Head of Blockchain Security

As Head of Blockchain Security at CoinDesk, you own and elevate the end-to-end security posture of blockchain infrastructure, custody systems, and smart contract protocols. You operate as both a high-impact technical authority and strategic partner to internal teams, protocol founders, and external security partners. In this role, you design scalable security frameworks, lead complex audits across multi-chain environments, and engineer rapid-response mechanisms to protect assets in high-stakes environments. This role is based in New York City and requires onsite work a minimum of 4 days per week.

What you'll do

• Lead deep-dive architectural reviews and security audits of smart contracts in Solidity, Rust, and Move, focusing on protocol-level vulnerabilities, and oversee external third-party audits for high-complexity releases
• Produce clear, prioritized technical risk reports and serve as the primary security advisor to protocol founders, engineering leads, and executive leadership, translating complex risks into actionable decisions
• Build, deploy, and maintain robust blockchain monitoring, alerting, and automated detection systems across major ecosystems
• Design and operate automated emergency exit workflows to protect protocol assets under adverse market or security conditions, and facilitate cross-industry incident response tabletop exercises
• Conduct rigorous technical assessments of external institutional custody systems, internal treasury controls, and third-party vendor infrastructure
• Build repeatable security frameworks and processes that enable the security program to scale alongside aggressive organizational growth

What you bring

• 7+ years in cyber security, with 5+ years dedicated specifically to blockchain and smart contract security
• Hands-on experience assessing smart contracts written in Solidity, Rust, and/or Move
• Strong background in C/C++, Linux, and cloud native architectures (AWS, Azure, GCP)
• Proven background in senior-level penetration testing, application security, offensive security methodologies, design reviews, and threat modeling (OWASP Top 10, SANS CWE 25)
• Deep expertise in applied cryptography (PKI, algorithms, encryption at rest/in transit) and network/protocol fundamentals (IP, DNS, HTTP, SSL/TLS)
• Strong working knowledge of institutional custody infrastructure and major DeFi protocols across Ethereum, Solana, Stacks, and Sui
• Ability to articulate critical risks concisely to technical and non-technical stakeholders, with outstanding self-management and operational autonomy across global time zones

Nice to have

• Offensive security certifications (OSCP, OSWE, OSCE) or related credentials
• Track record of public security research, published vulnerability papers, or presentations at major industry conferences

What we offer

• Base salary of $260,000-$275,000 plus discretionary annual target bonus and performance incentives/benefits
• Onsite role based in New York City (minimum 4 days per week)

About CoinDesk

CoinDesk is the most trusted media, events, indices and data company for the global crypto economy. Since 2013, CoinDesk Media has delivered award-winning journalism and insights on the transformation of money and investing. In November 2023, CoinDesk was acquired by the Bullish group, owner of Bullish, a regulated digital assets exchange. CoinDesk operates as an independent subsidiary with an editorial committee to protect journalistic independence.