Junior Cybersecurity Scientist
Riverside Research is an independent National Security Nonprofit dedicated to research and development in the national interest. We provide high-end technical services, research and development, and prototype solutions to some of the country’s most challenging technical problems. All Riverside Research opportunities require U.S. Citizenship.
About the role
The Junior Cybersecurity Scientist will support offensive security and threat emulation efforts by reverse-engineering hardware and software systems, identifying vulnerabilities, and developing proof-of-concept exploits. The role involves applying realistic penetration testing techniques across diverse attack surfaces, analyzing and modeling adversary threats, and building tools to enable reverse engineering and automated vulnerability discovery. You will work closely with a multidisciplinary team to debug complex systems, document findings, and communicate technical insights that strengthen overall security posture.
Responsibilities
- Reverse-engineer hardware and/or software systems and develop proof-of-concept capabilities exploiting their vulnerabilities
- Apply realistic penetration testing techniques toward a variety of targets
- Analyze and model threats based on various attack surfaces
- Build tools and capabilities to facilitate reverse engineering or automated vulnerability discovery
- Collaborate in a team environment to reverse engineer, debug, analyze and report findings
Requirements
- Bachelors degree in a relevant field and two years of experience
- Competent use of a Linux Environment
- High-level scripting languages, such as Python
- Low-level languages, such as Rust, C, or Assembly
- GDB or another debugger
- Foundational knowledge of exploit development (buffer overflows, use-after-free, ROP, etc.)
- Computing architecture design, instruction set architectures, and operating system internals
- Memory management (virtual memory, heap/stack)
- Kernel Programming / System Calls
Skills
- Experience with binary reverse engineering tools (Binwalk, Ghidra, IDA Pro, Radare2, etc.)
- Embedded systems development & debugging
- JTAG/UART debugging
Pay
This represents the typical compensation range for this position based on experience, location and other factors.