Apple wants an iPhone security engineer - to beat hackers at their own game. Applicants should develop "proof of concept" attacks and undertake risk analysis on potential security threats affecting Apple's embedded operating system products.

The role, one of 35 security-related posts open at Apple, was first advertised in September 2007 but is still available. Jobseekers should have a degree in computer studies, Mac OS X exposure and experience in reverse engineering* and security. They must work at Apple's Silicon Valley headquarters.

Whoever gets the job has plenty on his plate.

Security flaws in the Safari browser bundled with the iPhone were key to unlocking and jail-breaking the first version, and challenged Apple's exclusive tie-ups with selected carriers. More recently, the prominent IT security researcher Aviv Raff warned that unresolved vulnerabilities in iPhone mail and browser software leave users more vulnerable to phishing attacks. ®

* The iPhone security job is one of only two at Apple that call for reverse engineering expertise, a core hacking skill. The other involves working in developing Apple's digital rights management copy-protection technology.

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