Senior Cyber Security Engineer

Job Description

Job Description

Title: Founding Head of Security / Security Lead

Location: McLean, VA preferred; strong preference for in-office / Hybrid

Compensation: Competitive base plus potential equity

Type: Full-time

About the Role

A growing software company in the identity, privacy, and trust space is hiring its first dedicated security leader. This is a rare opportunity for a hands-on security professional to step into a high-ownership role that combines technical execution, operational security leadership, customer-facing credibility, and long-term pathing toward a broader CISO mandate.

This is not a “policy-only” or back-office security role. The right person will help build and mature the company’s security function, strengthen real-world security posture, support customer and partner trust conversations, and become a visible leader in how the company thinks about privacy, security, and trust.

What You’ll Do

• Take ownership of key security priorities currently handled by senior technical leadership, helping create clear separation between core technology leadership and security leadership.
• Lead or coordinate security initiatives across areas such as incident readiness, penetration testing, red-team-oriented assessment, operational controls, and environment hardening.
• Support audits, security questionnaires, controls work, and broader compliance-related efforts while keeping focus on practical risk reduction.
• Help identify and close gaps between documented security posture and operational reality.
• Partner with internal technical teams to improve security maturity in a fast-moving product environment.
• Participate in customer, prospect, partner, and other external conversations where security and privacy credibility matter.
• Serve as a trusted voice on privacy, trust, and security as the company continues to grow in a market where these capabilities are central to product value.

What We’re Looking For

• Strong hands-on security experience in technical environments, ideally with ownership across multiple parts of the security function.
• Practical depth in areas such as incident response, penetration testing, red teaming, cloud or environment security, and operational hardening.
• Ability to balance technical execution with customer-facing communication and business judgment.
• Comfort working in a lean, startup-style environment with ambiguity, pace, and broad responsibility.
• Ability to operate with independence, maturity, and sound judgment in a high-trust role.
• Strong communication skills, including the ability to explain security work in clear business terms.

Strongly Preferred

• CISSP or similar security credential with credibility in the security leadership community.
• Experience in SaaS, identity, privacy, trust, compliance, or similarly sensitive environments.
• Experience as an early or first security hire, or in a role where security had to be built rather than inherited.
• Experience supporting customer-facing security discussions, audits, or deal-related trust conversations.

Success in This Role

In the first year, this person will be expected to take ownership of immediate security priorities, help harden the company’s real security posture, and build confidence internally and externally as a credible security leader. The strongest candidates will see this as a career-defining opportunity to make a visible mark, not simply maintain an existing program.

Who Will Thrive Here

• Builders who like creating structure where little exists.
• Security professionals who still like doing the work, not just reviewing it.
• People who can earn trust with technical teams, executives, and customers alike.
• Candidates who want a meaningful path toward a larger leadership title over time.

Who May Not Be a Fit

• Candidates whose experience is primarily policy, audit coordination, or governance without meaningful technical ownership.
• Leaders who are too removed from day-to-day execution.
• Professionals who need highly structured environments, large teams, or extensive support layers to be successful.