Sr. Manager - Information Security Engineer

National Bank of Kuwait; Jeddah; On-site; SAR 299,000 - 413,000; Full time

Job summary

A leading financial institution in Saudi Arabia is seeking an experienced Cybersecurity Manager to oversee and enhance their security systems. The successful candidate will develop strategies for cybersecurity governance, manage incident response protocols, and ensure compliance with regulatory standards. Requires a background in banking system security with 8-10 years of experience and relevant certifications like CISSP or CISM.

Qualifications

• 8 – 10 years of total system security banking experience.
• ISO27000 & PCI-DSS understanding required.
• Certifications like CISSP or CISM are desirable.

Responsibilities

• Develop and implement a comprehensive cybersecurity systems structure.
• Monitor system performance for security compliance.
• Conduct penetration testing to identify vulnerabilities.

Skills

Knowledge of secure systems, networks, and applications

Using security technologies and tools

Identifying and mitigating security risks

Knowledge of cybersecurity principles and best practices

Working effectively with cross-functional teams

Education

Bachelor degree in information technology or equivalent

Tools

Vulnerability scanners

Penetration testing tools

SIEM

Job description

Job Purpose

Manage and maintain internal and external bank systems security. Promote the adherence to the information system security policies, procedures & guidelines. Promote system security education for internal or external parties. Present system security status across the organization periodically. Maintain internal and external regulatory requirements. Maintain physical security requirements. Ensure cybersecurity controls and defense measures are effectively implemented.

Responsibilities

Security Defense and Engineering

• Develop and implement a comprehensive cybersecurity systems and structure aligned with organizational goals, group architecture and SAMA requirements.
• Analyze security requirements and develop data and system protection strategies.
• Review the implementation of security controls (firewalls, encryption, identity management, endpoint security, mail security, etc.) to meet required effectiveness.
• Evaluate new technologies for security risks and benefits and make recommendations.
• Analyze security risks, impacts, and mitigation options to support risk management and business decisions.
• Provide effective security solutions for bank systems.
• Maintain confidential and sensitive information register.
• Develop and manage security programs such as identity and access management, encryption, anomaly detection, and cyber incident response.
• Research and evaluate emerging security technologies.
• Provide guidance to other IT personnel on security best practices.
• Identify security threats and vulnerabilities in existing IT systems and recommend appropriate mitigation strategies.

Threat Management and Incident Response

• Support information system security initiatives based on security assessments.
• Support mitigation plans for technology vulnerabilities and build a layered security approach (Network, OS, Application, Database).
• Proactively hunt for indicators of compromise, anomalous behavior, and potential threats.
• Identify, analyze, and mitigate cyber threats; conduct proactive threat research.
• Analyze detected threats using threat intelligence, malware analysis, and other techniques.
• Research new and emerging threats through open-source intelligence, dark web monitoring, and security communities.
• Develop and implement intelligence-driven detection and prevention controls.
• Continuously refine threat detection systems and processes.
• Conduct penetration testing to identify vulnerabilities and weaknesses.
• Assess security control effectiveness and recommend improvements.
• Conduct forensic investigations of cybersecurity incidents (data breaches, malware, phishing).
• Respond to incidents by isolating impacted systems, reimaging, disabling credentials, and removing malware.
• Develop and execute incident response plans, processes, and workflows.
• Support the Security Incident Response Team.
• Maintain chain of custody and adhere to forensics best practices.

Security Operations and Monitoring

• Supervise information systems security projects and services.
• Monitor system performance and ensure security policy compliance.
• Monitor security systems for threats, policy violations, and anomalies.
• Investigate and respond to security alerts and incidents.
• Coordinate with the Security Operations Center (SOC).
• Track patch management effectiveness.
• Measure cybersecurity KPIs.
• Monitor and analyze endpoint activity for threats, malware, and data breaches.

