Hardware Security Engineer

As a Hardware Security Engineer on Cisco’s HW-CSDL efforts, you will translate hardware security evaluations into implementable design guidance and compliance requirements for product teams.

Responsibilities

• Work directly with product hardware teams to review hardware security evaluation results and provide actionable, pragmatic guidance for HW-CSDL compliance.
• Deconstruct and assess hardware architectures from the system level down to boards, ASICs/FPGAs, power/management controllers, and discrete components to identify vulnerabilities and design for resilience.
• Interpret and operationalize emerging industry and government standards into technical guidance and design requirements, including NIST SP 800-193, CNSA 2.0, EU Cyber Resilience Act, and IEEE 2883.
• Author security guidelines, reference architectures, implementation guides, and best-practice documentation for engineering teams across Cisco.
• Participate in, lead, and balance multiple parallel engagements, consulting efforts, and security initiatives across diverse product families.
• Educate and influence hardware design communities beyond STO to build a security-first approach across the product development lifecycle.

Requirements

• Bachelor’s degree in Electrical Engineering, Computer Engineering, or related technical field with 7+ years of relevant hardware design/engineering experience, or Master’s degree with 4+ years of experience.
• Background in hardware development, including reading/interpreting system-level schematics and block diagrams, component datasheets, PCB design/review, or register-level hardware documentation.
• Background in hardware security fundamentals such as Hardware Root of Trust (RoT), Secure Boot, hardware and firmware resiliency, cryptographic primitives (symmetric/asymmetric encryption, hashing, digital signatures), and secure key storage.

Technical skills and tools

• Standards and frameworks: NIST SP 800-193, CNSA 2.0, EU Cyber Resilience Act, IEEE 2883
• Security building blocks: Hardware Root of Trust (RoT), Secure Boot, TCG DICE / TPM, OCP Secure Boot
• Security analysis methods: fault injection, side-channel analysis, JTAG/debug security
• Automation and scripting: Python, Bash
• Hardware languages: Verilog, SystemVerilog
• Compliance and review support: LLM-assisted compliance checks, automated review scripts, security analysis tooling
• AI-assisted development support: LLM-assisted compliance checks for hardware security applications

Location and work model

• Research Triangle Park, NC (hybrid)

Compensation

• $132,800 - $259,100 per year

Benefits

• Health insurance (medical, dental and vision)
• 401(k) plan with a Cisco matching contribution
• Paid parental leave
• Short and long-term disability coverage
• Basic life insurance
• Restricted stock units (RSUs) eligibility (vesting following continued employment with Cisco for defined periods of time)
• 10 paid holidays per full calendar year, plus 1 floating holiday for non-exempt employees
• 1 paid day off for employee’s birthday, paid year-end holiday shutdown, and 4 paid days off for personal wellness determined by Cisco
• Non-exempt employees receive 16 days of paid vacation time per full calendar year (accrued at rate of 4.92 hours per pay period for full-time employees)
• Exempt employees participate in Cisco’s flexible vacation time off program (no defined limit on how much vacation time eligible employees may use)
• 80 hours of sick time off provided on hire date and each January 1st thereafter, and up to 80 hours of unused sick time carried forward
• Optional 10 paid days per full calendar year to volunteer
• Annual bonuses for non-sales roles (subject to Cisco’s policies)
• Performance-based incentive pay on top of base salary for employees on sales plans (subject to Cisco’s policies)

Meet the team

• The Security& Trust Organization (S) is responsible for customer data protection and compliance, corporate information protection, and government and product security.
• Security is a key concern for Cisco customers and a top investment area.

Application details

• Application window expected to close: 11/29/2026

Preferred qualifications

• Experience with AI-assisted development and automation for hardware security applications (e.g., LLM-assisted compliance checks, automated review scripts, or security analysis tooling).
• Experience with scripting (Python, Bash) and RTL design/verification (Verilog, SystemVerilog) for hardware security solutions development.
• Experience with hardware security frameworks and standards, including NIST SP 800-193, NSA CNSA 2.0, TCG DICE / TPM, OCP Secure Boot, IEEE 2883, or global cybersecurity regulations (e.g., EU CRA).
• Experience with hardware threat modeling or hardware security analysis (e.g., fault injection, side-channel analysis, JTAG/debug security).
• Experience participating in hardware security industry forums, working groups, or standards bodies.

U.S. and Canada compensation notes

• Starting salary range posted for U.S. and/or Canada: $132,800.00 to $185,100.00 (projected for new hires in U.S. and/or Canada locations, excluding incentive compensation, equity, or benefits).
• Individual pay is determined by hiring location, market conditions, job-related skillset, experience, qualifications, education, certifications, and/or training.
• For locations not listed, a recruiter can share additional compensation details during the hiring process.

State-specific full salary ranges

• New York City Metro Area: $154,900.00 - $259,100.00
• Non-Metro New York state & Washington state: $136,500.00 - $228,300.00

U.S. employees are offered benefits subject to Cisco’s plan eligibility rules; see the Cisco careers site for additional benefits and perks. Employees may be eligible to receive grants of Cisco restricted stock units, which vest following continued employment with Cisco for defined periods of time.