Senior Data Security Architect

Our client is seeking a forward-thinking and collaborative Senior Data Security Architect to design and lead initiatives that safeguard enterprise data across its entire lifecycle. This strategic role requires a deep understanding of data security architectures, regulatory mandates, and hands-on experience securing large-scale data environments. The ideal candidate will work closely with cross-functional teams - including data engineering, architecture, and AI/ML teams-to build robust security and privacy into all aspects of data operations.

Key Responsibilities:

• Develop and drive enterprise-level data protection strategies, standards, and architectural frameworks.
  
• Collaborate with engineering, data, and analytics teams to integrate security controls across data platforms, processing pipelines, and machine learning ecosystems.
  
• Establish and enforce policies for data retention, archival, and disposal in compliance with legal and regulatory requirements.
  
• Lead the implementation of data security mechanisms such as encryption (in transit, at rest, in use), masking, anonymization, and tokenization in partnership with cryptography and engineering experts.
  
• Provide security architecture guidance for emerging AI/LLM solutions and apply Agentic security best practices.
  
• Ensure audit readiness and regulatory alignment (e.g., HIPAA, CCPA) through effective control implementation and documentation.
  
• Collaborate with legal, privacy, and compliance stakeholders to address data-related risks and ensure jurisdictional compliance.
  
• Shape the security posture of data lakes, AI/ML datasets, and advanced data systems.
  
• Champion the secure design and deployment of GenAI platforms, covering areas like model governance, privacy safeguards, threat detection, and advanced attack vectors (e.g., data poisoning, inference risks).
  
• Research and evaluate next-generation technologies relevant to data and AI security.
  
• Build strong partnerships internally and externally to guide technology decisions and influence secure data practices.
  
• Create and maintain architecture blueprints, security guidelines, and best practices aligned with business goals.
  
• Deliver regular updates to executive leadership on risk exposure, program milestones, and strategic direction.
  

Required Skills & Experience:

• Degree in Cybersecurity, Information Systems, Computer Science, or related technical discipline.
  
• Over 10 years of experience in cybersecurity, including a minimum of 5 years in data security, governance, and privacy roles.
  
• Expertise in data protection technologies such as DLP, classification, tokenization, and encryption.
  
• Proven track record securing cloud-native data platforms such as Snowflake, Databricks, or similar.
  
• Familiar with MLOps environments and securing the end-to-end model lifecycle-training, deployment, and ongoing monitoring.
  
• In-depth knowledge of AI security threats and mitigation strategies, including adversarial attacks and secure model handling.
  
• Understanding of security frameworks and best practices for managing the data lifecycle.
  
• Exposure to governance and metadata management tools such as Informatica, Microsoft Purview, or Collibra.
  
• Solid grasp of public cloud security (especially AWS) as it applies to data services and infrastructure.
  
• Strong understanding of privacy regulations such as CCPA and HIPAA.
  
• Excellent communication and collaboration skills; experience influencing diverse technical teams.
  

Preferred Certifications:

• CISSP, CCSP, or CISM
  
• CIPP/US or other recognized privacy credentials
  
• GIAC Data Protection (GDAT), AWS Certified Security - Specialty, or equivalent
  

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