Senior Staff Systems Security Engineer, Program Protection (TX/DC/Sea) (R6515)

• - Program Protection & CPI: Lead CPI identification, criticality assessments, and technical protection strategies utilizing the DoD CPI Horizontal Protection Guide (HPG), including evaluation of organic and inherited CPI and horizontal protection considerations.
• Anti-Tamper Engineering: Lead anti-tamper engineering activities in accordance with the DoD Anti-Tamper Engineering Framework (ATEF), including threat and exploitation analysis, protection requirements, architecture development, design trade studies, and implementation planning.
• Systems Engineering: Define and decompose program protection and anti-tamper requirements into system, subsystem, hardware, and software requirements while maintaining traceability through design implementation and verification.
• Architecture & Integration: Collaborate with systems and platform engineering teams to integrate protection measures across aircraft, mission systems, embedded computing, ground control systems, and supporting equipment.
• Technical Planning: Lead technical development of CPI assessments, Program Protection Implementation Plans (PPIP), Anti-Tamper Plans, protection trade studies, and associated engineering documentation.
• Risk & Trade Analysis: Evaluate protection alternatives based on technical effectiveness, implementation feasibility, cost, system performance, integration complexity, and residual risk.
• Verification & Validation: Develop protection verification criteria and support laboratory evaluations, integration testing, and assessments to demonstrate the effectiveness of implemented protection measures.
• Technical Leadership: Provide subject-matter expertise during SRR, PDR, CDR, and other engineering milestones. Coordinate with Government program protection authorities, suppliers, and internal engineering teams to resolve technical risks and mature protection designs.

• - Bachelor's degree in Systems Engineering, Electrical Engineering, Computer Engineering, Computer Science, Cybersecurity, or a related technical field.
• 10+ years of relevant engineering experience in aerospace, defense, embedded systems, systems security engineering, or mission-critical technologies.
• Demonstrated experience in program protection, anti-tamper engineering, critical technology protection, or related systems security engineering disciplines.
• Experience developing system security architectures, technical requirements, engineering design artifacts, and protection implementation approaches.
• Experience with CPI assessments, threat modeling, vulnerability analysis, exploitation risk assessments, or protection trade studies.
• Strong understanding of hardware, firmware, embedded software, and system integration considerations associated with protecting critical technologies.
• protecting critical technologies.
• Experience with systems engineering processes, requirements decomposition, technical risk management, and verification activities.
• Strong technical leadership, analytical, communication, and cross-functional collaboration skills.
• Ability to obtain and maintain a U.S. Government security clearance and required program access.

• - Direct experience designing, implementing, or verifying anti-tamper protections for military aircraft, weapon systems, autonomous platforms, or embedded mission systems.
• Experience applying the DoD Anti-Tamper Engineering Framework (ATEF) and CPI Horizontal Protection Guide (HPG) to program protection assessments, engineering design, and technical implementation.
• Experience developing Program Protection Plans, Program Protection Implementation Plans, Anti-Tamper Plans, or CPI assessments for DoD programs.
• Familiarity with DoDI 5200.39, DoDD 5200.47E, DoDI 5200.44, NIST SP 800-160, and applicable DoD program protection and systems security engineering guidance.
• Experience with embedded protection technologies, including secure boot, hardware roots of trust, tamper detection and response, secure storage, software protection, and hardware or firmware assurance.
• Experience working with microelectronics, FPGAs, mission computers, or other critical embedded technologies.
• Familiarity with model-based systems engineering (MBSE), SysML, Cameo Systems Modeler, DOORS, and requirements traceability.
• Understanding of supply chain risk management, trusted systems, defense exportability, and technology release considerations.
• Experience coordinating with Government program protection organizations, anti-tamper authorities, and defense industry partners.
• Active Secret or Top Secret clearance; SAP eligibility or prior SAP experience preferred.

#LE

Full-time regular employee offer package

Pay within range listed + Bonus + Benefits + Equity

Temporary employee offer package

Pay within range listed above + temporary benefits package (applicable after 60 days of employment)

Salary compensation is influenced by a wide array of factors including but not limited to skill set, level of experience, licenses and certifications, and specific work location. All offers are contingent on a cleared background and possible reference check. Military fellows and part-time employees are not eligible for benefits. Please speak to your talent acquisition representative for more information.

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Shield AI is a venture-backed defense-tech company with the mission of protecting service members and civilians with intelligent systems. Its products include Hivemind autonomy software, V-BAT and X-BAT aircraft, and Aechelon simulation and synthetic reality technologies. With offices and facilities across the U.S., Europe, the Middle East, and Asia-Pacific, Shield AI’s technology actively supports operations worldwide. For more information, visit www.shield.ai https://shield.ai/.

Follow Shield AI on LinkedIn https://www.linkedin.com/company/shield-ai, X https://x.com/shieldaitech, Instagram https://www.instagram.com/shield_ai, and YouTube https://www.youtube.com/@Shield_AI.

Comp band reflects min for standard range and max for Seattle range.

Job Description