Senior FIPS 140 Security Engineer

ZipRecruiter; Silver Spring (MD); Remote; USD 120,000 - 160,000; Full time

Job summary

A leading company in IT security is seeking a Senior FIPS 140 Security Engineer to join their Accredited Testing and Evaluation team. This role involves ensuring compliance with security standards and offers opportunities for career development, flexible hours, and collaboration with industry experts.

Benefits

Performance-based career development

Flexible working hours

Opportunities to attend industry conferences

Work-life balance

Collaboration with industry experts

Strong team-oriented culture

Qualifications

• 4–8 years of relevant experience in security engineering.
• Experience with VHDL and Verilog is a plus.
• Relevant certifications such as CCNA/CCNP/CCIE are desirable.

Responsibilities

• Work on security products deployed in cyber warfare environments.
• Ensure compliance with FIPS 140 standards.
• Perform tests and report results in a lab environment.

Skills

Knowledge of FIPS 140 requirements

Understanding of cryptographic algorithms

Proficiency in programming languages

Ability to interpret security standards

Familiarity with security protocols

Experience in building testing environments

Strong problem-solving skills

Education

Bachelor's degree

Tools

GDB

WinDBG

Visual Studio

OpenSSL

Linux

Job description

Senior FIPS 140 Security Engineer

Location: Remote/Columbia, MD

We are seeking a Senior FIPS 140 Security Engineer to join our Accredited Testing and Evaluation (AT&E, Common Criteria/FIPS) team. This role offers an exciting opportunity to work in the expanding IT security field supporting defense initiatives. The products you will work with are deployed into larger systems to enable secure communications in the modern cyber warfare environment. This position is part of a rapidly growing industry critical to security.

Benefits of This Role:

• Performance-based career development with well-defined roles and qualifications.
• Flexible working hours.
• Opportunities to attend industry conferences and seminars.
• Work-life balance in a supportive environment.
• Collaboration with industry experts and exposure to Commercial off-the-Shelf products.
• Strong team-oriented culture.

Qualifications:

• Knowledge of FIPS 140 requirements.
• Understanding of cryptographic algorithms, key exchange, hashing, PKI, and random number generators.
• Proficiency in programming languages such as C, C++, Python, or Java, and development environments.
• Ability to interpret security standards and apply them to products.
• Familiarity with security protocols like SSH, IPsec, TLS.
• Experience in building testing environments, performing tests, and reporting results (including technical writing).
• CVP Certified Tester certification.
• Strong problem-solving, multitasking, and time management skills.

Additional Qualifications:

• Experience with VHDL and Verilog.
• Debugging skills using GDB, WinDBG, Visual Studio, etc.
• Experience with statistical analysis of entropy sources.
• Knowledge of OpenSSL and/or OpenPGP.
• Vulnerability analysis or penetration testing experience.
• Solid understanding of computer security principles and best practices.
• Excellent English communication skills (oral and written).
• Relevant certifications such as CCNA/CCNP/CCIE, JNCIA/JNCIS/JNCIP/JNCIE.
• Knowledge of Active Directory and Linux.
• Hands-on experience with tools like oscilloscopes, function generators, multimeters, and signal generators.
• Understanding of X.509 certificates, protocols like CDP and OCSP.
• Experience with network setup, subnets, and routing.

Education & Experience:

• Bachelor's degree with 4–8 years of relevant experience.

This position offers hands-on experience in a lab environment with cutting-edge security technology, ensuring compliance with rigorous standards.