Associate Specialist, AI & SaaS Product Security

Job Description The Opportunity

• Based in Hyderabad, join a global healthcare biopharma company and be part of a 130-year legacy of success backed by ethical integrity, forward momentum, and an inspiring mission to achieve new milestones in global healthcare.
• Be part of an organisation driven by digital technology and data-backed approaches that support a diversified portfolio of prescription medicines, vaccines, and animal health products.
• Drive innovation and execution excellence. Join a team that is passionate about using data, analytics, and insights to drive decision-making and create custom software, allowing us to tackle some of the world's greatest health threats. Our Technology Centers focus on creating a space where teams can come together to deliver business solutions that save and improve lives. An integral part of our company's IT operating model, Tech Centers are globally distributed locations where each IT division has employees to enable our digital transformation journey and drive business outcomes. These locations, in addition to the other sites, are essential to supporting our business and strategy. A focused group of leaders in each Tech Center helps ensure we can manage and improve each location, from investing in the growth, success, and well-being of our people to making sure colleagues from each IT division feel a sense of belonging, to managing critical emergencies. Together, we must leverage the strength of our team to collaborate globally to optimize connections and share best practices across the Tech Centers. Role Overview This is an excellent entry point for a security professional looking to grow into seasoned security specialist. Our team main focus is AI and SaaS security in a global pharma company. As an Associate Specialist on the Strategic Platforms Security & AI Security team, you will support security assessments and deployment of security controls for SaaS systems, contribute to AI security initiatives, and develop hands-on expertise across a range of modern security tooling and platforms. You'll be mentored and work with experienced security engineers and work across cross-functional teams, gaining exposure to both technical security practice and enterprise risk management. What should you have
• Degree in Information Technology, Computer Science or any Technology stream.
• 1+ years of experience in cybersecurity, IT, or a related field (internships and academic projects count)
• A foundational understanding of application or cloud security concepts
• Willingness to learn fast and work through ambiguity - You're curious by default
• Genuine curiosity about AI and generative AI security is a plus
• Knowing what RAG, MCP or OWASP Top 10 for LLMs is a benefit
• Exposure to cloud environments (AWS, Azure, or GCP), even at a basic level is a great benefit
• Some scripting or automation experience is nice to have
• You communicate clearly and ask good questions rather than making assumptions. What will you do in this role
• Evaluate the security posture of enterprise SaaS platforms. Reviewing configurations, identifying misconfigurations, and helping design mitigations
• Contribute to building and documenting security patterns for SaaS and AI systems that other teams can adopt
• Contribute to security evaluations of AI-based systems, applications, and agents learning to identify risks specific to LLM-powered and generative AI systems.
• Support the implementation of AI security controls such as guardrails, content filtering, and policy enforcement and ensure these controls feed into downstream integrations including SIEM/SOC pipelines and CI/CD security gates for continuous inspection
• Move beyond point-in-time monitoring toward a continuous inspect-and-adapt model helping maintain integrations with downstream systems (SOC tooling, security pipelines, alerting) so that control signals flow automatically and response loops close faster. Who we are We are known as Merck & Co., Inc., Rahway, New Jersey, USA in the United States and Canada and MSD everywhere else. For more than a century, we have been medicines and vaccines for many of the world's most challenging diseases. Today, our company continues to be at the forefront of research to deliver innovative health solutions and advance the prevention and treatment of diseases that threaten people and animals around the world. What we look for Imagine getting up in the morning for a job as important as helping to save and improve lives around the world. Here, you have that opportunity. You can put your empathy, creativity, digital mastery, or scientific genius to work in collaboration with a diverse group of colleagues who pursue and bring hope to countless people who are battling some of the most challenging diseases of our time. Our team is constantly evolving, so if you are among the intellectually curious, join us—and start making your impact today. #HYDIT2025

Required Skills Application Security, Automation, Certificate Services, Cloud Infrastructure, Cloud Security, Computer Science, Creativity, Cybersecurity, Cybersecurity Analytics, Cybersecurity Operations, Delivery of Security Applications, Enterprise Risk Management (ERM), Generative AI, Identifying Customer Needs, Information Security, IT Project Lifecycle, OWASP Top 10, Risk Management, Security Compliance, Security Controls, SLA Management, Software as a Service (SaaS), System Designs, Technical Advice, Web Hosting Management

Preferred Skills Current Employees apply HERE Current Contingent Workers apply HERE

Search Firm Representatives Please Read Carefully Merck & Co., Inc., Rahway, NJ, USA, also known as Merck Sharp & Dohme LLC, Rahway, NJ, USA, does not accept unsolicited assistance from search firms for employment opportunities. All CVs / resumes submitted by search firms to any employee at our company without a valid written search agreement in place for this position will be deemed the sole property of our company. No fee will be paid in the event a candidate is hired by our company as a result of an agency referral where no pre-existing agreement is in place. Where agency agreements are in place, introductions are position specific. Please, no phone calls or emails.

Employee Status Regular

Relocation VISA Sponsorship

Travel Requirements Flexible Work Arrangements Hybrid

Shift Valid Driving License

Hazardous Material(s) Job Posting End Date 07/2/2026

• A job posting is effective until 11 59 59PM on the day BEFORE the listed job posting end date. Please ensure you apply to a job posting no later than the day BEFORE the job posting end date.

Requisition ID R403531