Research Engineer

Northeastern University•Boston, MA

9d•Onsite

About The Position

The Research Engineer will help build SPHERE, the Security and Privacy Heterogeneous Environment for Reproducible Experimentation, a newly funded National Science Foundation mid-scale research infrastructure developed by the University of Southern California Information Sciences Institute and Northeastern University’s Khoury College of Computer Sciences. SPHERE will provide access to varied hardware, software, and other resources for cybersecurity and privacy research, connected through a user-configurable network substrate and protected by security policies tailored to these research needs. At Northeastern, the work focuses on developing an Internet of Things (IoT) device testbed. The goal is to create a large, remotely accessible testbed containing samples of IoT devices from multiple categories and manufacturers, such as smart speakers, televisions, and cameras. The testbed will provide programming interfaces for interacting with devices through physical access, companion applications, and voice access. It will also include tools for capturing device network traffic, securely storing data, integrating with the broader SPHERE infrastructure, and supporting automated, repeatable experiments at scale. This is an on-site research position at Northeastern University’s Boston campus. The role involves developing and maintaining SPHERE software, supporting project coordination and reporting, and learning technologies and development tools used by SPHERE.

Requirements

Bachelor’s degree in Computer Science or a closely related area; this requirement may be waived based on relevant software development work experience.
Fluency in at least one programming language.
Experience with Linux and software development tools such as Git.
Resourcefulness and initiative.
Ability to work independently and collaboratively as part of a team.

Nice To Haves

Experience or interest in system or network administration, the Internet of Things, and/or cybersecurity.

Responsibilities

Design, implement, test, document, and maintain SPHERE software.
Prepare project documentation and periodic reports.
Coordinate with project partners.
Prepare and present testing demonstrations.
Acquire and broaden knowledge of the technologies and development tools used by SPHERE.