CyberSecurity AI Engineer

Nelnet is a diversified and innovative company committed to enriching lives through the power of service as a student loan servicer, professional services company, consumer loan originator and servicer, payments processor, renewable energy solutions, and K-12 and higher education expert.  For over 40 years, Nelnet has been serving its customers, associates, and communities.

The perks of working at Nelnet go beyond our benefits package. When you join the Nelnet team, you're part of a community invested in the success of each individual. That support comes through in our work, as we are united by our mission of creating opportunities for people where they live, learn, and work.

We need someone who's equally comfortable in security engineering and AI technology, and who's ready to work closely with IT, security, and data science teams to build AI solutions that are secure, compliant, and built to last.

This role calls for real technical depth, sound judgment, and a proactive approach to risk management. Here's what you'll be doing:

- Monitoring and strengthening the security posture of our AI/ML systems, APIs, and model-serving environments

- Building detection and monitoring capabilities to identify risks such as model misuse, prompt injection, data poisoning, and unauthorized model access

- Partnering with development, operations, and security teams to secure AI environments across their full lifecycle

- Automating security monitoring and remediation workflows for AI systems

- Evaluating and implementing AI security tools and model governance solutions

- Contributing to the development of AI-specific risk frameworks, controls, and policies

- Staying current on the evolving AI risk landscape and supporting security assessments and testing of LLMs and AI services

** AI and Security Engineering*
* · Secure AI/ML model development and deployment environments, including LLMs, vector databases, and training pipelines.

· Build automated tools to detect and mitigate AI-related risks, such as anomalous model outputs and prompt injection attempts.

· Conduct security testing and threat modeling for AI systems.

· Support logging, monitoring, and alerting for AI/ML environments integrated with SIEM/XDR platforms.

· Help design model access controls, encryption, and governance enforcement.

· Assist in developing and enforcing AI-related security policies and procedures.

** Innovation*
* · Question legacy assumptions and recommend AI-native security approaches.

· Identify short- and long-term strategies for securing AI assets in ways that support business value.

· Build security prototypes and proof-of-concepts for emerging AI architectures.

· Stay current on AI security research and turn findings into practical defenses.

** Agility*
* · Adapt as the AI landscape and threat environment continue to evolve.

· Navigate ambiguity in AI risk management and compliance requirements.

· Help business and technical partners adjust to changing AI security requirements.

· Stay responsive and adaptive when incidents involving AI systems arise.

** Problem Solving*
* · Investigate security incidents involving AI-generated outputs or manipulated inputs.

· Apply critical thinking to defend against emerging AI risks.

· Develop layered mitigation strategies across models, APIs, and infrastructure.

· Own problem resolution from start to finish.

** Collaboration*
* · Partner with Cyber Security analysts, developers, and AI engineers to defend AI systems.

· Mentor peers on emerging risks and best practices in AI/ML security.

· Foster cross-functional alignment to build AI security into enterprise roadmaps.

** Communication Skills*
* · Translate technical AI security issues into business risk language for stakeholders.

· Write clear documentation for detection rules, playbooks, and findings.

· Present AI risk scenarios and mitigation strategies to both technical and non-technical audiences.

** Strategic Focus*
* · Align AI security efforts with Nelnet's business, compliance, and technology goals.

· Serve as a trusted advisor on AI governance, LLM access, and model risk.

· Anticipate future regulatory requirements around AI usage and safety.

· Deliver security solutions…