Location: Remote position. Occasional travel to our office in Golden, Colorado is required.
About Pentera
Pentera is the global leader in Automated Security Validation, helping organizations worldwide safely emulate real-world attacker behavior and uncover their true security gaps across on-prem, cloud, and hybrid environments. With more than 1,200 customers in over 50 countries and a rapidly growing global team, Pentera is shaping how modern enterprises continuously validate their security posture.
About the Role
We are looking for a Cyber Researcher to join our R&D team and play a key role in shaping how automated security validation evolves.
In this role, you will conduct deep, hands-on technical research into attacker techniques and system behaviors across operating systems, identity systems, cloud platforms, and enterprise environments. Your work will be translated into production-grade, automated attack emulations that dynamically adapt and make decisions, closely mirroring how skilled attackers operate in the real world.
This is a highly technical role that combines research, development, and applied AI, with direct impact on a real-world security product.
Responsibilities
- Conduct in-depth research into attacker techniques across Windows, Linux, identity systems, cloud environments, and external attack surfaces
- Design and develop advanced attack simulation techniques that challenge modern security controls and defensive architectures
- Translate research findings into scalable, production-ready capabilities within Pentera’s automated validation platform
- Architect and implement decision-making logic that enables dynamic attack paths and adaptive behavior during automated operations
- Develop high-quality code that powers complex attack simulations, using appropriate languages and technologies for each use case
- Collaborate closely with R&D, engineering, and product teams to integrate new research into the platform
- Mentor team members and contribute to a culture of technical excellence, curiosity, and continuous learning
- 5+ years of hands-on experience in security research, penetration testing, or adversarial security engineering
- Strong knowledge of Windows internals, operating systems, networking, and enterprise environments
- 3+ years of experience developing in Python
- Proven ability to write efficient, stealth-aware, and production-quality security-related code
- Experience with security research tools and frameworks such as Metasploit, Impacket, Nmap, Burp, or similar
- Proficiency in reverse engineering and debugging using tools such as IDA, Ghidra, WinDBG, or Radare2
- Experience working with cloud platforms such as AWS and Azure
- Ability to apply AI or machine learning concepts to decision-making, automation, or behavior modeling within complex systems
- Strong collaboration skills, adaptability, and a fast learning mindset
Preferred Qualifications
- Experience modeling attacker decision-making, attack paths, or adversarial behaviors
- Familiarity with graph-based analysis, pathfinding, or automated reasoning systems
- Hands-on experience with security product development and large-scale platforms
- Exposure to AI-driven automation, agent-based systems, or adaptive workflows
- Bachelor’s degree in Computer Science or a related technical field
Compensation:
The base salary range for this role is $180,000–$220,000, depending on experience, skills, and location. This range reflects the base compensation only. In addition, Pentera offers a comprehensive total rewards package that includes performance-based bonuses, equity opportunities, health and wellness benefits, retirement plans, and other perks designed to support long-term growth and well-being.
We are an equal opportunity employer and we are committed to building a diverse and talented workforce. We do not discriminate on the basis of race, sex, religion, colour, national origin, gender, gender identity, sexual orientation, age, marital status, veteran status, medical condition, disability, or any other class or characteristic protected by applicable law. We welcome candidates from all backgrounds to join us!
Skills Required
- 5+ years of hands-on experience in security research, penetration testing, or adversarial security engineering
- Strong knowledge of Windows internals, operating systems, networking, and enterprise environments
- 3+ years of experience developing in Python
- Proven ability to write efficient, stealth-aware, and production-quality security-related code
- Experience with security research tools and frameworks such as Metasploit, Impacket, Nmap, Burp, or similar
- Proficiency in reverse engineering and debugging using tools such as IDA, Ghidra, WinDBG, or Radare2
- Experience working with cloud platforms such as AWS and Azure
- Ability to apply AI or machine learning concepts to decision-making, automation, or behavior modeling within complex systems
Pentera Compensation & Benefits Highlights
The following summarizes recurring compensation and benefits themes identified from responses generated by popular LLMs to common candidate questions about Pentera and has not been reviewed or approved by Pentera.
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Fair & Transparent Compensation — Pay ranges and third-party salary snapshots are presented for multiple roles (e.g., senior backend engineering and SDR/AEs), suggesting compensation is positioned as competitive and legible by role. Aggregate compensation-and-benefits ratings are described as strong, reinforcing an overall positive pay signal.
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Retirement Support — A 401(k) with company matching is repeatedly listed as part of the package, indicating support for long-term savings. Retirement coverage is also referenced in “retirement plans” language in job-post style descriptions.
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Equity Value & Accessibility — Company equity/stock options are explicitly included in the total rewards description, indicating ownership-based compensation beyond salary. Equity is framed as part of a broader “comprehensive total rewards package,” implying it is a standard component rather than an exception.
Pentera Insights
What We Do
Pentera is the leader for Automated Security Validation, allowing every organization to test with ease the integrity of all cybersecurity layers, unfolding true, current security exposures at any moment, at any scale. As a result, thousands of security professionals and service providers worldwide use our platform to guide remediation and close security gaps before they are exploited. We are a unicorn with more than 380 employees around the globe, with over 1,000 customers in production in more than 60 countries! Pentera has won various Industry Awards, including the Frost & Sullivan “Best Practices Award for Global Breach & Attack Simulation (BAS) Market Leadership 2022 and the 2020 Gartner Cool Vendor Award. We are backed by Top tier investors such as Insight Partners, K1 Investment Management, The Blackstone Group, and AWZ. Penterians are one team with a shared mission. Become a Penterian – change the way the world does cyber!
Why Work With Us
We believe that Penetration Testing (PT), as it stands today, is obsolete. Software and algorithms can do a better job at penetration testing and help businesses continually assess and improve their cyber risks using the threat-oriented approach.
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