Cyber Software Engineer
Actalent · Manassas, VA
$65–$85/hrfrom the description
Jul 24, 2026
Manassas, VA
Jul 25, 2026
What this job asks for AI summary
A contract software engineering role building secure, high-performance cyber software for DoD mission-critical systems. Day-to-day work centers on developing C++ and/or Java applications in Linux-based, containerized environments using Kubernetes and microservices architectures, with a focus on networking, deep packet inspection, and cyber analysis. Suited to engineers with a background in performance-optimized, distributed systems and an interest in defensive/offensive cyber capabilities.
Mid level · Washington-Arlington-Alexandria, DC-VA-MD-WV · Secret clearance · Contract
“or” means any one of them counts — you don't need all of them.
We read this from the posting text with AI. Skim the description below before ruling yourself out.
How this req sits in the market our data
Rare in this occupation — lead with these, and say what you built with them.
Most people in this occupation already list these. Still required — just not what gets you shortlisted.
What the occupation pays Median $158,337 (middle half $126,441–$180,105). This posting is about at that midpoint.
Estimated from BLS employment for this occupation and area, per-skill prevalence across our listing corpus, and published wage benchmarks — as of Jul 28, 2026. It is a model, not a headcount.
Why we read it this way (9)
The posting contains a contradiction: the 'Job Type & Location' section says 'Contract position based out of Manassas, VA' (onsite, 4/10 schedule), while the 'Workplace Type' section says 'fully remote.' The title and body strongly emphasize onsite work; remote=false is used here, but hiring managers should confirm the actual work arrangement.
Clearance: the JD requires the ability to obtain a DoD Interim Secret clearance and U.S. citizenship — this is treated as a hard gate on clearance eligibility (Secret), not a current active clearance.
Degree: the JD states 'Bachelor's degree … or equivalent professional experience,' so no minimum degree is hard-required.
C++ and Java are listed together as 'C++ and/or Java' throughout the required section — they are interchangeable options for the same requirement, captured as a single gate with alternatives.
Docker appears only in the Work Environment narrative ('containerized infrastructure such as Docker and Kubernetes') rather than the formal skills sections; it is included as preferred given the role's clear containerization focus.
Boost.Asio, gRPC, Pcap++, deep packet inspection, network reconnaissance, embedded systems, CI/CD pipelines, and Kubernetes lifecycle tooling all appear under 'Additional Skills & Qualifications,' which is the posting's secondary/preferred section.
The alt SOC 15-1212 (Information Security Analysts) is noted because the role has a meaningful cyber-analysis and network-security dimension, but the primary day-to-day work described is building and deploying software (C++/Java microservices in Kubernetes), making 15-1252 the better fit.
Requires a Secret clearance — the cleared population is a small fraction of this occupation, so the real candidate pool is materially smaller than the estimate below, which does not model clearance.
Posting is for a contract engagement — the market benchmarks below price full-time roles, so read the comp comparison with that in mind.
Read the full posting
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