Senior Zero‑Day Vulnerability Research Engineer

Nightwing; Maryland; On-site; USD 122,000 - 253,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Medical, vision, and dental insurance

401(k) plan

PTO and holidays

Job summary

Nightwing is looking for a Principal Senior Vulnerability Research Engineer in Maryland, where you’ll work on using advanced systems to find zero-day vulnerabilities and contribute to cutting-edge projects in cyber defense and resilience. This position requires strong software development skills, particularly in C, C++, or Python, and familiarity with tools like Ghidra and IDA Pro.

The salary ranges from $122,000 to $253,000 based on experience and qualifications, and includes comprehensive benefits such as health insurance and a 401(k) plan.

Qualifications

• 12 years of experience and a bachelor’s degree or 10 years with a master’s.
• Clearance Requirements: TS/SCI CI Poly Preferred.
• Experience with exploit development and Hack The Box.

Responsibilities

• Use advanced systems to find zero‑day vulnerabilities.
• Analyze, design, and identify programmatic behaviors.
• Research data for new design ideas for vulnerability techniques.

Skills

Software development

C, C++, or Python

Program analysis and reverse engineering

Debugging tools (angr, BAP, IDA Pro, etc.)

Knowledge of Windows or Linux

Assembly (x86/x64)

Understanding of OS Internals

Exploit development

Network protocols

Exploit mitigations (DEP, ASLR)

Education

Bachelor’s degree in computer science or related field

Master’s degree in computer science or related field

Tools

Ghidra

Binary Ninja

IDA Pro

windbg

gdb

Job description

Nightwing is looking for a Principal Senior Vulnerability Research Engineer in Maryland, where you’ll work on using advanced systems to find zero-day vulnerabilities and contribute to cutting-edge projects in cyber defense and resilience. This position requires strong software development skills, particularly in C, C++, or Python, and familiarity with tools like Ghidra and IDA Pro.

The salary ranges from $122,000 to $253,000 based on experience and qualifications, and includes comprehensive benefits such as health insurance and a 401(k) plan.