Microsoft

Senior Software Engineer

Microsoft$119K — $234K *
Information Technology
Less than 5 years of experience
Job Overview by Ladders

Qualifications

  • Bachelor's Degree in Computer Science or related field AND 4+ years engineering experience in languages like C, C++, C#, Java, JavaScript, or Python.
  • Master's Degree in Computer Science with 6+ years of engineering experience; or Bachelor’s with 8+ years.
  • 5+ years designing and operating production software systems.
  • Proficient in modern programming languages such as C#, C++, Go, Rust, or Python.
  • Experience with AI security challenges including prompt injection and memory poisoning.

Responsibilities

  • Lead design and implementation of AI threat detection systems.
  • Drive development of classifiers and risk assessment systems for Copilot.
  • Conduct threat modeling and identify security gaps in AI workflows.
  • Partner with product teams to translate security needs into solutions.
  • Investigate emerging attack techniques and develop defenses.
  • Perform root cause analysis following security incidents.
  • Influence architectural decisions that enhance platform security.

Benefits

  • Eligibility for Microsoft Cloud Background Check every two years.
  • Opportunity to work on cutting-edge AI security technology.
  • Access to rich technical resources and collaborative environments.
  • Mentoring opportunities and knowledge sharing in a diverse team.
  • Involvement in strategic planning for AI security investments.
Full Job Description
Responsibilities

  • Lead the design and implementation of AI threat detection systems that identify and mitigate threats such as prompt injection, memory poisoning, data exfiltration, agentic workflow abuse, and emerging adversarial attacks.
  • Drive the development of security services, classifiers, evaluation frameworks, telemetry pipelines, and risk assessment systems used to measure and improve Copilot security posture.
  • Conduct threat modeling exercises and identify security gaps across AI workflows, tools, orchestration layers, and platform integrations.
  • Partner with product teams to translate security requirements into scalable engineering solutions and platform capabilities.
  • Investigate emerging attack techniques and develop durable defenses that can be adopted across multiple Copilot experiences.
  • Drive root cause analysis and technical remediation efforts following security incidents.
  • Influence architectural decisions and engineering investments that improve platform security, resilience, and trustworthiness.
  • Lead design reviews and mentor engineers through technical guidance, code reviews, and knowledge sharing.
  • Contribute to technical strategy and roadmap planning for key AI security investments.
  • Participate in on-call rotations and lead investigations during complex security events impacting production systems.


Qualifications

Required Qualifications:

  • Bachelor's Degree in Computer Science or related technical field AND 4+ years technical engineering experience with coding in languages including, but not limited to, C, C++, C#, Java, JavaScript, or Python
    • OR equivalent experience.


Other Requirements:

Ability to meet Microsoft, customer and/or government security screening requirements are required for this role. These requirements include but are not limited to the following specialized security screenings:
  • Microsoft Cloud Background Check: This position will be required to pass the Microsoft Cloud background check upon hire/transfer and every two years thereafter.


Preferred Qualifications:
  • Master's Degree in Computer Science or related technical field AND 6+ years technical engineering experience with coding in languages including, but not limited to, C, C++, C#, Java, JavaScript, or Python
    • OR Bachelor's Degree in Computer Science or related technical field AND 8+ years technical engineering experience with coding in languages including, but not limited to, C, C++, C#, Java, JavaScript, or Python
    • OR equivalent experience.
  • 5+ years of experience designing, building, and operating production software systems.
  • Software engineering fundamentals and proficiency in one or more modern programming languages such as C#, C++, Go, Rust, Python, or TypeScript.
  • Experience designing distributed systems, cloud-native services, or platform infrastructure at scale.
  • Experience identifying, analyzing, or mitigating security risks in production environments.
  • Understanding of modern AI security challenges, including prompt injection, indirect prompt attacks, memory poisoning, data exfiltration, model misuse, and agentic system risks.
  • Ability to drive technical initiatives across multiple teams and influence engineering decisions without direct authority.
  • Problem-solving and communication skills, including the ability to explain technical tradeoffs to engineers, product teams, and leadership.
  • Ability to meet Microsoft, customer, and government security screening requirements.
  • Experience building security detection systems, reputation systems, anomaly detection platforms, threat intelligence systems, abuse prevention technologies, or Trust & Safety systems.
  • Experience with large language models, AI systems, machine learning infrastructure, or evaluation frameworks.
  • Experience performing threat modeling, security reviews, red teaming, adversarial testing, or incident response.
  • Familiarity with AI safety, AI security research, or emerging attack and defense techniques.
  • Contributions to security tooling, patents, publications, open-source projects, or recognized technical leadership in security-related domains.

#AISecurity #Copilot #SecurityEngineering #M365Core

Software Engineering IC4 - The typical base pay range for this role across the U.S. is USD $119,800 - $234,700 per year. There is a different range applicable to specific work locations, within the San Francisco Bay area and New York City metropolitan area, and the base pay range for this role in those locations is USD $160,200 - $261,000 per year.

Certain roles may be eligible for benefits and other compensation. Find additional benefits and pay information here:
https://careers.microsoft.com/us/en/us-corporate-pay

This position will be open for a minimum of 5 days, with applications accepted on an ongoing basis until the position is filled.

About Microsoft

Microsoft is an American multinational corporation that develops, manufactures, licenses, supports, and sells a range of software products and services. Microsoft’s devices and consumer (D&C) licensing segment licenses the Windows operating system and related software, Microsoft Office for consumers, and the Windows Phone operating system. The company’s computing and gaming hardware segment provides Xbox gaming and entertainment consoles and accessories, second-party and third-party video games, and Xbox Live subscriptions; surface devices and accessories; and Microsoft PC accessories. Its phone hardware segment offers Lumia smartphones and other non-Lumia phones. Its D&C segment provides Windows Store, Xbox Live transactions, and Windows phone store; search advertising; display advertising; Office 365 Home and Office 365 Personal; first-party video games; and other consumer products and services as well as operating retail stores. Microsoft’s commercial licensing segments license server products, including Windows Server, Microsoft SQL Server, Visual Studio, System Center, and related Client Access Licenses (CALs); Windows Embedded; Windows operating system; Microsoft Office for business, including Office, Exchange, SharePoint, Lync, and related CALs; Microsoft Dynamics business solutions; and Skype. Its commercial segment offers enterprise services, including premier support services and Microsoft consulting services; commercial cloud comprising Office 365 Commercial, other Microsoft Office online offerings, Dynamics CRM Online, and Microsoft Azure; and other commercial products and online services. The company markets and distributes its products through original equipment manufacturers, distributors, and resellers, as well as online.

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Learn more about Microsoft
Size
181,000 employees
Market Cap
$1,762.4 billion
Industry
Net Income
$51.3 billion
Founded
1975
5 Year Trend
+15.5%
Revenue
$153.2 billion
NASDAQ

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