Data Protection Security Engineer

Southern New Hampshire University; Athens (GA); Remote; USD 97,000 - 155,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Medical insurance

Retirement plan

Paid time off

Remote work option

Job summary

Southern New Hampshire University seeks a Data Security Engineer to implement and operate data protection controls across the enterprise data estate, including Microsoft Fabric, Databricks, Azure SQL, and SQL Server. You will work hands-on with encryption, key management, labeling, masking, and secure data pipelines.

You will collaborate with Security Operations, Data & Analytics, Governance, and Data Engineering teams to ensure least-privilege access and secure data workflows.

Qualifications

• 7+ years in information security or related field.
• Experience with data protection controls and cloud data security.
• Proficiency in SQL and cloud platforms (Azure SQL, Databricks).
• LI-Remote or remote work eligibility.

Responsibilities

• Implement data protection controls across enterprise data estate.
• Configure encryption for data at rest and in transit; manage CMKs and keys.
• Enforce least-privilege access models (RBAC/ABAC) across platforms.
• Hardens security configurations for data platforms and pipelines.
• Automate control deployment and compliance validation via IaC and APIs.
• Collaborate with Security Operations, Data & Analytics, Governance, and Engineering teams.

Skills

Encryption

Key management

Access controls

Data classification

RBAC/ABAC

SQL proficiency

Education

Bachelor's degree in IT/CS/InfoSec

Tools

Azure SQL

SQL Server

Databricks

Microsoft Fabric

Job description

Southern New Hampshire University is a team of innovators. Since 1932, our people-centered strategy has defined us — and helped us grow a team that now serves over 180,000 learners worldwide. At SNHU, you'll have the option to work remotely in the following states: We ask that our remote employees have access to a reliable internet connection and a dedicated, properly equipped workspace that is free of distractions. The Data Security Engineer implements, operates, and helps improve the security controls that protect institutional data across the enterprise data estate, including analytics platforms such as Microsoft Fabric and Databricks, relational database platforms such as Azure SQL and SQL Server, and the pipelines and integrations that move data between them.

This is a hands-on engineering role in the data protection domain: encryption and key management, access and entitlement controls for data, data classification and labeling enforcement, masking and de-identification, database security configuration, and secure data pipeline engineering. You will work alongside other security engineers, Security Operations, Data & Analytics, Data Governance, Data Engineering, and other IT teams, and provides technical support and guidance to teams building or operating data solutions. You will work 100% remotely from any of our approved states.

Implements and maintains data protection controls across the enterprise data estate, including classification and labeling enforcement, masking, tokenization, redaction, and de-identification, so that controls reflect institutional data sensitivity and regulatory requirements.

Configures and operates encryption controls for data at rest and in transit, including platform-native encryption, certificate management, customer-managed keys (CMK), and key rotation, and manages keys, secrets, and credentials using approved vaulting services and managed identities.

Implements least-privilege access models across data platforms, databases, workspaces, schemas, tables, pipelines, and service identities, and performs [quarterly] entitlement reviews to identify and remediate excessive or orphaned access.

Hardens security configurations for Microsoft Fabric, Databricks, Azure SQL, SQL Server, data lakes, and storage services, and assesses database permissions, schemas, stored procedures, queries, and audit settings for weaknesses that could expose or improperly alter institutional data.

Embeds security controls into data ingestion, transformation, orchestration, sharing, and export workflows, and secures the service identities, connectors, private endpoints, network paths, notebooks, jobs, and CI/CD processes that support them.

Protects non-production environments by provisioning synthetic data or controlled production-data extracts and enforcing approved masking and tokenization standards before data is copied out of production.

Automates control deployment, configuration assessment, evidence collection, and compliance validation using scripting, infrastructure-as-code (IaC), and platform APIs, and integrates data security telemetry with Security Operations to support investigation, containment, and corrective action for data-related security events.

Documents and communicates the work: creates and maintains implementation guides, configuration standards, control mappings, and runbooks; and provides hands‑on technical support to teams designing, deploying, migrating, or troubleshooting data solutions.

