About the Job:
This is a unique opportunity to utilize your software engineering and cryptography skills to build and maintain the security foundation that enables Ubuntu and its users to operate securely while remaining compliant with international information security standards such as FIPS 140-3 and Common Criteria. You will leverage your applied cryptography, Linux Security, and coding skills to enhance the Ubuntu distribution and collaborate with organizations like DISA and CIS to draft and implement security hardening benchmarks.
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As a member of the Security Hardening team, you will develop automation tooling to audit deployed systems for DISA-STIG and CIS benchmark compliance. Engagement with internal and external stakeholders will help identify gaps in our frameworks and develop solutions to address these challenges. This role offers the opportunity to influence team and security culture, facilitate technical delivery, and drive team direction and execution. Collaborating closely with Canonical's kernel team and the wider engineering organization will allow you to drive features impacting all Ubuntu users.
Day-to-Day Responsibilities:
- Collaborate with engineers in the Security Hardening team to achieve and retain various security certifications.
- Extend and enhance Linux cryptographic components (OpenSSL, Libgcrypt, GnuTLS, etc.) with necessary features and functionality for FIPS and CC certification.
- Work with external security consultants to test and validate kernel and crypto module components.
- Partner with external organizations to develop security hardening benchmarks and automate audit and remediation for Ubuntu.
- Contribute to Ubuntu mainline and upstream projects to land solutions and benefit the community.
- Communicate and collaborate effectively within and outside Canonical to improve security posture and deliver quality solutions on schedule.
What We Are Looking For:
- Hands-on experience with low-level Linux cryptography APIs and debugging.
- Strong software engineering fundamentals, including experience with C development.
- Experience with Linux system administration and shell scripting.
- Knowledge of security and cryptography fundamentals, with experience writing secure code and implementing best practices.
- Significant development experience working with open-source libraries.
- Excellent verbal and written communication skills to facilitate efficient collaboration in a remote environment.
Additional Skills That You Might Also Bring:
- Prior experience working on FIPS/Common Criteria certified products and knowledge of the underlying standards.
- Familiarity with DISA-STIG or CIS benchmarks, including related audit and remediation tooling (e.g., Compliance as Code).
- Experience working directly with the Linux Kernel.
- Prior experience with Python, OVAL (Open Vulnerability Assessment Language), and Ansible.
- A history of contributions to open-source projects.
What We Offer You:
- Competitive compensation shaped by geographical location, experience, and performance.
- Performance-driven annual bonus and regular compensation reviews.
- Distributed work environment with opportunities for in-person team sprints.
- Personal learning and development budget of USD 2,000 per year.
- Annual holiday leave and additional benefits reflecting our values.
- Maternity and paternity leave, Employee Assistance Programme.
- Opportunities to travel to new locations for team meetings and events.
About Canonical:
Canonical is a pioneering tech firm at the forefront of the global move to open source, publishing Ubuntu, a critical open-source project and platform for AI, IoT, and the cloud. We aim for excellence and consider diverse experiences and perspectives crucial to creating a better work environment and better products.
