Software Engineer - USDS

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 subsidary 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.

About the Team
We are seeking an experienced Automation Engineer to join the Threat Discovery & Prevention (TDP) Team within the US Trust & Safety (T&S) organization. TikTok T&S helps ensure that our global community is safe and empowered to create and enjoy content across all of our applications.
As a Senior Software Engineer on the Risk and Response Detection and Optimization team you will develop automations and playbooks for threat intelligence ingestion, monitoring, and response. You will work cross functionally with other Trust and Safety teams and Security teams to collaborate on threat initiatives and tune tools to identify false positives and potential false negatives. You will additionally team with other functions to identify areas that could benefit from automation and develop technologies to streamline processes.

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.

This role may be exposed to harmful content in this role as part of their core day-to-day functions, as well as in project work; in response to escalation requests; or by chance.
Some content viewed my violate our community guidelines which include but are not limited to bullying; hate speech; child abuse; sexual assault; torture; bestiality; self-harm; suicide; and murder.

Responsibilities:
- Develop scripts and products in python for internal use
- Writing detection logic to catch violative content at scale
- Ideate through complex use-cases, determine feasibility of work, build user friendly proprietary products to improve efficiency and consistency
- Identify, collect, and report metrics related to threat intelligence, content development , and automation.
- Manage the effectiveness of tooling, rationalizing tools as needed, and identifying new tool needs as necessary
- Troubleshoot issues, conduct RCAs, maintain automations and tooling, and document your workMinimum Qualifications:
- Bachelor's degree or industry equivalent work experience in Computer Science or Computer Engineering.
- Proficiency in Python
- 2 years of industry experience
- Automation experience, plus if you have experience with Security and/or Trust and Safety use-cases
- Understanding of current industry data analytical capabilities and shortcomings
- Strong technical documentation and reporting skills
- Ability to handle confidential information with discretion

Preferred Qualifications:
- Experience working on a Trust and Safety or Security team
- SQL Proficiency
- Security automation experience is a plus, such as working with SOAR or threat intel tools
- Working knowledge of cloud platforms (i.e. OCI, GCP, AWS, etc)
- Knowledge of social media processes and products, as well as current gaps that can be exploited by threat actors
- Your ability to work in a high tempo environment, adapt, respond to day-to-day challenges of the role.
- Your resilience and commitment to self-care to manage the emotional demands of the role.

Wellbeing Statement
Trust & Safety recognizes that keeping our platform safe for TikTok communities is no ordinary job. It can be rewarding, psychologically demanding, and emotionally taxing. This is why we are sharing the potential hazards, risks and implications in this unique line of work from the start: so our candidates are well informed before proceeding.

We are committed to the wellbeing of all our employees and promise to provide comprehensive and evidence-based programs, to promote and support physical and mental wellbeing throughout each employee's journey with us. We believe that wellbeing is a relationship and that everyone has a part to play, so we work in collaboration and consultation with our employees and across our functions in order to ensure a truly person-centred, innovative and integrated approach.

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.