Offensive Privacy Engineer - USDS

Responsibilities

About TikTok U.S. Data Security

TikTok is the leading destination for short-form mobile video. Our mission is to inspire creativity and bring joy. U.S. Data Security (“USDS”) is a subsidiary of TikTok in the U.S. This new, security-first division was created to bring heightened focus and governance to our data protection policies and content assurance protocols to keep U.S. users safe. Our focus is on providing oversight and protection of the TikTok platform and U.S. user data, so millions of Americans can continue turning to TikTok to learn something new, earn a living, express themselves creatively, or be entertained. The teams within USDS that deliver on this commitment daily span across Trust & Safety, Security & Privacy, Engineering, User & Product Ops, Corporate Functions and more.

Why Join Us

Creation is the core of TikTok's purpose. Our platform is built to help imaginations thrive. This is doubly true of the teams that make TikTok possible.

Together, we inspire creativity and bring joy - a mission we all believe in and aim towards achieving every day.

To us, every challenge, no matter how difficult, is an opportunity; to learn, to innovate, and to grow as one team. Status quo? Never. Courage? Always.

At TikTok, we create together and grow together. That's how we drive impact - for ourselves, our company, and the communities we serve.

Join us.

We are looking for an experienced Offensive Privacy Engineer to join our testing team. In this role, you will conduct offensive privacy testing and identify vulnerabilities and/or misconfiguration to enhance the security and privacy of our systems and applications. Your efforts will ensure the protection of our users' data against potential threats, comply with applicable laws/regulations/committments and reduce attack paths within the USDS environment.

In order to enhance collaboration and cross-functional partnerships, among other things, at this time, our organization follows a hybrid work schedule that requires employees to work in the office 3 days a week, or as directed by their manager/department. We regularly review our hybrid work model, and the specific requirements may change at any time.

Responsibilities:

• Lead comprehensive privacy-focused penetration tests and/or emulate adversary-like behavior/opertaions on our infrastructure, application, products and services.
• Perform deep technical, hands-on offensive privacy testing to identify and exploit privacy and security weaknesses.
• Contribute to the creation of a testing framework to methodically test safeguards being designed and implemented
• Design and execute advanced testing methodologies specifically targeting privacy vulnerabilities.
• Develop detailed reports on findings, including actionable remediation recommendations.
• Work closely with XFN teams to address and remediate identified vulnerabilities.
• Communicate findings effectively to technical and non-technical stakeholders.
• Advocate for best practices in privacy and data protection, ensuring compliance with relevant privacy regulations (e.g., GDPR, CCPA).
• Stay updated on the latest privacy threats and integrate new findings into the testing program.
• Build and implement security testing tools and technologies to enhance privacy testing capabilities and promote automation.
• Continuously improve team processes and methodologies for better testing outcomes.
  
  

Qualifications

Minimum Qualifications:

• Bachelor’s degree in Computer Science, Information Security, or a related field. Advanced degrees or equivalent professional experience are preferred.
• 4 years of experience in offensive security testing, with a strong focus on privacy vulnerabilities.
• Proven experience in penetration testing, red teaming, and vulnerability assessments, particularly in privacy contexts.
• Relevant security certifications such as OSCP, OSEP, OSWA, OSWE, OWSE, OSED, GPEN, GXPN, GWAPT, GMOB, BSCP etc.
• Hands on technical experience in web, mobile and infrastructure penetration testing with tools like Burp Suite Pro, SQLMap, Frida, Objection, Android Studio, XCode, MobSF, Drozer
• Experience with conducting reverse engineering on mobile applications, including applications with anti-emulator and obfuscation protections
• Familiarity and experience working with frameworks like MITRE ATT&CK/D3FEND, NIST, CCPA, COPPA, OECS, ISO etc.
• Proven hands-on experience with programming and scripting languages (e.g., C/C , C#, Python, Golang, JS).
• Experience in various Operating Systems: Windows, *nix, MacOS, Android, iOS
• Knowledge of public cloud platforms (preferably OCI, Azure and AWS) and frameworks like OWASP Top 10 Web and Mobile
• Excellent analytical and problem-solving abilities.
• Strong communication skills, capable of conveying complex security concepts to diverse audiences.
• Excellent interpersonal skills with a high attention to detail
• Able to collaborate, prioritize duties, and work well on your own
• Open to travel as the need arises to perform testing on-site e.g. Data centers, office locations etc. (Estimated Frequency: once per month)
  
  

Preferred Qualifications:

• Experience with automation, big data and relational databases.
• Contributions to the privacy or security community through research, publications, or participation in bug bounty programs.
• Relevant industry certifications (e.g., CIPP, CIPT, CIPM)
  
  

D&I Statement

TikTok is committed to creating an inclusive space where employees are valued for their skills, experiences, and unique perspectives. Our platform connects people from across the globe and so does our workplace. At TikTok, our mission is to inspire creativity and bring joy. To achieve that goal, we are committed to celebrating our diverse voices and to creating an environment that reflects the many communities we reach. We are passionate about this and hope you are too.

Accommodation Statement

TikTok is committed to providing reasonable accommodations in our recruitment processes for candidates with disabilities, pregnancy, sincerely held religious beliefs or other reasons protected by applicable laws. If you need assistance or a reasonable accommodation, please reach out to us at https://shorturl.at/ktJP6

Data Security Statement

This role requires the ability to work with and support systems designed to protect sensitive data and information. As such, this role will be subject to strict national security-related screening.

Job Information

【For Pay Transparency】Compensation Description (Annually)

The base salary range for this position in the selected city is $118657 - $250000 annually.

Compensation may vary outside of this range depending on a number of factors, including a candidate’s qualifications, skills, competencies and experience, and location. Base pay is one part of the Total Package that is provided to compensate and recognize employees for their work, and this role may be eligible for additional discretionary bonuses/incentives, and restricted stock units.

Benefits may vary depending on the nature of employment and the country work location. Employees have day one access to medical, dental, and vision insurance, a 401(k) savings plan with company match, paid parental leave, short-term and long-term disability coverage, life insurance, wellbeing benefits, among others. Employees also receive 10 paid holidays per year, 10 paid sick days per year and 17 days of Paid Personal Time (prorated upon hire with increasing accruals by tenure).

The Company reserves the right to modify or change these benefits programs at any time, with or without notice.

For Los Angeles County (unincorporated) Candidates:

Qualified applicants with arrest or conviction records will be considered for employment in accordance with all federal, state, and local laws including the Los Angeles County Fair Chance Ordinance for Employers and the California Fair Chance Act. Our company believes that criminal history may have a direct, adverse and negative relationship on the following job duties, potentially resulting in the withdrawal of the conditional offer of employment:

• Interacting and occasionally having unsupervised contact with internal/external clients and/or colleagues;
• Appropriately handling and managing confidential information including proprietary and trade secret information and access to information technology systems; and
• Exercising sound judgment.