Lead Vulnerability Researcher

Overview Opportunity

Two Six Technologies is actively seeking a Lead Vulnerability Researcher to join our Communication Systems team in Arlington, Virginia. The team is composed of intellectual individuals, passionate about software and firmware reverse engineering to uncover vulnerabilities in wireless and embedded communications systems. The team is growing and looking for someone with a cybersecurity research background who has an understanding on how to lead task execution, discover security weaknesses, and develop innovative proof-of-concept exploits on complex, real-world targets. If you are actively using IDA Pro, Binary Ninja, Ghidra, Python, and C/C++, the team wants to talk to you!

What You Will Do

• Lead the technical planning, task prioritization, and schedule management for a group of reverse engineering and vulnerability research assignments supporting mission-critical government programs.
• Reverse engineer wireless and embedded communications systems to identify security weaknesses, assess their operational impact, and analyze firmware, software protections, and network protocols.
• Develop maintainable proof-of-concept exploits for discovered vulnerabilities following DevOps best practices, while creating and refining custom binary analysis and disassembly tools.
• Work autonomously with latitude for independent judgment, providing technical direction, guidance, and task-level mentorship to CNO developers and team members in a fast-paced environment.
• Support business development and program growth by contributing ideas, technical solutions, and content to proposal development efforts.

What You Will Need (Basic Qualifications)

• Bachelor’s (or higher) degree in Computer Science, Computer/Electrical Engineering, or a related field (or equivalent practical experience).
• Extensive experience with programming/scripting languages in C/C++, Python, and Linux command-line environments, with a demonstrated track record of providing thorough solutions to a wide range of difficult technical problems.
• Proven capability in leading technical task execution, managing schedule priorities, and providing technical direction and guidance to team members.
• Extensive hands-on experience in software/firmware reverse engineering and vulnerability research using industry tools such as IDA Pro, Binary Ninja, or Ghidra.
• Applied domain expertise in one or more core areas: firmware analysis (ARM, MIPS, PowerPC, RTOS), firmware rehosting/emulation (QEMU), fuzzing and exploit development, binary obfuscation/anti-analysis techniques, wireless protocol/RF signal analysis, or fault injection frameworks.

Nice to Have (Preferred)

• Experience contributing technical content, solutions, and ideas to proposal and business development efforts.
• Experience scripting with the Binary Ninja API or Ghidra plugin framework, and embedded software development in C/C++ for RTOS or Linux environments.
• In-depth knowledge of cryptographic security, secure boot mechanisms, side-channel analysis, and defeating modern exploit mitigations (ASLR, DEP, Stack Canaries).
• Hands-on experience working with hardware debugging tools (JTAG/SWD), software-defined radio (SDR) frameworks, digital signal processing, or client-facing technical demonstrations.

Clearance Requirement

• Active U.S. Security Clearance at the Top Secret level with the ability to obtain and maintain TS/SCI.

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