[Hiring] Lead Security Engineer @LawnStarter

Role Description

You lead security at LawnStarter end-to-end: the PHP/Laravel and TypeScript/React codebase, the AWS infrastructure, the payments and customer-data flows, and the compliance posture. You set the multi-year direction, build the controls, and are the person the org looks to on every security question.

• Start hands-on — security-of-one for now — with an explicit path to leading a small team within roughly 12-18 months.
• Lead by doing first; collaborate heavily with delivery teams and lean on Cloud & DevOps where it helps.
• Prioritize ruthlessly, automate hard, and focus on reducing risk effectively.

What makes this role different:

• You lead the function, transforming security into a deliberate, instrumented practice.
• You span every layer, from AppSec to AWS IAM to PCI scoping.
• You secure an AI-agent codebase, addressing challenges unique to AI-authored code.
• You build for the team you'll grow, laying down standards and playbooks.
• You set the bar as the lead security voice and define the standard for the org.

What You'll Own:

• Application security — threat modeling, secure-SDLC practices, code and design review, and vulnerability management.
• Cloud & infrastructure security — AWS posture, secrets management, and EKS/Kubernetes hardening.
• Compliance & data protection — mapping PCI scope, driving SOC 2 and LGPD readiness.
• Detection & response — strengthening detection coverage and establishing an incident runbook.
• The security bar for AI-agent code — implementing scans, review gates, and conventions.
• The foundation for the team you'll lead — establishing standards and hiring criteria.

Qualifications

• AI-native — uses AI tools daily in security work.
• Deep across most of the stack — hands-on expertise in at least three of appsec, cloud, compliance, and response.
• A builder and a leader-in-training — energized by shaping practices and setting standards.
• A pragmatic risk-prioritizer — ships controls that reduce the most risk with the least friction.
• A hands-on engineer — writes scripts, builds pipelines, and configures AWS guardrails.
• A strong collaborator — works closely with delivery teams and Cloud & DevOps.
• Payments- and marketplace-minded — reasons about risk in the context of real customers and transactions.

Requirements

• Not a specialist lane — must engage with all aspects of security.
• Not a gatekeeper seat — focus on making secure shipping the easy path.
• Not a paper-and-policy role — must build technical controls behind policies.
• Not a hands-off management role — starts as an individual contributor with plans to lead a team.
• Not a caretaker role — must shape and level up the security practice.

Benefits

• Lead security and define the company's security function.
• Top-of-market cash compensation reflecting the lead scope and technical leadership.
• Fully remote (Brazil) with a US-distributed engineering team.
• Contractor (PJ) engagement for Brazil-based independent contractors.
• AI tooling provided for security work.