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Plaid is seeking a founding Head of Detection and Response to build and lead a new security operations function from the ground up. This role sits at the intersection of security engineering, fraud operations, and incident response, reporting to the CISO and partnering closely with senior technical leadership.
You will establish Plaid's Detection and Response team, defining its culture, operational standards, and technical roadmap. The team will own the full lifecycle of security detection and response: building detection infrastructure, implementing AI-driven triage systems, developing investigation tooling, conducting red team exercises, and managing fraud operations. This is a hands-on leadership role where you'll mentor a specialized team of security analysts and engineers while maintaining deep technical credibility.
Key responsibilities include: forming the team and setting operational standards; leading day-to-day incident response and evaluating program effectiveness; managing and mentoring technical staff across detection, investigation, and red teaming; overseeing fraud operations to maintain a proactive security posture; partnering with CISO, CTO, and COO to communicate security risks and maturity improvements; and defining metrics to demonstrate program impact.
You bring 8–14 years of detection and response or security engineering experience, with strong technical depth in SIEMs, EDR, and SOC operations. You've managed teams of security analysts and engineers in operational or infrastructure contexts. You excel at building cross-functional relationships and driving security maturity through influence. You communicate complex technical work clearly to senior leadership and have an AI-first mindset applicable to security operations. Experience in fintech, payments, or high-tech environments is a plus, as is a background in fraud investigation or software engineering.
Plaid powers financial connectivity for millions of users and thousands of companies, including Venmo, SoFi, and Fortune 500 firms. Founded in 2013 and headquartered in San Francisco, Plaid operates a network covering 12,000 financial institutions across the US, Canada, UK, and Europe. Security is foundational to the trust placed in Plaid's infrastructure.
