Software Engineer (Cybersecurity) at Mercor

Cybersecurity Software Engineer | $60–70/hr | Worldwide Remote | Part-Time Contract

Mercor is seeking experienced Software Engineers with a specialization in cybersecurity to support high-impact AI research collaborations. In this role, you'll help build training datasets that enhance AI model reasoning and problem-solving on real-world coding and security tasks.

About the Project

You'll work on SWE-bench–style tasks derived from real open-source repositories, annotating frontier-model trajectories to reconstruct and document the reasoning process behind AI problem-solving. This is a unique opportunity to directly shape the next generation of intelligent systems.

Key Responsibilities

• Design benchmark tasks by identifying vulnerability classes (type, subtype, and difficulty) and validating intended exploit behavior
• Create or validate small, runnable codebases that include ingestion and prompt/tool usage where trust boundaries are violated
• Validate attacks via exploit scripts and clearly document unsafe behaviors
• Verify patch implementations that prevent exploits and confirm fix effectiveness
• Produce detailed task metadata including severity mapping, file/line locations, impact analysis, remediation summaries, and references
• Conduct quality control reviews to ensure paths resolve correctly, line ranges are accurate, labels are not leaked, and fixes block exploits

Ideal Qualifications

• 2+ years of software engineering experience with a focus on application security, vulnerability research, or secure software development
• Bachelor's degree in Software Engineering, Computer Science, or a related field (advanced degree preferred)
• Strong proficiency in Python, JavaScript, TypeScript, or other common open-source languages
• Familiarity with version control workflows including Git, pull requests, and issue tracking
• Ability to articulate technical reasoning in clear, structured written communication

Project Details

• Start Date: Immediate
• Duration: 1–2 months
• Commitment: Part-time, 15–25 hours/week (flexibility up to 40 hours/week)

How to Apply

1. Upload your resume
2. Complete a short 15-minute AI-powered conversational interview
3. Receive follow-up communication within a few days with next steps

Apply today and leverage your cybersecurity expertise to help build the future of AI-driven systems.