Head: IT Security Gauteng

BRIEF DESCRIPTION:-

The Head of IT Security will lead the bank's cyber security and information security capabilities, developing and implementing a comprehensive strategy to protect customer information, payment systems, and digital channels from cyber threats. Key responsibilities include developing and implementing security strategies, serving as the senior in-house information security authority, directing security design and engineering, and leading security operations and incident response. The ideal candidate will have a bachelor's degree in a relevant field, 10 years of IT experience, and 8 years of experience in cyber security, with leadership experience in banking technology and payment systems security.

**Head of IT Security**

**About the Role**

We are seeking an accomplished Head of IT Security to lead our bank's cyber security, information security, cryptography, security engineering, and security operations capabilities. As the Senior Information Security Authority, you will be responsible for protecting customer information, payment systems, card environments, digital channels, banking platforms, and South African Social Security Agency payment services from cyber threats, ransomware, insider threats, unauthorized access, identity compromise, privilege abuse, data loss, service disruption, and technology compromise.

**Key Responsibilities**

**Cyber and Information Security Strategy**

• Develop and implement a comprehensive cyber and information security strategy to safeguard critical technology services, customer information, and payment environments * Own the cyber security strategy, operating model, control roadmap, and executive cyber-risk reporting for ransomware, identity compromise, payment-system threats, insider threats, and data leakage risk * Establish security principles, standards, and control requirements aligned with risk appetite, regulatory obligations, and technology governance requirements * Develop the security operating model, control roadmap, and cyber resilience plan to strengthen prevention, detection, response, and recovery capabilities * Review security risks, emerging threats, and control maturity to prioritize security improvements and investment decisions * Report security posture, key risks, and improvement progress to governance forums to support informed oversight and accountability

**Senior Security Authority and Governance**

• Serve as the bank's senior in-house information security authority, providing practical and authoritative security guidance * Advise executive leadership, governance structures, risk forums, and audit stakeholders on cyber risk, resilience, and security investment priorities * Define security policies, standards, metrics, and reporting routines to support evidence-based decision-making * Assess material cyber risks, control gaps, residual risks, and compensating controls to support risk treatment or risk acceptance decisions * Promote security practices that balance risk reduction, operational continuity, customer access, and business realities

**Security Architecture and Engineering**

• Direct security design requirements across infrastructure, applications, networks, cloud services, endpoints, databases, and integration platforms to reduce technology exposure * Review solution designs, technical changes, architecture decisions, and vendor proposals to confirm alignment with approved security standards before implementation * Guide security engineering activities to implement identity, access, network, endpoint, application, and data protection controls * Validate security configurations and control effectiveness across critical platforms to reduce misconfiguration and unauthorized access risk * Support secure technology delivery for banking platforms, payment systems, card environments, digital channels, and South African Social Security Agency payment services

**Security Operations and Cyber Incident Response**

• Lead security monitoring capability to detect, assess, and respond to cyber threats across technology environments * Direct investigation of security alerts, vulnerabilities, phishing attacks, privileged account compromise, suspected data loss, and ransomware events to contain impact and restore secure operations * Lead the Security Operations Centre (SOC), Security Information and Event Management (SIEM), Security Orchestration Automation and Response (SOAR), Endpoint Detection and Response (EDR), Extended Detection and Response (XDR), threat monitoring, detection engineering, phishing response, privileged account compromise, and post-incident lessons learned * Develop cyber incident response plans, escalation protocols, and playbooks to support timely and coordinated response * Coordinate incident response with technology, risk, compliance, legal, communications, vendors, and executive stakeholders to manage business and regulatory impact * Review incident lessons learned to strengthen security controls, monitoring rules, recovery readiness, and response procedures

**Identity, Privileged Access, and Data Protection**

• Direct identity and access management controls to confirm that user access aligns with role requirements, segregation of duties, and least privilege principles * Oversee privileged access governance, service account control, administrative access review, access monitoring, and trusted identity recovery to reduce compromise risk * Strengthen data protection controls to reduce the risk of unauthorized disclosure, loss, alteration, or misuse of customer and bank information * Manage security testing, penetration testing, and control assurance activities to identify exploitable weaknesses before they affect operations * Track remediation actions for access, identity, data protection, and security findings to improve control maturity and reduce residual risk

**Cryptography and Key Management**

• Define cryptography standards and key management procedures to protect payment systems, card environments, customer data, and sensitive banking transactions * Oversee Hardware Security Module administration, encryption controls, and key lifecycle management to maintain secure cryptographic operations * Monitor privileged access to cryptographic systems to reduce unauthorized access and key compromise risk * Validate compliance with payment security, card security, encryption, and key management requirements to support secure transaction processing * Review cryptographic control exceptions and operational risks to drive corrective action and maintain trust in payment services

