Security Lead

About Apheris

At Apheris, we are building the future of how AI is applied in pharmaceutical R&D. 
Our federated computing technology enables global pharma companies to collaborate securely on large AI models that accelerate drug discovery, without ever sharing their proprietary data. By powering multi-partner data networks across small molecules, antibodies, and protein folding, Apheris is redefining how science and AI intersect. 
We currently host two flagship networks: the AI Structural Biology (AISB) Network, focused on protein co-folding and binding affinity prediction, and the ADMET Network, focused on small-molecule property prediction. In addition, we have just launched ApherisFold, an enterprise co-folding application that enables pharma teams to deploy cutting-edge models such as OpenFold3 and Boltz-2 directly within their own environments.  

About the role

We are looking for a hands-on Security Lead with strong technical depth to define, operationalize, and scale Apheris’ security capabilities. You will own cloud and application security, incident response, IT and corporate security, and security tooling across our environment. 
You will collaborate closely with engineering, product, and leadership, ensuring that security is embedded throughout our systems, operations, and development processes. You will maintain and evolve the unified security control framework, build scalable security processes, and lead efforts to detect, respond to, and remediate threats. 
Your focus is on anticipating risks, enabling teams, and ensuring that security is a natural part of day-to-day work. If you thrive at the intersection of technical depth, operational excellence, and cross-functional collaboration, while also influencing architecture, processes, and culture, this role is for you.  

What you will do

• Own cloud and application security, including AWS security architecture, IAM, network security, and secure configuration management.
• Drive and continually improve application security practices, including secure coding guidance, threat modeling support, and automated security testing in the SDLC.
• Lead the incident response program, including playbook development, on-call readiness, threat detection, and response coordination.
• Manage vulnerability management processes, ensuring risks are identified, triaged, and remediated effectively with engineering teams.
• Maintain and evolve security tooling, including monitoring, logging, SIEM/alerting, and secrets management.
• Collaborate with engineering and platform teams to embed security considerations into design and architectural decisions.
• Contribute to the unified control framework, ensuring strong security foundations for ISO 27001 and SOC 2
• Own corporate and IT security, including endpoint management (e.g., MDM), identity and access management, and oversight of the external IT provider.
• Lead security reviews by our customers, acting as a confident, trusted partner to enterprise clients throughout their evaluation process.
• Stay ahead of emerging threats, technologies, and best practices to continuously uplift Apheris’ security posture.

What we expect from you

• A degree in computer science, engineering, or equivalent hands-on experience in technical roles.
• 5+ years of experience in security engineering, cloud security, application security, or similar technical security roles.
• Hands-on expertise with AWS security architecture, identity and access management, network security, and modern DevOps practices.
• Experience implementing or supporting secure development lifecycle (SDLC) practices, collaborating closely with engineering.
• Strong understanding of modern authentication, authorization, secrets management, and infrastructure-as-code security.
• Demonstrated experience handling security incidents, vulnerability management, or threat detection.
• Demonstrated experience