Senior Software Security Engineer – Pod Lead

Senior Software Security Engineer – Pod Lead

Role type: Short-term contract (3 months)
Start: Immediate
Positions: 13
Commitment: 40 hours per week, including 4 hours of overlap with PST
Rate: Maximum $20/hour

Role overview

Lead a team of trainers developing high-quality training and evaluation tasks for frontier AI coding models. Convert real-world open-source vulnerabilities—including CVEs, security advisories, and bug reports—into Harbor-format audit-and-patch tasks across multiple programming languages. The role combines security research, vulnerability reproduction, benchmark development, automated testing, and technical review.

Responsibilities

• Plan batch deliveries, assign work across pod members, and track throughput against targets.
• Monitor progress, identify bottlenecks, and keep tasks moving through production on schedule.
• Lead weekly client reporting, communicate status, and raise delivery risks early.
• Collaborate with the client to clarify requirements and align on scope, volume, and difficulty.
• Review completed tasks for quality, security, reproducibility, and evaluation standards.
• Calibrate pod leads and trainers on CWE classification, verifier robustness, task difficulty, and acceptance criteria.
• Forecast staffing needs, initiate hiring and onboarding, and maintain documentation of plans, risks, quality, throughput, and staffing.
• Perform production tasks when workload is high.

Requirements

• 6+ years of professional software engineering experience.
• Expert proficiency in at least one of Python, JavaScript/TypeScript, Java, C/C++, C#, Go, Rust, Ruby, PHP, Kotlin, or Swift.
• Strong understanding of software security concepts, including CWE, CVE, and OWASP Top 10.
• Ability to reproduce vulnerabilities and write proof-of-vulnerability tests.
• Hands-on experience with sanitizers, fuzzers, and static-analysis tools such as CodeQL or Semgrep.
• Strong proficiency with Git, Linux, Bash, and Docker.
• Excellent technical writing and documentation skills.
• Ability to work independently in a fully remote, research-oriented environment.
• Sound judgment in evaluating verifier robustness and AI patches; clear communication and some mentoring experience.
• Proven experience on this project or equivalent security-dataset work.

Engagement and process

Freelance contractor assignment for 3 months, with no medical benefits or paid leave. The evaluation process includes a technical/delivery interview.