Head of Cryptography

Zoozah LLC; Boca Raton (FL); Hybrid; USD 225,000 - 275,000; Full time

Job summary

Zoozah LLC in Boca Raton, FL is seeking a lead cryptographer to set our cryptographic strategy, policy, and production seal. You will own key management, crypto modules, and the verification service with constant-time coding.

You will lead FIPS 140-3 and CSfC/NIAP validation efforts, engage with labs and NSA resources, and mentor a Senior Cryptographic Engineer while shaping technical papers and conference talks.

Qualifications

• PhD or equivalent record of cryptography publications.
• 3+ years as a cryptographer at a leading federal agency or lab.
• Production cryptographic code shipped (Rust/C/Go).
• FIPS 203/204/205, CNSA 2.0, and implementation security knowledge.
• Citizenship with active or reinstatable security clearance.

Responsibilities

• Set cryptographic strategy and policy; lead the seal production code.
• Select labs and drive FIPS 140-3 and Common Criteria validation.
• Engage with NSA's Acquisition Resource Center and Cybersecurity teams.
• Lead and mentor a Senior Cryptographic Engineer.
• Co-author technical papers and represent cryptography externally.
• Implement CNSA 2.0 post-quantum schemes with vetted libraries.
• Define module boundaries for FIPS 140-3 testing and manage lab evidence.

Skills

Cryptographic policy leadership

FIPS 140-3 / NIAP experience

Post-quantum crypto (liboqs, ML-KEM/ML

Education

PhD in mathematics or computer science focused on cryptography

Tools

Rust

C

Go

FIPS validated hardware modules

Job description

Location: Boca Raton, FL, or remote from the DC–Maryland area with regular time in Boca

Compensation: $250k + base and equity

About us

Zoozah is building digital security technologies at the frontier.

The role

You set our cryptographic strategy and policy, own certification, and are the person federal buyers and partners trust when they ask whether the seal holds. You personally design and build the seal: the production code, the key management, and the module the FIPS 140-3 lab will test.

Responsibilities

• Set our algorithm suite against CNSA 2.0 and CNSSP 15, write it up as our cryptographic policy, and keep it current as standards move
• Make the final call on every cryptographic decision, starting with a review of the current design to remove anything non-standard
• Select the evaluation labs and run FIPS 140-3 and Common Criteria evaluation through to validation, and on toward CSfC listing
• Lead our engagement with the NSA's Acquisition Resource Center and Cybersecurity
• Open conversations with program offices facing real post-quantum signing problems
• Hire, lead and develop a Senior Cryptographic Engineer
• Co-author our technical papers and represent our cryptography with partners and at conferences
• Implement ML-DSA, ML-KEM and the hash-based signatures CNSA 2.0 calls for, using vetted libraries and formally verified code wherever they exist
• Build and ship the seal's signing and verification service with constant-time code and side-
• Build key management on FIPS-validated hardware security modules
• Define the cryptographic module boundary the FIPS 140-3 lab will test
• Write the lab evidence packages and fix what the labs find
• Commission an external implementation audit and close its findings
• Run the codebase: a dedicated repository with tightly controlled access, where every change goes through a reviewed pull request

What you bring

• PhD in mathematics or computer science focused on cryptography, or an equivalent record of published work
• 3+ years as a cryptographer at a leading federal agency or research lab, in research or cybersecurity, with a public record under your own name
• Production cryptographic code you've written yourself in Rust, C or Go. You've shipped cryptography, not only specified it.
• Working command of FIPS 203, 204 and 205, CNSA 2.0, and implementation security (side channels, constant-time code)
• First-hand experience taking a product, or reviewing one, through FIPS 140 validation or NIAP /
• Fluency with hardware security modules, PKI , and QKD
• The ability to explain a lattice-based signature to a non-cryptographer, on stage or across a table
• US citizenship and an active or re-instatable security clearance
• Hands-on work with post-quantum libraries (for example liboqs, AWS-LC, or formally verified ML-KEM and ML-DSA implementations)

Nice to have

• One to three years out of government, ideally with time at a vendor or defense contractor since
• Contributions to standards work (NIST, IETF, NIAP Technical Communities)
• A strong network across the federal cryptography community
• A strong computer science foundation in algorithms, data structures, operating systems and distributed systems
• A track record of delivering software products to market, from design through release and

This role is not for you if you'd rather only lead or only code. This role does both, every day.

Candidates must be clear of any post-government employment restrictions that would bar this work.