Head of Data Science, Identity Graph

Socure; San Francisco (CA); Hybrid; USD 180,000 - 260,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Competitive compensation

Equity

Benefits

Job summary

Socure seeks a senior data science leader to own the Identity Graph vision, driving end-to-end model lifecycle from data strategy to deployment. Lead a team of data scientists and apply deep learning, graph ML, and scalable systems to identity verification and fraud detection at global scale.

You will partner with Product, Engineering, Risk, and GTM to translate business needs into robust solutions while ensuring governance and privacy standards across the platform.

Qualifications

• Advanced degree required or equivalent experience in a quantitative field.
• Proven track record leading data science teams and delivering production-grade ML at scale.
• Deep expertise in entity resolution, graph data, and identity-related modeling.

Responsibilities

• Own and drive the Identity Graph DS vision with measurable gains in accuracy and coverage.
• Lead a high-performing team of data scientists and researchers.
• Define and evolve graph ontology, relations, and enrichment strategies.

Skills

Entity resolution

Graph ML (GNNs, link prediction)

Production-grade ML systems

Python

Leadership & team building

Explainability & governance

KYC/AML / fraud domain

Apache Spark

Education

MS/PhD in CS/Statistics/Math/Engineering

Tools

Apache Spark

Graph ML frameworks

PyTorch

Job description

Why Socure?

Socure is building the identity trust infrastructure for the digital economy — verifying 100% of good identities in real time and stopping fraud before it starts. The mission is big, the problems are complex, and the impact is felt by businesses, governments, and millions of people every day.

We hire people who want that level of responsibility. People who move fast, think critically, act like owners, and care deeply about solving customer problems with precision. If you want predictability or narrow scope, this won’t be your place. If you want to help build the future of identity with a team that holds a high bar for itself—keep reading.

WHY SOCURE?

Socure is building the identity trust infrastructure for the digital economy. We verify 100% of good identities in real time and stop fraud before it starts. The mission is big, the problems are complex, and the impact is felt by businesses, governments, and millions of people every day.

We hire people who want that level of responsibility. They move fast, think critically, act like owners, and care deeply about solving customer problems with precision. If you want predictability or narrow scope, this won’t be your place. If you want to help build the future of identity with a team that holds a high bar for itself, keep reading.

ABOUT THE ROLE

We are seeking a driven, innovative leader to own the data science vision and execution for Socure’s Identity Graph. The graph is the foundation of our identity products. It determines how accurately and completely we can resolve, link, classify, and understand real people across billions of signals.

You will lead the Identity Graph Data Science team across entity resolution, entity linking, graph ontology, identity classification, and identity enrichment. You will set the technical direction, build and grow the team, and turn hard, ambiguous problems into scalable, production-grade systems. This role requires a leader who sets a high bar for execution and thrives in ambiguity.

WHAT YOU’LL DO

• Own and drive the data science vision for the Identity Graph, delivering measurable gains in accuracy, coverage, latency, and customer impact.
• Lead, build, and develop a high-performing team of data scientists and applied researchers, fostering technical excellence, speed, and accountability.
• Entity Resolution: Drive state-of-the-art approaches to resolving records and signals into unique, high-confidence identities at global scale.
• Entity Linking: Advance the models that connect identities to the attributes, devices, addresses, and other entities that make up the graph.
• Graph Ontology: Define and evolve the schema, relationships, and semantics of the graph so it stays consistent, extensible, and useful across products.
• Identity Classification: Build models that classify identities and the evidence behind them, including corroborated identities, thin files, PII fragments, and synthetic identities.
• Enrichment and Derived Attributes: Lead development of derived attributes and inferences, such as lifestyle indicators and marital status, that extend what the graph can tell us about an identity.
• Apply deep learning, representation learning, and graph learning (including GNNs and link prediction) to structured, unstructured, and network data.
• Own the end-to-end model lifecycle: data strategy, feature engineering, development, evaluation, deployment, and monitoring.
• Partner closely with Product, Engineering, Risk, and Go-to-Market to translate business needs into scalable solutions that deliver customer value.
• Ensure alignment with regulatory and privacy requirements, balancing model performance with explainability, auditability, and governance.
• Raise the bar on experimentation and execution velocity while maintaining high standards for reliability and impact.
• Serve as a trusted technical leader with customers, partners, and internal stakeholders, and represent Socure externally as a thought leader in identity and applied AI.

WHAT YOU BRING

• Advanced degree (MS/PhD preferred) in Computer Science, Statistics, Mathematics, Engineering, or a related field.
• 10+ years of experience in data science and machine learning, with a strong track record of delivering production-grade systems at scale.
• Team management experience required. You have led and scaled high-performing data science teams, including hiring, developing, and retaining senior talent.
• Deep expertise in entity resolution, record linkage, and entity linking on large, noisy, heterogeneous datasets.
• Strong experience with graph data modeling, ontology design, and graph ML (GNNs, link prediction, community detection).
• Experience with identity classification or risk problems such as synthetic identity detection, thin-file or fragmentary identity handling, or fraud modeling.
• Experience building enrichment or inference models on top of identity or consumer data, with attention to accuracy, bias, and privacy.
• Hands-on experience with Apache Spark and large-scale distributed data systems.
• Proficiency in Python and modern ML frameworks (e.g., PyTorch). Familiarity with graph ML frameworks is a plus.
• Significant experience in identity verification, KYC/AML, fraud detection, or adjacent fintech domains is strongly preferred.
• Demonstrated ability to drive ambiguous, high-impact problems to production, balancing speed, rigor, and business outcomes.
• Ability to explain complex models and trade-offs clearly to technical and non-technical audiences, including customers and executives.

WHAT YOU’LL GET

• Work on some of the most challenging and impactful problems in identity and fraud prevention.
• Build the industry-defining identity graph at the heart of Socure’s products.
• Join a fast-moving, high-caliber team that values innovation and ownership.
• Competitive compensation, equity, and benefits.
• Opportunity to shape the future of digital identity at global scale.

Socure can only hire within ~45 miles of San Francisco, New York, Seattle, Miami. We are unable to provide sponsorship support now or in the future.

Socure is an equal opportunity employer that values diversity in all its forms within our company. We do not discriminate based on race, religion, color, national origin, gender, sexual orientation, age, marital status, veteran status, or disability status. If you need an accommodation during any stage of the application or hiring process, including interview or onboarding support, please reach out to your Socure recruiting partner directly.

Socure is an equal opportunity employer that values diversity in all its forms within our company. We do not discriminate based on race, religion, color, national origin, gender, sexual orientation, age, marital status, veteran status, or disability status. If you need an accommodation during any stage of the application or hiring process—including interview or onboarding support—please reach out to your Socure recruiting partner directly.