaking research and technologies.