Principal Software Developer (System Security)

Nightwing•Huntsville, AL

About The Position

Join Nightwing's Products team to develop and enhance multi-layered cyber resiliency solutions that protect mission-critical systems. The software-based products provide OS-level protections for Windows, Linux, and VxWorks, including capabilities that secure execution environments, protect applications and data at rest and during execution, and support cyber detection and response. The role focuses on strengthening security products designed to defend against adversaries who have gained escalated privileges and bypassed traditional security controls. This position is suited to an experienced systems programmer interested in operating system internals and low-level security engineering. Kernel development experience is not required at the outset; the role includes learning kernel programming and driver development with mentorship from senior engineers. The work supports Department of Defense weapon systems and platforms and includes collaboration with a team developing cyber resiliency across hardware, firmware, software, and network layers. Applicants must be U.S. citizens and meet the requirements to obtain and maintain a Secret government security clearance. Qualified applicants may be subject to a security investigation and must meet minimum qualifications for access to classified information.

Requirements

At least 8 years of professional software development experience in systems-level programming.
Expert-level C/C++ skills, including a deep understanding of memory management, pointers, and low-level programming concepts.
Strong OS-level systems programming experience and an understanding of how operating systems work under the hood.
Experience debugging complex systems issues with tools such as gdb, WinDbg, Visual Studio Debugger, or similar.
Proficiency with Git in a team environment.
Ability to learn independently, demonstrated by a track record of mastering new technical domains.
A university degree or equivalent experience and at least 8 years of relevant experience, or an advanced degree in a related field and at least 5 years of experience.
Must be a U.S. citizen and meet requirements to obtain and maintain a Secret government security clearance.

Nice To Haves

Experience with kernel modules, device drivers, system services, OS internals projects, or security tools.
Experience with security-sensitive code, such as anti-malware, EDR, security monitoring, or exploit mitigation.
Understanding of operating system concepts, including process and thread management, memory management, I/O systems, and interrupt handling.
Assembly language experience with x86_64 or ARM, including reading and debugging at the instruction level.
Experience with scripting languages such as Python or Batch for automation and testing.
Familiarity with security concepts such as cryptography, threat modeling, and attack surfaces.
Knowledge of boot processes, firmware, or hardware security, including TPM, Secure Boot, or UEFI.
Understanding of the Linux Driver Model and/or Windows driver models (WDM/WDF/WDK), including conceptual familiarity.

Responsibilities

Develop and enhance OS-level security features that operate deep within the operating system.
Build detection and response mechanisms to counter advanced persistent threats.
Implement cryptographic binding of sensitive software to trusted hardware.
Create system lockdown capabilities that minimize attack surface.
Integrate with Hardware Root of Trust (HRoT) solutions.
Protect systems against sophisticated attacks from well-funded adversaries.
Support Windows, Linux, and VxWorks platforms.
Learn kernel programming and driver development on the job with mentorship from senior engineers.