Principal Security Engineer – Cloud & Kubernetes

Iceberg; Greater London; On-site; GBP 120,000 - 180,000; Full time

Job summary

Iceberg, a London-headquartered global trading firm, seeks a Principal Security Engineer to shape security across cloud and Kubernetes platforms. The role sits between security architecture and hands-on engineering, requiring deep infrastructure understanding and the ability to implement robust guardrails directly with engineering teams. AWS/GCP/Azure, Kubernetes, IAM, and CI/CD security are core focus areas.

Qualifications

• Engineering depth with secure design and implementation.
• Experience securing cloud and container environments (AWS/GCP/Azure, Kubernetes).
• Ability to design guardrails, threat models and security controls for engineers.
• Collaboration with platform, infrastructure and software teams.

Responsibilities

• Bridge security architecture and hands-on engineering efforts.
• Identify meaningful security risks in cloud/Kubernetes environments.
• Design practical guardrails and drive implementation with engineering teams.
• Evaluate and improve security across cloud, IAM, networking and pipelines.

Skills

Cloud security

Kubernetes security

Threat modelling

Security design reviews

CI/CD security

Software supply-chain security

Infrastructure as Code security

Policy as code

Tools

Kubernetes

CI/CD pipelines

Infrastructure as Code

Job description

I’m working with a global trading firm headquartered in London looking to hire an exceptional Principal Security Engineer to help shape how security is designed across its cloud and Kubernetes environments.

I want to be clear on the level of this hire.

This is a high-bar engineering environment, and we’re looking for someone with a standout technical and academic background who has operated alongside exceptionally strong engineers in complex, engineering-led organisations.

You might come from a hedge fund, trading firm, technology company, high-growth start-up or another environment where the technical hiring bar is particularly high.

The role sits between security architecture and hands-on engineering.

You’ll be expected to look at a cloud or Kubernetes environment, understand how it has been engineered, identify meaningful security risks, design practical guardrails and work directly with engineering teams to bring those controls to life.

You don't need to be an expert in both Cloud and Kubernetes. Deep expertise in either is of interest; if you have both, even better.

Your background could include:

• AWS, GCP or Azure security
• Kubernetes and container security
• Cloud IAM, networking, encryption and secrets management
• Infrastructure-as-Code and policy-as-code
• Automated security guardrails
• CI/CD and software supply-chain security
• Threat modelling and security design reviews
• Working closely with platform, infrastructure and software engineering teams

The important distinction is engineering depth.

This isn't a role for someone whose experience has primarily been writing policies, producing architecture documents or handing security requirements to other teams.

You need to understand modern infrastructure deeply enough to challenge engineering decisions, identify where genuine risk exists and design security controls that strong engineers will respect and actually implement.

You don't need to be a hardcore software developer, but you should be technically credible around engineers who build complex systems. If you come from a particularly hands-on engineering background, there is plenty of scope to contribute directly to implementation.

The firm has an exceptionally high technical and academic hiring bar, so evidence of consistently strong academic achievement alongside your professional experience will be important.

Location: London

If you're operating at Senior, Staff or Principal level and increasingly find yourself designing the security solution rather than simply implementing someone else's, I'd be very interested in speaking.