Data Protection Engineer

Job Description:

A Data Protection Engineer is responsible for designing, implementing, and maintaining technical controls that safeguard an organization’s sensitive and regulated data throughout its lifecycle. This role combines cybersecurity engineering, data governance, and compliance to protect data from unauthorized access, loss, misuse, or exfiltration across on-premises and cloud environments. You will collaborate with Security, IT, Legal, and Compliance teams to deliver secure, scalable, compliant data protection solutions.

Key Responsibilities:

Technical Implementation & Engineering

• Design, build, and maintain data protection controls such as encryption, access control, classification, and Data Loss Prevention (DLP) systems.

• Configure and optimize DLP and other data security technologies across endpoints, cloud, email, storage, and network channels.

• Implement automation and scripting solutions (e.g., PowerShell, Python) to streamline deployment, monitoring, and maintenance.

• Monitor data usage and control outputs to detect misuse, exfiltration, or policy violations; investigate and remediate incidents.

Policy & Compliance

• Develop, maintain, and enforce data protection policies aligned with relevant regulations and standards (e.g., GDPR, HIPAA, CCPA, ISO/NIST frameworks).

• Partner with Legal, Compliance, and Governance teams to ensure controls meet regulatory and corporate requirements.

• Assess risks through data classification and risk assessments; recommend technical and procedural mitigations.

Support & Collaboration

• Work with IT and business stakeholders to embed data protection into systems, processes, and development practices.

• Provide technical guidance, training, and documentation to cross-functional groups.

• Participate in incident response activities relating to data exposures or breaches; lead containment and remediation efforts.

Continuous Improvement

• Track emerging threats, technologies, and industry best practices to evolve data protection capabilities.

• Evaluate new tools and approaches (e.g., DSPM, CASB, data discovery) to enhance the security posture.

• Generate operational metrics, dashboards, and reports to communicate protection status and trends to leadership.

Qualifications:

Education & Experience

• Bachelor’s degree in Computer Science, Information Security, IT, or equivalent experience.

• Typically 3–8+ years of experience in cybersecurity, data protection, information security engineering, or related roles.

Technical Skills

• Strong understanding of data protection technologies — DLP, data classification, CASB, encryption, key management, and cloud security controls.

• Experience with cloud environments (AWS, Azure, Google Cloud Platform) and related data protection tooling.

• Scripting and automation proficiency (PowerShell, Python, etc.).

• Familiarity with security frameworks and compliance standards (ISO 27001, NIST, GDPR, HIPAA, etc.).

Soft Skills

• Excellent analytical, problem-solving, and communication skills to convey technical concepts to non-technical stakeholders.

• Ability to collaborate effectively across teams and drive alignment on security goals.

Certifications (Optional but Valued)

• CISSP, CCSP, CISM, CIPP/C, or equivalent cybersecurity/privacy certifications can be advantageous.