Lead Security Engineer - Be Our First Security Champion!
Kikoff, a fast-growing FinTech unicorn powering financial progress with AI, is seeking a passionate and experienced Lead Security Engineer to build and own our security program. As our first dedicated security leader, you'll have the opportunity to make a significant impact, shaping our security posture from the ground up. If you're a hands-on security expert with a passion for protecting users and enabling innovation, we want to hear from you!
This is initially an individual contributor role with high impact and visibility. As our security program matures, you'll have the opportunity to build and lead a security team.
What You'll Do:
Own Compliance:
Lead SOC 2 Type II and PCI DSS programs through successful audit.
Design and implement security controls without blocking velocity.
Serve as primary technical contact for external auditors and assessors.
Manage third-party vendor security assessments and ongoing monitoring.
Build automated evidence collection and continuous compliance monitoring.
Report security metrics and program status to executive leadership.
Manage Security Operations:
Establish vulnerability management program with defined SLAs and remediation workflows.
Own end-to-end vulnerability management: identify, assess, prioritize, and drive remediation to completion across infrastructure and applications.
Manage external penetration testing program with third-party vendors, including scoping, assessment review, and remediation tracking.
Perform internal penetration testing and security assessments of applications, APIs, and infrastructure.
Build SIEM detection rules, security dashboards, and alert triage processes.
Develop and test incident response runbooks.
Conduct threat modeling for critical systems and architectural changes.
Lead security assessments of new technologies and third-party integrations.
Enable & Collaborate:
Partner with platform engineering to implement security roadmap: AWS landing zone design, PAM/JIT workflows, account segmentation, disaster recovery testing.
Enforce enterprise security controls (SSO, secrets management, RBAC).
Build and deliver security awareness training program for all employees.
Develop and maintain security policies, standards, and procedures.
Translate compliance requirements into actionable engineering tasks and drive completion.
What You'll Bring:
Security & Compliance:
5+ years in information security, with 2+ years in fintech or highly regulated industry.
CISSP certification (or actively pursuing - must obtain within 12 months of hire).
Hands-on experience leading SOC 2 and PCI DSS audits from start to finish.
Strong incident response background—you've led real security incidents.
Experience with vulnerability management platforms (Wiz, Snyk, Tenable).
Technical Skills:
Solid understanding of AWS security: IAM, Security Hub, GuardDuty, CloudTrail, KMS.
Experience with SIEM platforms (Splunk, Datadog, Elastic)—you can write detection rules and build dashboards.
Hands-on experience with vulnerability assessment and penetration testing tools (Burp Suite, Nessus, Qualys, or similar).
Ability to read code (Ruby, JavaScript, Python) and assess security implications.
Knowledge of web application security, API security, and OWASP Top 10.
Understanding of access control patterns (PAM, SSO, RBAC, least privilege).
Core Competencies:
Strong communication—you can explain risks to engineers and executives alike.
Pragmatic risk management in fast-paced environments.
Self-starter who builds programs from scratch.
Collaborative mindset—security as enabler, not blocker.
Ability to drive remediation to completion across teams.
Bonus Points:
Additional certifications (CISM, CISA, CCSP, CEH, OSCP, CRISC).
Experience managing WAF deployments (Palo Alto, Cloudflare, AWS WAF).
Infrastructure-as-code experience (Pulumi, Terraform).
Kubernetes security knowledge.
SOAR platform experience.
DevSecOps or security automation background.
Scripting skills (Python, Bash) for security tooling and automation.
Why Kikoff?
Kikoff's mission is to provide radically affordable financial tools to help consumers achieve financial security. We're a profitable, high growth FinTech unicorn serving millions of people, many of whom are building credit or navigating life paycheck to paycheck. With innovative technology and AI, we simplify credit building, reduce debt, and expand access to financial opportunities to those who need them the most. Founded in 2019, Kikoff is headquartered in San Francisco and backed by top-tier VC investors and NBA star Stephen Curry.
This is a consumer fintech startup, and you will be working with serial entrepreneurs who have built strong consumer brands and innovative products. We value extreme ownership, clear communication, a strong sense of craftsmanship, and the desire to create lasting work and work relationships. Yes, you can build an exciting business AND have real-life real-customer impact.
Benefits:
🏥 Medical, dental, and vision coverage - Kikoff covers the full cost of health insurance for the employee!
📈 Meaningful equity in the form of RSU's
🏝 Flexible vacation policy to help you recharge
💰 Competitive pay based on experience consisting of base + equity + benefits
Location: Hybrid, 3 days onsite in San Francisco, CA.
Visa sponsorship available: Kikoff is willing to provide sponsorship for H1-B visas and U.S. green cards for exceptional talent.
Equal Employment Opportunity Statement
Kikoff Inc. is an equal opportunity employer. We are committed to complying with all federal, state, and local laws providing equal employment opportunities and considers qualified applicants without regard to race, color, religion, creed, gender, national origin, age, disability, veteran status, marital status, pregnancy, sex, gender expression or identity, sexual orientation, citizenship, or any other legally protected class.
Please reference the following for more information.
If you need reasonable accommodation for a job opening please connect with us at [email protected] and describe the specific accommodation requested for a disability-related limitation. Reasonable accommodations are modifications or adjustments to the application or hiring process that would enable you to fully participate in that process.
San Francisco Fair Chance Ordinance: Pursuant to the San Francisco Fair Chance Ordinance, Kikoff will consider for employment qualified applicants with arrest and conviction records.