Principal Security Engineer

As a Principal Security Engineer, you will serve as a trusted security advisor to engineering teams and leadership, driving strategic security initiatives across complex cloud, AI, and enterprise platforms. You will lead threat modeling and architecture reviews, identify systemic security weaknesses, define reference architectures and security guidance, and partner with engineering teams to deliver durable risk reductions. You will also help shape the future of security assessment through AI-driven technologies, influencing how Microsoft scales security across regulated environments while improving developer experience and security outcomes.

Responsibilities

Partner with engineering teams to identify and mitigate security risks early in the development lifecycle through threat modeling, security design reviews, and architecture assessments for cloud and AI-powered services; Drive secure-by-design improvements by developing security guidance, reference architectures, and practical remediation strategies; Influence security outcomes across high-impact Microsoft services by working directly with engineers, architects, and product leaders; Leverage AI and automation capabilities to scale security assessments, improve risk identification, and increase security coverage; Investigate emerging technologies, cloud architectures, and AI workloads to uncover novel attack paths and security weaknesses; Champion security excellence by mentoring engineering teams, enabling self-service security capabilities, and fostering secure development practices; Contribute to the evolution of Microsoft's security assessment methodologies, tooling, and processes

Requirements

Master's Degree in Statistics, Mathematics, Computer Science, Risk Management, Cyber Security, or related field AND 4+ years experience in software development lifecycle, large scale computing, threat modeling, cyber security, or anomaly detection; OR Bachelor's Degree in Statistics, Mathematics, Computer Science, Risk Management, Cyber Security, or related field AND 6+ years experience in software development lifecycle, large scale computing, threat modeling, cyber security, or anomaly detection; OR equivalent experience; Candidates must be able to meet Microsoft, customer and/or government security screening requirements; Must pass the Microsoft Cloud background check upon hire/transfer and every two years thereafter

Nice to have

Experience leading security strategy, architecture reviews, or security programs across multiple organizations or large-scale cloud services; Experience designing or securing distributed systems, cloud platforms, APIs, identity solutions, or AI-enabled applications; Knowledge of secure software development practices, common attack techniques, security controls, and risk mitigation strategies; Proven track record identifying systemic security risks and driving organization-wide risk reduction initiatives; Experience influencing senior engineering leadership and shaping security standards, guidance, or reference architectures