Data security controls

• Design, implement, and maintain reusable data protection controls that enforce institutional security requirements across the enterprise data estate.
• Translate data classification, sensitivity, and regulatory requirements into enforceable controls, including labeling, masking, tokenization, redaction, and de-identification.
• Evaluate control coverage and effectiveness, identify gaps or configuration drift, and coordinate remediation with control and platform owners.
• Operate encryption controls for data at rest and in transit, including platform-native encryption, certificate management, customer-managed keys, key rotation, and separation-of-duties requirements.

Identity and access controls

• Implement least-privilege access models across data platforms, databases, workspaces, schemas, tables, pipelines, and service identities using role-based and attribute-based access control (RBAC and ABAC) where supported.

Platform, database, and pipeline security

• Harden and maintain security configurations for Microsoft Fabric, Databricks, Azure SQL, SQL Server, data lakes, storage services, and supporting integration technologies.
• Embed security controls into data ingestion, transformation, orchestration, sharing and export workflows, including validation of source-to-target protection requirements.
• Secure the infrastructure behind data integrations: service identities, connectors, private endpoints, and network paths.
• Secure the workloads that run on that infrastructure: notebooks, jobs, and CI/CD pipelines.
• Assess database permissions, schemas, stored procedures, queries, audit settings, and platform features for weaknesses that could expose or improperly alter institutional data.
• Protect non-production environments through synthetic data, controlled production-data extracts, and enforcement of approved masking and tokenization standards.

Security operations, automation, and compliance

• Integrate data security telemetry with enterprise security operations and support investigation, containment, evidence collection, and corrective action for data-related security events.
• Automate control deployment, configuration assessment, and compliance validation through scripting, infrastructure-as-code, platform APIs, and policy-as-code.
• Track control health metrics, analyze recurring findings and exceptions, and propose improvements based on data sensitivity, exposure, threat context, and business impact.
• Support audits, risk assessments, and regulatory or contractual reviews by producing technical evidence that demonstrates the effectiveness of implemented controls.
• Provide hands‑on technical support to teams designing, deploying, migrating, or troubleshooting data solutions.
• Participate in threat modeling, secure design reviews, proof‑of‑concept evaluations, and technical risk assessments, identifying implementation risks and recommending practical control changes.
• Create and maintain implementation guides, configuration standards, control mappings, runbooks, and operational procedures.
• Participate in peer review and share practices that promote secure‑by‑design work across the enterprise data estate.

Academic Degree(s) and/ areas of study: Bachelor's degree in information technology, computer science, information security or related discipline.

• 7+ years of experience in information security, cloud engineering, database engineering, data engineering, or a related field, including 2+ years focused on data protection or database security.
• The data protection lifecycle, including classification, encryption, key and secrets management, access and entitlement controls, monitoring, retention, and secure disposal.
• Security capabilities of cloud data and analytics platforms and relational database platforms, including Azure SQL and SQL Server.
• Azure identity, networking, storage, governance, and key management services, including relevant networking protocols and secure data‑access paths.
• Regulatory, contractual, and policy requirements that apply to institutional data, such as [FERPA, GLBA Safeguards Rule, PCI DSS, and applicable state breach notification laws].
• Proficiency with SQL, including the ability to assess queries, permissions, schemas, and database security configurations.
• Hands‑on implementation of classification, labeling, masking, data loss prevention (DLP), secure integration, monitoring, auditing, and logging controls in enterprise data environments.
• Scripting and automation using platform APIs, infrastructure-as-code, or similar tooling to deploy and validate security controls.
• LI-Remote

We believe real innovation comes from inclusion – where different experiences, perspectives and talents are celebrated. If you have a disability and require a reasonable accommodation to fully engage in any part of the application or hiring process, please complete the Accommodation Request form or contact us at .

The annual pay range for this position is $96,954.00 - $155,153.00. Actual offer will be based on skills, qualifications, experience and internal equity, in addition to relevant business considerations. We expect this position to be hired in the following target hiring range $107,132.00 - $144,945.00. As a full‑time employee at SNHU, you’ll get:

• High-quality, low-deductible medical insurance
• Low to no‑cost dental and vision plans
• 5 weeks of paid time off (plus almost a dozen paid holidays)
• Employer‑funded retirement