**Cyber Resilience and Recovery Readiness**

• Direct cyber resilience planning to support secure recovery from ransomware, destructive attacks, data compromise, and service disruption * Review backup protection, recovery validation, clean restoration procedures, business integrity checks to support safe service restoration, ransomware-oriented recovery controls, backup protection, clean restoration decision-making, and business integrity checks after cyber incidents * Coordinate cyber recovery planning with infrastructure, cloud, application, database, operations, and continuity teams to strengthen recovery readiness * Support disaster recovery tests, cyber simulation exercises, and recovery validation activities to confirm response capability and evidence readiness * Report recovery gaps, resilience risks, and remediation progress to governance forums to support informed decision-making

**Cloud, Endpoint, and Digital Security**

• Direct cloud, endpoint, email, collaboration platform, and digital channel security controls to protect customer-facing and productivity environments * Review cloud configuration, conditional access, mailbox security, endpoint protection, and internet-facing platform controls to reduce attack paths * Coordinate security monitoring across cloud services, digital channels, card services, and critical banking platforms to support risk-based protection * Track vulnerabilities, misconfigurations, and control gaps across cloud and endpoint environments to support timely remediation * Support secure adoption of new technology, outsourcing arrangements, and cloud services through practical security input * Microsoft 365 security, mailbox compromise response, conditional access, collaboration-platform abuse, and internet-facing platform hardening

**Regulatory Compliance and Security Assurance**

• Monitor security compliance against applicable legislation, regulatory requirements, industry standards, and internal policies to support assurance readiness * Maintain security evidence, control records, and compliance reports to support audit, regulatory, and management review processes * Coordinate responses to security audit findings, regulatory observations, and control weaknesses to support timely closure * Engage internal audit, external audit, risk, compliance, and regulators on security matters to address findings and improve the control environment * Promote secure ways of working across technology teams and third-party providers to strengthen accountability for security outcomes

**Third-Party Security and Governance Coordination**

• Oversee third-party cyber risk across security service providers, cloud providers, payment integrations, vendor connectivity, and outsourced security functions * Review vendor security controls, service commitments, and incident response obligations to support secure external service delivery * Challenge vendor performance where recurring incidents, weak controls, or poor response quality increase security risk * Provide senior security advice into major projects, architecture forums, outsourcing decisions, new technology adoption, and cloud migration decisions * Communicate security risks, control gaps, and remediation priorities clearly to support transparent stakeholder management

**Financial Management**

• Compile security budget inputs and forecasts to support planned investment in security tools, services, and specialist capability * Monitor security expenditure against approved budgets to manage costs within allocated financial parameters * Assess security investment options to balance risk reduction, compliance requirements, operational resilience, and value for money * Track benefits from security initiatives to demonstrate improved control effectiveness and reduced technology risk

**People Management**

• Clarify role expectations, priorities, and standards for direct reports to align delivery with security objectives * Lead performance planning, review, and feedback processes to support accountability and deliver * Coach and mentor direct reports to build capability in cyber security, cryptography, security engineering, security administration, and Hardware Security Module key administration * Allocate work, manage capacity, and monitor delivery timeframes to maintain effective functional performance * Support recruitment, onboarding, development, and succession planning to maintain a capable and sustainable security team * Address conduct, performance, and attendance matters in line with Human Resources policies and labor legislation

**Qualifications and Experience**

• Bachelor's Degree in Computer Science, Information Systems, Cyber Security, Computer Engineering, or related discipline (NQF Level 7) * Certificate in Cyber Security, Information Security Management, Network Security, Payment Security, or Information Technology Governance (NQF Level 6) * Leadership Development Programme * 10 Years Experience in the Information Technology industry * 8 Years Experience in cyber security, information security, security operations, cyber risk, or security engineering * 5 Years Experience in banking technology, payment systems, card environments, digital channels, or regulated financial services security * 5 Years Experience in leading cyber security teams, security governance forums, cyber resilience planning, and incident response activities

**Ideal Qualifications**

• Post Graduate Degree in Computer Science, Information Systems, Cyber Security, Cyber Risk, Technology Governance, or related discipline (NQF Level 8) * Advanced Certificate in Information Security Management, Cyber Risk Management, Security Architecture, Security Audit, or Information Technology Governance (NQF Level 6) * Advanced Certificate in Payment Security, Data Protection, Security Operations, Cryptography Management, or Information Security Audit (NQF Level 6)

**Advantageous Qualifications**

• 5 Years Experience in cryptography, Hardware Security Module administration, key management, payment security, or card security environment * 3 Years Experience in Payment Card Industry Data Security Standards, Payment Card Industry Personal Identification Number requirements, Protection of Personal Information Act South African Reserve Bank, Payment Association of South Africa, or security audit compliance environments * 3 Years Experience in third-party cyber risk management, managed security service governance, cyber maturity improvement, or security operating model implementation

**Special Requirements**

• May be required to provide standby or incident support for major cyber security incidents, ransomware events, suspected data compromise, payment security incidents, critical system changes, disaster recovery tests, cyber recovery exercises, regulatory reviews, or urgent security events