Information Security Officer at SOUM (Riyadh, Saudi Arabia)
SOUM· Riyadh, Saudi Arabia·
Role details
Job description
Work Week: Sunday - Thursday Work Timings: 9 AM - 6 PM (Saudi Arabian Time Zone)
About Us: Soum is on a mission to revolutionize e-commerce in the MENA region and beyond by building the most convenient and trustworthy re-commerce marketplace in the region. We're reshaping how C2C marketplaces operate, making buying and selling second-hand products seamless and reliable. Since our launch in July 2021, Soum has become one of the fastest-growing startups in the region, achieving rapid expansion in both our team and product offerings. In recognition of our impact and growth, we were proudly named one of the Top 10 LinkedIn Startups in Saudi Arabia for 2024.
Job Summary: We are looking for a virtual cybersecurity or compliance expert to guide our security posture, particularly as we move into regulated spaces like auto-financing. The role is ideal for someone with extensive regulatory familiarity and previous experience operating in a strategic advisory capacity.
Key Responsibilities
- Lead compliance audits aligned with KSA regulations, especially SAMA frameworks
- Review and implement data security strategies across departments
- Support regulatory submissions and responses for fintech operations
- Oversee documentation and data protection practices
- Coordinate with product and legal teams to maintain standards
Ideal Profile
- Saudi national 3-4 years experience
- Deep understanding of SAMA regulatory requirements and KSA cybersecurity law
- Experience operating through or with an agency setup (ideal)
- Familiarity with ISO 27001, NIST, SOC 2 compliance standards
- Ability to lead cross-functional audit and compliance efforts across departments
Why work at SOUM
- Culture: Soum describes itself as looking for "innovators, the hungry, the go-getters" and offers autonomy to experiment, learn, fail, and grow. The team is called "Soumers" and has worked across 14+ countries from the US to South Korea.
- Remote/Hybrid Policy: Mixed. Many roles are remote (e.g., Cairo-based positions), but some roles (e.g., Senior Compliance Officer, Operations roles) are on-site in Riyadh or Jeddah. The company has offices in Riyadh and Cairo.
- Global & Diverse Team: 90 employees spread across 8 countries (Saudi Arabia, Egypt, Pakistan, UAE, South Korea, Nigeria, Uzbekistan, US). Engineering and product teams are distributed.
- Engineering Culture: AI/ML is core to the product; they deploy models for recommendations, dynamic pricing, predictive analytics, and fraud detection. The technical team makes up ~12% of headcount.
- Growth Trajectory: High-growth startup (10%+ YoY headcount growth, expanding geographies and categories) offering significant ownership and impact.
- Compensation: Senior Software Engineer roles reported at ~SAR 128,877/month. Overall employer rating is 3.7/5 (19 reviews on LinkedIn), with Culture rated 3.6 and Career growth rated 3.5.
- AI in Hiring: Soum discloses that they use AI tools to support parts of the hiring process (reviewing applications, analyzing resumes, identifying signals), but final decisions are made by humans.