Skip to content

Forward Deployed Security Engineer

OpenAI

USremote country$293k-$385k/yrPosted May 21, 2026

At a glance

Highlights

  • Hybrid work model
  • Relocation assistance
  • Strategic public‑sector customers

Heads up

  • On-site work 3 days per week
  • Travel to customer sites required
  • Active US security clearance required

Why this role might suit you

The role suits engineers with 5+ years of security experience who enjoy embedding with customers, shaping secure deployments, and operating in a hybrid environment supporting high‑impact public‑sector projects.

Skills

pythongolangazureawskubernetesterraformsecurity-assessmentthreat-monitoringencryptionaccess-controlsauthenticationnetwork-securityendpoint-detection-responsered-teampenetration-testingsecurity-operationsinfrastructure-securityapplication-securitydatacenter-securitysystems-engineering

About the role

About the Team

Security is at the foundation of OpenAI’s mission to ensure that artificial general intelligence benefits all of humanity. The Security team protects OpenAI’s technology, people, and products. We are technical in what we build but are operational in how we do our work, and are committed to supporting all products and research at OpenAI. Our Security team tenets include: prioritizing for impact, enabling researchers, preparing for future transformative technologies, and engaging a robust security culture.

About the Role

Our technologies support some of the most important and impactful work in the world, including our strategic and high-impact customers in the public sector. As a Forward Deployed Security Engineer (FDSecE) you will be responsible for securing these novel applications of OpenAI’s technology. We’re looking for motivated, tenacious, and curious people who will work closely with engineering teams to ensure our infrastructure deployments are highly secure against our adversaries.

As an FDSecE, you will embed directly throughout the lifecycle, working on-site and being hands-on to ensure the overall security of these deployments from design to production and through ongoing operations.

This role is preferred to be based in Washington DC but may consider remote work. We use a hybrid work model of 3 days in the office per week and offer relocation assistance to new employees. Travel to and working from customer sites is required for this role.

In this role, you will:

- Deeply embed with our most strategic public sector customers to implement and maintain robust security controls.

- Be a design and technical thought partner by leveraging security expertise on protective controls including access controls, authentication, encryption, network, and system security.

- Collaborate closely with teammates, cross-functional teams, customers, and service providers to achieve security and compliance goals.

- Ensure continuity of critical security and monitoring controls through routine security assessments, threat monitoring, and security validation exercises.

You might thrive in this role if you have:

- An active US security clearance.

- 5+ years of security engineering experience, with an emphasis on infrastructure security, application security, network security, datacenter security, and systems engineering.

- Familiarity with deployment models, including to cloud platforms (Azure, AWS) and the underlying infrastructure primitives (Kubernetes, Terraform)

- Proficiency in programming languages such as Python, Golang, or similar.

- A proven track record of developing high-quality, scalable, and secure infrastructure.

- Experience with security operations including insider threat monitoring, network/endpoint detection and response, or red team or penetration testing operations.

- Comprehensive knowledge of modern adversary tactics, techniques, and procedures.

- The ability to work collaboratively and effectively in a cross-functional team environment.

- Thrive in dynamic environments and can navigate ambiguity with ease.

About OpenAI

OpenAI is an AI research and deployment company dedicated to ensuring that general-purpose artificial intelligence benefits all of humanity. We push the boundaries of the capabilities of AI systems and seek to safely deploy them to the world through our products. AI is an extremely powerful tool that must be created with safety and human needs at its core, and to achieve our mission, we must encompass and value the many different perspectives, voices, and experiences that form the full spectrum of humanity.

To notify OpenAI that you believe this job posting is non-compliant, please submit a report through this form https://form.asana.com/?d=57018692298241&k=5MqR40fZd7jlxVUh5J-UeA. No response will be provided to inquiries unrelated to job posting compliance.

We are committed to providing reasonable accommodations to applicants with disabilities, and requests can be made via this link https://form.asana.com/?k=bQ7w9h3iexRlicUdWRiwvg&d=57018692298241.

OpenAI Global Applicant Privacy Policy https://cdn.openai.com/policies/global-employee-and-contractor-privacy-policy.pdf

At OpenAI, we believe artificial intelligence has the potential to help people solve immense global challenges, and we want the upside of AI to be widely shared. Join us in shaping the future of technology.

Compensation

This Security Engineer role pays $293k-$385k/yr. Within typical range for security engineer roles in United States.

Questions about this role

  • How do I apply to this Forward Deployed Security Engineer role at OpenAI?

    Click "Apply with AI Applyd" above. We auto-fill the application from your resume and answer screening questions in seconds. No copy and paste, no juggling tabs.

  • What's the typical salary for Security Engineer in United States?

    Compensation for Security Engineer roles in United States varies widely by seniority, employer size, and remote vs onsite arrangement. Check the salary range on this listing when published, or browse our Security Engineer hub for United States medians across recent openings.

  • How fast does AI Applyd auto-apply?

    Most applications complete in under 90 seconds. You can track the status in your dashboard and watch the screenshot proof land the moment the application submits.

  • What ATS does OpenAI use?

    AI Applyd supports Greenhouse, Lever, Ashby, Workday, iCIMS, SmartRecruiters, LinkedIn Easy Apply, and most other ATS platforms. If we can submit through the platform, we do.

Want AI Applyd to auto-apply to roles like this?

We tailor your resume per posting, fill the forms, and track replies for you.