General information
Organisation
The French Alternative Energies and Atomic Energy Commission (CEA) is a key player in research, development and innovation in four main areas :
• defence and security,
• nuclear energy (fission and fusion),
• technological research for industry,
• fundamental research in the physical sciences and life sciences.
Drawing on its widely acknowledged expertise, and thanks to its 16000 technicians, engineers, researchers and staff, the CEA actively participates in collaborative projects with a large number of academic and industrial partners.
The CEA is established in ten centers spread throughout France
Reference
2025-37598
Description de l'unité
CEA-Leti's Information Technology Security Evaluation Facility (ITSEF) is a security evaluation laboratory certified by the Agence Nationale de la Sécurité des Systèmes d'Information (ANSSI) (France's national cybersecurity agency). It provides security evaluations for industrial products to obtain certification from the above certification bodies. It evaluates secure integrated microcircuits, HSMs and various smart cards such as bank cards, passports, health insurance cards, etc. It can also conduct "security tests" for pre-evaluations of electronic components and equipment. CEA-Leti ITSEF also performs security audits of design and production sites for secure products. CEA-Leti ITSEF designs, develops and advances internal hardware and software attack test benches to support security evaluations.
Position description
Category
Mathematics, information, scientific, software
Contract
Internship
Job title
Large language models for automatic bug finding in source code analysis H/F
Subject
JOIN US, TO DO WHAT?
Contribute to technological innovation for clean and safe energy, health and well-being, sustainable transportation, information and communications, space exploration, safety and security: that is the mission of CEA - Leti.
In the context of an ITSEF, the security evaluation of a software component usually requires a source code review (audit) performed by an evaluator who needs to be assisted by static analysis tools that can be configured and customized to help checking security requirements. The code analysis methodology applied at Leti ITSEF mainly consists in the following 2 operations: (1) extract a piece of source code to verify a particular property, (2) try to automatically prove the property, and in case of unknown status (the proof failed) search path conditions to violate the property. Such violations may reveal vulnerabilities to be exploited by malicious input data (software attack) combined with fault injection (hardware attack).
Contract duration (months)
6
Job description
Join us for an internship!
CEA Tech Corporate from CEA Tech on Vimeo
As an intern at CEA, you will have the opportunity to work in a world-renowned research environment. Our teams are made up of passionate and dedicated experts, offering a framework conducive to learning and collaboration. You will have access to state-of-the-art equipment and first-rate research resources to carry out your assignments.
Main goals
(1) Investigate how LLM can be used to assist evaluators in finding bug automatically in source code. For example, a research question is how IA could assist the user in generating formal specification, which is a long repetitive and complex process.
(2) Assess how LLM perform and can be complementary to traditional tools used for evaluation (formal methods, using Frama-C and Lazart).
Internship tasks
•Literature review of LLMs solutions for automatic bug finding.
•Test of LLMs on open benchmarks of source code containing vulnerabilities ([3,4])
•Evaluation of a scope where LLM is relevant (i.e. where it performs better than traditional tools, where it can be complementary, to assist the evaluator)
•Proposition of a methodology to assist source code analysis with LLMs
References
[1] Sauze-Kadar Marine, Thomas. Loubier. (2025). A Multi-Model Approach to Enhance Automatic Matching of Vulnerabilities to Attack Patterns. Récupéré sur https://www.scitepress.org/DigitalLibrary/Link.aspx?doi=10.5220/0013555900003979
[2] Lacombe, G., Feliot, D., Boespflug, E. et al. Combining static analysis and dynamic symbolic execution in a toolchain to detect fault injection vulnerabilities. J Cryptogr Eng 14, 147–164 (2024). https://doi.org/10.1007/s13389-023-00310-8
[3] WooKey challenge: https://wookey-project.github.io/
[4] ANSSI, Amossys, EDSI, LETI, Lexfo, Oppida, Quarkslab, SERMA, Synacktiv, Thales, Trusted Labs. (2020) Inter-CESTI: Methodological and Technical Feedbacks on Hardware Devices Evaluations. https://www.sstic.org/2020/presentation/inter-cesti_methodological_and_technical_feedbacks_on_hardware_devices_evaluations/
Methods / Means
LLM, IA, static code analysis, Formal methods, cybersecurity
Applicant Profile
What do we expect from you?
We are looking for a motivated and curious candidate (BAC+5) in the field of cybersecurity to join our team. The candidate must have good programming skills (Python, C, assembly, …) and some basic knowledge in artificial intelligence, embedded system security, vulnerability exploits.
A prior technical knowledge in formal methods for static code analysis is highly valued. A proactive and autonomous profile, an enthusiasm for scientific research are encouraged.
We offer:
An internship in the heart of the Grenoble metropolitan area, easily accessible via the CEA's soft mobility program.
A unique research environment dedicated to topics with high societal impact.
Experience in a cutting-edge field of innovation with strong industrial development potential.
Training to strengthen your skills or acquire new ones in embedded electronics, information technology, telecommunications, and/or cybersecurity.
In accordance with the CEA's commitments to the integration of people with disabilities, this job is open to all. The CEA offers accommodations and/or organizational possibilities for the inclusion of workers with disabilities.
Position location
Site
Grenoble
Job location
France, Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes, Isère (38)
Location
Grenoble
Candidate criteria
Languages
English (Intermediate)
Prepared diploma
Bac+5 - Diplôme École d'ingénieurs
Requester
Position start date
02/02/2026
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