Staff Application Security Engineer

Sierra Ventures; United States; Hybrid; USD 168,000 - 240,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Competitive starting pay

Discretionary annual bonus

Equity grant

Healthcare plans

401K with company matching

Paid Parental Leave

Flexible time off

Job summary

Gemini in the United States is seeking a Staff Application Security Engineer to own the technical strategy securing on‑chain, exchange, and payment surfaces. You will partner with senior engineering leadership and design AI agents that secure Gemini’s SDLC at scale.

You will lead threat modeling, code reviews, and penetration testing, build security training for engineers, and participate in on‑call rotations to harden systems.

Qualifications

• Proven ability to perform design reviews and threat modeling, secure code reviews, and penetration testing.
• Strong background in application security best practices and familiarity with common vulnerabilities (e.g. SSRF, race conditions, privilege escalations).
• Deep code review proficiency in Scala, Java, Go or other common languages; hands-on Python or Go experience.
• Experience implementing custom detection and prevention AppSec controls beyond OWASP Top 10.
• Familiarity with regulated environments (fintech/crypto) and ability to align security with business goals.
• Strong cross-functional communication and collaboration.
• Typically 7-10+ years of experience in application security or related roles.

Responsibilities

• Own and evolve the Secure SDLC guardrails as an AppSec SME.
• Lead architecture reviews, threat modeling, code reviews, and pen tests for high-risk apps.
• Design and build AI agents for automated threat modeling and secure coding.
• Create and deliver hands-on application security training at scale.
• Participate in on-call rotations and lead post-incident hardening.

Skills

Threat modeling

Code reviews

Penetration testing

AI tooling

Security training

Cross-functional collaboration

Tools

SLSA

OWASP SPVS

CI/CD security

Job description

About the Company

Gemini is a global crypto and Web3 platform founded by Cameron and Tyler Winklevoss in 2014, offering a wide range of simple, reliable, and secure crypto products and services to individuals and institutions in over 70 countries. Our mission is to unlock the next era of financial, creative, and personal freedom by providing trusted access to the decentralized future. We envision a world where crypto reshapes the global financial system, internet, and money to create greater choice, independence, and opportunity for all — bridging traditional finance with the emerging cryptoeconomy in a way that is more open, fair, and secure. As a publicly traded company, Gemini is poised to accelerate this vision with greater scale, reach, and impact.

The Department: Application Security

consequences of security failure are measured in customer trust and regulatory standing. The Application Security (AppSec) team exists to make sure security is never an afterthought. We are on a mission to secure products at the time of thought and the time of build: at the product requirements doc, the technical architectural decision, at the line of code. We believe that security input is most valuable before the work is done and after‑fact is too late and too expensive. Gemini is AI‑first, and AppSec builds the tools to make AI‑first engineering secure.

The Role: Staff Application Security Engineer

As a Staff Application Security Engineer on Gemini’s AppSec team, you will own the technical strategy to secure our most critical attack surfaces like on‑chain, exchange, and credit card. You will operate with significant autonomy and partner directly with senior engineering leadership. You will also design and build the AI agents that secure Gemini’s agentic SDLC at scale.

Responsibilities:

• Own and evolve the Gemini Secure Software Development Lifecycle guardrails as an application security subject matter expert
• Lead architecture reviews, threat modeling, code reviews, and penetration testing for high‑risk applications and services
• Design and build AI agents throughout the SDLC for automated threat modeling during design, AI‑driven secure code generation and review, and reducing AppSec toil
• Create and deliver hands‑on application security training to enable engineers at scale
• Participate in the Application Security on‑call rotation and lead post‑incident hardening

Minimum Qualifications:

• Proven ability to perform design reviews, threat modeling, secure code reviews, and penetration testing with an attacker mindset
• Strong background in application security best practices and familiarity with common vulnerabilities (e.g. SSRF, race conditions, privilege escalations, etc.)
• Deep code review proficiency in Scala, Java, Go or other common languages, plus hands‑on experience in at least Python, Go, or similar for building. Comfortable reviewing production services written in other languages
• Experience implementing custom detection and prevention application security controls to eliminate application security issues beyond OWASP Top 10
• Familiarity with highly regulated environments (financial services, fintech, crypto, or equivalent) and ability to understand business objectives, business context, and security risk
• Strong cross‑functional communication and collaboration (Security, Engineering, and Product)
• Typically 7-10+ years of experience or equivalent impact in application security, product security, or similar roles

Preferred Qualifications:

• Experience building AI application security tooling using agents or skills
• Experience with supply chain security, common frameworks (SLSA, OWASP SPVS) and other CI/CD security controls
• Experience with preventing application security vulnerabilities at scale through secure design patterns, automated tooling, or frameworks
• Experience with microservice architectures and cloud‑native environments

It Pays to Work Here

The compensation & benefits package for this role includes:

• Competitive starting pay
• A discretionary annual bonus
• Long‑term incentive in the form of a new hire equity grant
• Comprehensive health plans
• 401K with company matching
• Paid Parental Leave
• Flexible time off

Salary Range: The base salary range for this role is between $168,000 - $240,000 in the State of New York. This range is not inclusive of our discretionary bonus or equity package. When determining a candidate’s compensation, we consider a number of factors including skillset, experience, job scope, and current market data.

In the United States, we offer a hybrid work approach at our hub offices, balancing the benefits of in‑person collaboration with the flexibility of remote work. Expectations may vary by location and role, so candidates are encouraged to connect with their recruiter to learn more about the specific policy for the role. Employees who do not live near one of our hubs are part of our remote workforce.

At Gemini, we strive to build diverse teams that reflect the people we want to empower through our products, and we are committed to equal employment opportunity regardless of race, color, ancestry, religion, sex, national origin, sexual orientation, age, citizenship, marital status, disability, gender identity, or Veteran status. Equal Opportunity is the Law, and Gemini is proud to be an equal opportunity workplace. If you have a specific need that requires accommodation, please let a member of the People Team know.

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