Cyber Security Engineer

Ambition; Hong Kong; On-site; HKD 520,000 - 950,000; Full time

Job summary

Ambition is seeking a hands-on Cybersecurity Engineer for its Hong Kong office. The role focuses on building and running defenses, advising traders and researchers on security trade-offs, and leading awareness initiatives while handling incident analysis and response.

The ideal candidate brings a strong technical foundation, loves building solutions, and can clearly explain the rationale behind security practices in a fast-paced, in-house environment where latency matters.

Qualifications

• Strong scripting or programming ability with automation in Python or Go.
• Ability to discuss risk trade-offs and threat modeling in trading environments.
• Experience communicating security concepts to technical and non-technical colleagues.

Responsibilities

• Build and run firm-wide defenses against cyber threats.
• Advise trading and research groups on security trade-offs.
• Lead cybersecurity awareness among employees.
• Carry incident response load and event analysis.

Skills

Scripting

Programming

Python

Go

Job description

We're looking to add a full-time, passionate Cybersecurity Engineer to our client's office to help protect our people, data, and infrastructure from the wilds of the internet. Their Cybersecurity Engineers build and run firm-wide defenses, advise trading and research groups on security trade-offs, lead employee cybersecurity awareness efforts, and carry some of the event analysis and incident response load.

This is a hands-on role at a firm where speed and low latency matter, where a lot of what we run is built in-house, and where the people you're protecting are as likely to be writing trading strategies as they are to be writing infrastructure. We're looking for someone with a strong technical foundation, who isn't afraid to build something themselves, who brings good taste to solving security problems, and who can reason about — and explain — the "why" behind security practices.

About You

• Strong scripting or programming, and the practices around them: You're interested in and able to automate in a real programming language (Python, Go, or similar), you have the ability and desire to manage your code and configs in version control, and you're comfortable in your editor of choice. Bonus if you've automated security tooling in an environment where you couldn't just buy your way out of the problem.
• A measured responder: Not everyone should lock their entire life down in the name of security. You can discuss trade-offs, think about context, and understand what threat modeling is — and you understand that in a trading environment, the cost of friction is real and measured in microseconds and in traders' attention.
• You practice good personal cybersecurity hygiene and can talk to others about it: For example, you know what a password manager is and either use one or have something you can reasonably argue is better, and you can walk someone through the tradeoffs you've made. (We'll ask you about this sort of thing during the interview process.) You're equally comfortable having that conversation with a trader, a researcher, or a facilities coordinator.
• Tapped into cybersecurity developments: You follow cybersecurity news but can tell the difference between the latest cool hack by security researchers and what actually matters in your day-to-day — and you can translate that into priorities for a firm whose crown jewels are proprietary code and trading infrastructure.
• Positive and collaborative attitude: You understand that a key component of cybersecurity is bringing others along with you on the journey — especially in a firm where the security team is small, embedded, and has to earn its credibility with highly technical colleagues.
• Fluency in English required. Cantonese or Mandarin a plus given the Hong Kong office, but not required.