Team Lead, Application Security

Forward Financing; United States; On-site; USD 175,000 - 200,000; Full time

Job summary

Forward Financing, a fintech with a distributed US-based team, seeks a seasoned application security leader. You will drive security across Forward‑built, third‑party, and AI‑built software, while growing a high‑caliber team and defining remediation workflows.

This role emphasizes scaling AI‑security programs and influencing engineering decisions. You’ll partner with cross‑functional teams, build robust controls, and ensure secure SDLC practices, enabling safe AI‑driven product acceleration

Qualifications

• Typically has 7+ years in application security, offensive security, or product security, including leadership.
• Hands‑on pentesting and code review depth across web apps, APIs, and cloud (AWS).
• Experience building or scaling a security testing program with scoping, tooling, cadence, and SLAs.
• Understanding AI/LLM attack surface: prompt injection and insecure agent tool use.
• Proficiency in modern languages (Ruby, Python, Go) and secure SDLC practices.
• Ability to crisply communicate risk and priorities to engineers and executives.

Responsibilities

• Lead application and product security across Forward‑built, third‑party, and AI‑built software.
• Evolve the pentest program and continuously test new agents and software.
• Proactively build and integrate AI security solutions within the appsec function.
• Own remediation workflows and vulnerability management with Engineering.
• Partner with teams to build controls for external exposure: allowlists, egress proxy, DLP.
• Support test‑to‑production reviews to ensure AI work is security‑reviewed before promotion.
• Grow and develop a team of senior engineers; set quality and coverage standards.
• Build and maintain security services within the Forward application stack.

Skills

Security leadership

Offensive security

Hands-on pentesting

Code review

AWS / cloud

Secure SDLC

Executive communication

Education

Bachelor's Degree in Computer Science

Tools

Ruby

Python

Go

AWS

Job description

Forward Financing is a financial technology company based in Boston, Massachusetts with team members throughout the United States, Dominican Republic, and Canada. The company is on a mission to unlock the capital that fuels small businesses across America. Recognized as a Best Place to Work by Built In Boston and certified as a Great Place To Work®, Forward is investing in its employees, technology, and customer experience – with long‑term success in mind every step of the way.

In This Role You Will

• Lead application and product security across Forward-built, third‑party, and AI‑built software.
• Evolve the pentest program: aggressively security‑test and remediate existing software, then continuously test net‑new agents and the software agents create.
• Proactively build and integrate AI solutions within the appsec function.
• Own remediation workflows and vulnerability management with Engineering, including pre‑production vs. post‑production gap analysis.
• Partner with other teams to build controls to contain external exposure: network allowlists, egress proxy, and proxy‑level DLP.
• Support the test‑to‑production review process so AI‑built work is security‑reviewed before promotion.
• Grow and develop a team of senior engineers; set quality and coverage standards for offensive testing.
• Build and maintain security services within the Forward application stack.

Why You Should Apply

• Shape a growing function: This is a high‑visibility leadership role at a pivotal moment for Forward's security program. You'll have the mandate and support to build the team, tools, and processes needed to secure AI‑built software from the ground up.
• Mission driven company: Forward is a trusted source of fast, flexible funding for small businesses that have often been underserved by traditional financing options. When you join the team, you will help ensure all small businesses have access to the financial support they need to succeed.
• Flexibility is a top priority: Our employees are empowered to choose where they want to work (whether that’s from home, in the office, or a combination of both) with flexible hours.

Role Requirements

• Typically has 7 or more years in application security, offensive security, or product security, including team leadership.
• Hands‑on pentesting and code‑review depth across web applications, APIs, and cloud infrastructure (AWS).
• Experience building or scaling a security testing program — scoping, tooling, cadence, and remediation SLAs.
• Understanding of AI/LLM attack surface: prompt injection, insecure agent tool use, and vulnerabilities characteristic of AI‑generated code.
• Experience with modern programming languages such as Ruby, Python, or Go, and with secure SDLC practices.
• Ability to communicate risk and priorities crisply to engineers and executives.
• Typically has a Bachelor's Degree in Computer Science or equivalent technical degree, or equivalent industry experience.

It Would Be Nice If You Also Had

• Experience pentesting or red‑teaming LLM applications and agentic systems.
• OSCP/OSWE or comparable offensive certifications.
• Experience running bug‑bounty or external testing programs.
• Background in fintech or other regulated environments.

Compensation

Annual Targeted Salary: $175,000– $200,000 USD
Annual Target Bonus: 12%

At Forward Financing, we're committed to fair and transparent compensation. We believe in providing a compensation package that recognizes your skills, experience, and the unique value you bring to our team. We take a market‑based approach to pay, regularly reviewing benchmark data to ensure our compensation remains competitive, equitable, and aligned with our performance‑driven culture. Final offers are determined by a variety of factors, including the candidate's qualifications, relevant experience, specific skills, and internal equity. This approach ensures that our compensation is competitive and equitable. Your recruiter will provide specific details on the expected base and variable earnings as it pertains to this specific role.