IT Security Engineer

IT Security Engineer

sciCORE is the center of competence for scientific computing at the University of Basel, the oldest university in Switzerland and consistently ranked among the best universities in the world. The University is highly research‑oriented, with particular strengths in life sciences and medicine, as well as growing strategic focus areas in data science and artificial intelligence. sciCORE provides advanced infrastructure and expert services for data‑ and compute‑intensive research, including high‑performance computing, scientific data processing and storage, secure research data environments, consulting, and training.

Our work supports a community of over 2000 researchers across disciplines and connects large‑scale technical infrastructure with sensitive data environments, national and international research initiatives, and close collaboration with university and external partners.

To strengthen the security of our research computing environments, we invite applications for an IT Security Engineer, 80–100%. The position is embedded within sciCORE and works closely with the Systems Team, the Head of sciCORE, university security bodies, and external partners such as the Swiss Personalized Health Network (SPHN/BioMedIT), and the Swiss Institute of Bioinformatics (SIB).

At sciCORE, you will be part of a highly motivated and collaborative team of specialists, including systems administrators, scientific software engineers, data infrastructure managers, data analysts, and research‑support professionals. You will contribute to enabling cutting‑edge research by helping ensure that our infrastructure, services, and workflows are secure, reliable, auditable, and aligned with data protection and compliance requirements.

• Act as the primary security subject matter expert for sciCORE infrastructures and research‑support services
• Contribute proactively to the secure architecture and operation of sciCORE services, including security‑related tools, HPC systems, web applications, trusted research environments (sciCORE+), networking and related tools, identity and access management, shared file systems, data‑transfer services, and scientific software environments
• Perform risk assessments and security reviews for new services, research projects, infrastructure changes, and external collaborations
• Translate security requirements into practical, researcher‑friendly solutions that preserve scientific usability while managing institutional and technical risk
• Align technical security measures with data classification, data protection requirements, institutional policies, and relevant security frameworks
• Identify and address security gaps in sciCORE systems by monitoring current threats, reviewing vulnerabilities and configurations, and validating the effectiveness of security controls
• Conduct and review vulnerability scans, hardening assessments, configuration checks, access‑control reviews, and other security‑control validations
• Maintain and improve security practices, policies, procedures, technical documentation, and audit evidence for sciCORE environments
• Support secure identity and access management practices, including user and project access life cycles, SSH key and MFA policies, privileged access, service‑account governance, and periodic access reviews
• Collaborate closely with the Systems Team, the Head of sciCORE, university security bodies, researchers, and external partners on security‑related projects and operational security topics
• Advise researchers and internal service teams on secure implementation of scientific workflows, especially where sensitive data, external collaborations, automated data transfers, cloud services, or AI/ML tools are involved
• Participate in regional, national, and international research IT security communities, including working groups, conferences, and workshops

• Master's degree in computer science, cybersecurity, information systems, computational science, or equivalent professional experience
• At least three years of experience in IT security, systems security, or secure infrastructure operations in Linux‑based environments, preferably in research…