Junior Linux Kernel Engineer Jobs in Bethesda, MD

Job Title: Software Engineer – Hardened Android Platform

Job Description

This role focuses on building and owning a hardened, custom Android platform deployed across managed vehicle device fleets. You will take end-to-end responsibility for custom OS builds, over-the-air (OTA) delivery, kernel maintenance, device security, and fleet management infrastructure. As a founding platform engineer, you will define the architecture, establish technical standards, and provide leadership as the organization scales, working closely with a growing team of engineers in a high-impact, security-focused environment.

Responsibilities

• Maintain and extend a custom Android Open Source Project (AOSP)-derived platform build, including device trees, vendor partitions, hardware abstraction layer (HAL) customizations, and system image signing.
• Design and operate reproducible build pipelines using CI/CD automation, ensuring secure management of release keys throughout the build and deployment lifecycle.
• Build an end-to-end OTA update system engineered for reliability in degraded or constrained environments, including phased rollout, rollback capabilities, and fault-tolerant installation processes.
• Build, patch, and maintain custom Linux kernel images for the target platform, including kernel module development, integration of upstream security patches, and ongoing performance and stability improvements.
• Own the secure boot chain for the platform, including Android Verified Boot (AVB) key infrastructure, bootloader security, SELinux policy authoring, and code signing with robust key lifecycle management.
• Implement encryption, remote wipe, tamper detection, and rollback protection mechanisms appropriate for high-assurance and security-sensitive environments.
• Evaluate and integrate cryptographic modules that align with U.S. government cybersecurity frameworks and standards, ensuring compliance and strong security posture.
• Architect and implement a comprehensive device management strategy, including enrollment, provisioning, policy enforcement, health monitoring, and compliance reporting across large-scale fleets.
• Collaborate with reverse engineers and other platform and security engineers to enhance system resilience, harden the platform, and respond to emerging threats.
• Contribute to platform architecture decisions, documentation, and best practices that support long-term scalability and maintainability of the fleet management infrastructure.

Essential Skills

• Bachelor’s degree in an engineering discipline or a closely related technical field.
• Approximately 7 or more years of software engineering experience focused on low-level platform development, ideally on an Android-based platform.
• Strong proficiency in C and C++ for systems and kernel-level development.
• Proficiency in Python and Shell scripting for automation, tooling, and build pipelines.
• Working knowledge of Java and Kotlin for Android framework-level modifications and system integration work.
• Hands-on Linux kernel development experience, including building from source, kernel module development, device tree configuration, and debugging kernel-level issues.
• Experience working with Linux and Android environments in production or operational settings.
• Experience managing device fleets at scale in real-world operational environments, including monitoring, updates, and policy enforcement.
• Eligibility to obtain a U.S. Secret Clearance
• Ability to design and maintain CI/CD-based build pipelines with secure key management and reproducible builds.

Additional Skills & Qualifications

• Experience with Android system-level development, focusing on platform and OS internals rather than application development.
• Experience building, modifying, and flashing custom Android system images from AOSP or comparable open-source bases.
• Hands-on experience with Android Verified Boot, bootloader security, and the secure boot chain for embedded or vehicle platforms.
• Familiarity with Android OTA internals, including update mechanisms, A/B partitioning, payload generation, and the boot control HAL.
• Strong security engineering fundamentals, including public key infrastructure (PKI), code signing, chain of trust, full-disk and file-based encryption (FDE/FBE), and key management practices.
• Experience working with or aligning to U.S. government cybersecurity frameworks and standards.
• Connected vehicle, embedded systems, or other safety- and security-critical domains is beneficial.
• Comfort collaborating with reverse engineers and security specialists in a multidisciplinary team environment.
• Ability to define technical standards and architectural patterns for a new platform and guide their adoption across the engineering organization.

Work Environment

You will join a small, fast-growing engineering team of around 20 people, with the vast majority of engineers working on site and many specializing in reverse engineering and security-focused development. Approximately 15 engineers are based in a primary office in Sterling, creating a highly collaborative environment with close interaction between platform, security, and reverse engineering teams. The role can be hybrid or remote for the right candidate, offering flexibility in work location while still engaging deeply with on-site team members and infrastructure. You will work with modern Linux and Android tooling, CI/CD pipelines, and security technologies in a setting focused on connected vehicle cybersecurity and fleet-scale deployments. The culture emphasizes technical excellence, ownership of complex systems, and building robust, secure platforms for demanding operational environments.

This is a Contract to Hire position based out of Dulles, VA.

The pay range for this position is $84.00 - $112.00/hr.

Individual compensation offered for this position within this range will depend on many factors, including qualifications, skills, relevant experience, job knowledge, geographic location, internal equity, and other pertinent job-related factors.

Eligibility requirements apply to some benefits and may depend on your job classification and length of employment. Benefits are subject to change and may be subject to specific elections, plan, or program terms. If eligible, the benefits available for this temporary role may include the following: • Medical, dental & vision • Critical Illness, Accident, and Hospital • 401(k) Retirement Plan – Pre-tax and Roth post-tax contributions available • Life Insurance (Voluntary Life & AD&D for the employee and dependents) • Short and long-term disability • Health Spending Account (HSA) • Transportation benefits • Employee Assistance Program • Time Off/Leave (PTO, Vacation or Sick Leave)

This is a fully onsite position in Dulles,VA.

This position is anticipated to close on Sep 7, 2026.

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