System Security Engineer

Johns Hopkins Applied Physics Laboratory (APL) seeks a System Security Engineer to secure complex systems that support national security, space exploration, and critical health technologies. You will design and implement secure architectures, perform threat modeling and risk assessments, and integrate controls aligned with NIST and DoD frameworks. Working in APL's collaborative, mission-driven culture, you'll partner with leading experts to solve real-world security challenges while advancing your skills through research, innovation, and continuous learning opportunities.

Responsibilities

• Design and implement secure system architectures for mission-critical research and national security programs.
• Conduct threat modeling, risk assessments, and vulnerability analyses of enterprise and embedded systems.
• Implement and manage security controls, monitoring, and incident response processes.
• Ensure compliance with NIST, Do
• D, and other relevant cybersecurity frameworks and standards.
• Collaborate with multidisciplinary teams to integrate security into system design and lifecycle.
• Develop security documentation, including plans, procedures, and accreditation artifacts.
• Perform security testing, code and configuration reviews, and penetration-style assessments.
• Support continuous improvement of security tools, automation, and best practices across APL programs.

Required Skills

• System security architecture
• Network security engineering
• NIST RMF and related frameworks
• Vulnerability assessment and management
• Security monitoring and incident response
• Secure configuration and hardening (OS, network, cloud)
• Scripting/automation (e.g., Python, Power
• Shell)
• Security testing and validation
• Identity and access management
• Documentation and security compliance reporting