Cybersecurity Governance

• Develop and implement an information security governance framework to manage cybersecurity risks for the organization. This includes policies, standards, and procedures.
• Ensure compliance with relevant information security laws, industry standards, and best practices.
• Monitor system performance and ensure compliance with security policies.
• Manage the organization's security policies and assist in enforcing security protocols.

Cybersecurity Compliance

• Develop and implement a cybersecurity compliance program that ensures compliance with relevant laws, regulations, and industry standards including SAMA CSF, PCI DSS, ISO 27001, CMA CSF and other compliance mandates from SAMA.
• Lead the system-wide information security compliance program, ensuring IT activities, the banks projects processes, and procedures meet defined requirements, policies, and regulations.
• Develop and implement effective and reasonable policies and practices to secure protected and sensitive data and ensure information security and compliance with relevant legislation and legal interpretation.
• Execute strategy for dealing with increasing number of audits, compliance checks and external assessment processes for internal/external auditors.

Cybersecurity Risk Management

• Identify risks on data protection.
• Cybersecurity Matrix, Risk Register, Appetite & Reporting.
• Participate in understanding the enterprise objectives and translate them in defining annual Information Security strategy, roadmap and objectives recommendations.
• Establishing and maintaining Information Security KPI and metrics, risk register and risk appetite.
• Maintaining overall security remediation plans and managing Information Security exceptions.
• Participate in the control effectiveness review of processes.
• Responsible for identifying compliance risks and to recommends, implements, and maintains technical and procedural controls to provide regulatory compliance in the most reasonable and cost-effective manner.

Continuous Improvement

• Research and evaluate emerging security technologies.
• Stay updated on latest threats via information security forums/bulletins.
• Develop and maintain cybersecurity policies and procedures.
• Identify vulnerabilities in existing systems and recommend mitigation strategies.
• Perform security assessments and audits to identify gaps and improvement opportunities.
• Develop recommendations to strengthen defenses, mitigate risks, and ensure compliance.
• Automate security tasks and workflows.
• Maintain documentation of security configurations, policies, and processes.
• Test and evaluate new endpoint security technologies.
• Maintain SARIE system security.

Competencies

Knowledge and Understanding:

• Cybersecurity principles and best practices (threat modeling, risk assessment, security controls, frameworks like SAMA CSF NIST, ISO, CIS).
• Regulatory compliance requirements (PDPL,GDPR, , PCI-DSS).
• Emerging technologies (blockchain, AI, machine learning) and their security implications. (preferable)
• Network protocols, operating systems, and databases.
• Security incident response processes and procedures.

Communication and Interpersonal Skills:

• Working effectively with cross-functional teams, stakeholders, and clients.

Qualification & Experience

• Bachelor degree in information technology or equivalent.
• 8 – 10 years total system security banking experience
• ISO27000 & PCI-DSS understanding.
• One or more of the following qualifications are desirable:
• Certified Information Systems Security Professional (CISSP),
• Certified Information Security Manager (CISM),
• ISO27001 Lead implementer/ auditor
• Certified Ethical Hacker (CEH)
• GIAC Certified Forensic Examiner (GCFE)
• GIAC Certified Incident Handler (GCIH)
• Offensive Security Certified Professional (OSCP)

Skills

Technical Skills:

• Knowledge of secure systems, networks, and applications (firewalls, IDS/IPS, access control, encryption, authentication).
• Using security technologies and tools (vulnerability scanners, penetration testing tools, SIEM, endpoint).
• Designing and implementing secure cloud architectures ( Oracle, AWS, Azure,).
• Implementing security controls for DevOps processes (CI/CD, containerization, automation).
• Developing and implementing security policies, procedures, and standards.
• Conducting security audits and assessments.
• Knowledge of security assessments and penetration testing of network, systems and databases.
• Developing and testing incident response plans.
• Providing security training and awareness programs.

Analytical/Problem-Solving Skills:

• Identifying and mitigating security risks and vulnerabilities.

Project Management Skills:

• Managing multiple projects and priorities simultaneously.