Head of Cyber Security Risk Management, Digital Identity

This role will require the post holder to have SC clearance to start and may be required to undergo Developed Vetting (DV) once in post, therefore successful candidates will be expected to either hold this or be willing to undertake the DV clearance process once in post.

More information on DV clearance is linked here

The Government Digital Service (GDS) is the digital centre of government. We are responsible for setting, leading and delivering the vision for a modern digital government.

Our priorities are to drive a modern digital government, by:

• joining up public sector services
• harnessing the power of AI for the public good
• strengthening and extending our digital and data public infrastructure
• elevating leadership and investing in talent
• funding for outcomes andprocuringfor growth and innovation
• committing to transparency and driving accountability

We are home to the Incubator for Artificial Intelligence (I.AI), the world-leading GOV.UK and at the forefront of coordinating the UK’s geospatial strategy and activity. We lead the Government Digital and Data function and champion the work of digital teams across government.

We’re part of the Department for Science, Innovation and Technology (DSIT) and employ more than 1,000 people all over the UK, with hubs in Manchester, London and Bristol.

The Government Digital Service is where talent translates into impact. From your first day, you’ll be working with some of the world’s most highly-skilled digital professionals, all contributing their knowledge to make change on a national scale.

Join us for rewarding work that makes a difference across the UK. You'll solve some of the nation’s highest-priority digital challenges, helping millions of people access services they need

As Head of Cyber Security Risk Management for One Login and Digital Identity you will play a central role in protecting the UK’s current and future digital identity ecosystem. At scale, One Login will be the front door for millions of users to access digital public services. Security, reliability and resilience are absolutely critical to delivering our mission. This is a high profile role, suited to an experienced security leader with a track record of setting direction and running security risk, governance and assurance for a complex area.

As Head of Cyber Security Risk Management you will have oversight for the Digital Identity Cyber Information Assurance team, taking responsibility for the governance, risk management, compliance and 3rd party assurance. In addition, you will be responsible for:

• governance, risk and assurance leadership: building civil servant capability to run a mature, responsive cyber assurance team, working in collaboration with One Logins dedicated Security Operations, Security Design & Architecture, Pods (developer teams) and wider GDS and DSIT cyber teams. Work in partnership with GDS (Privacy, Information Assurance, Security Architecture, Cyber), GSG, CDIO Cyber, NCSC and other government departments
• governance, risk and assurance: lead design, implementation and operating of information security governance frameworks aligned to DSIT and regulatory context. Ensure the team provides independent information assurance across the One Login Programme but work closely with the GDS Infosec team for second line assurance. Build and lead the third party and supply chain assurance strategy. Maintain and innovate the current risk management board ensuring present risk positions are clearly communicated to the senior leadership team (SLT).
• multi tier assurance: work closely with the GDS Infosec Team to support 2nd line assurance. Build and manage an integrated governance process which has a unified risk perspective enabling both first and second line assurance to work on a common understanding of the risk posture. Drive proactive engagement across both teams to stop any siloed forming and make sure the risk development lifecycle is balanced.
• policy & standards: develop and maintain security policies, standards frameworks, and governance processes aligned to government and industry best practice for complex cloud-native environments
• assurance & remediation: drive security assurance activities across One Login programmes, suppliers, and operational services, including audits, assessments, and ensuring timely remediation within required SLOs
• stakeholder collaboration: build strong relationships with key stakeholders—including GDS (Privacy, Information Assurance, Security Architecture), GSG, CDIO Cyber, and NCSC—to embed security into delivery, architecture, procurement, and operational decision making
• compliance & frameworks: ensure all operations meet stringent UK Government security requirements by supporting regulatory and contractual compliance activities, including alignment to standards such as NIST, CAF, and GovAssure
• governance & reporting: establish and maintain operational metrics to produce clear, meaningful reporting and dashboards that measure the programme's threat posture and support executive decision making
• security culture leadership: working in close collaboration with the Head of Product Security and Head of Security Operations for One Login and the GDS CISO, take responsibility for embedding a robust security culture across the programme.

This job is broadly open to the following groups:

• UK nationals
• nationals of the Republic of Ireland
• nationals of Commonwealth countries who have the right to work in the UK
• nationals of the EU, Switzerland, Norway, Iceland or Liechtenstein and family members of those nationalities with settled or pre-settled status under the European Union Settlement Scheme (EUSS) (opens in a new window)
• nationals of the EU, Switzerland, Norway, Iceland or Liechtenstein and family members of those nationalities who have made a valid application for settled or pre-settled status under the European Union Settlement Scheme (EUSS)
• individuals with limited leave to remain or indefinite leave to remain who were eligible to apply for EUSS on or before 31 December 2020
• Turkish nationals, and certain family members of Turkish nationals, who have accrued the right to work in the Civil Service

Further information on nationality requirements (opens in a new window)

This role will require the post holder to have SC clearance to start and may be required to undergo Developed Vetting (DV) once in post, therefore successful candidates will be expected to either hold this or be willing to undertake the DV clearance process once in post.

More information on DV clearance is linked here

The standard selection process for roles at GDS consists of:

• a simple application screening process - We only ask for a CV and cover letter of up to 750 words. Important tip - please ensure that your cover letter includes how you meet the skills and experience listed in the “person specification” section above
• A 90 minute video interview split into 3 main sections which are; leadership and competence questions
• presentation
• technical questions

Depending on how many applications we get, there might also be an extra stage before the video interview, for example a phone interview or a technical exercise.

In the event we receive a high volume of applications, we will conduct the initial sift against the lead criteria which is:

• a strong track record of experience leading security governance, assurance, risk, or compliance functions, ideally for a Critical National Infrastructure (CNI) or comparable risk/profile/impact level product

In the Civil Service, we use Success Profiles to evaluate your skills and ability. This gives us the best possible chance of finding the right person for the job, increases performance and improves diversity and inclusivity. We’ll be assessing your technical abilities, skills, experience and behaviours that are relevant to this role.

For this role we’ll be assessing you against the following Civil Service Behaviours:

• leadership
• seeing the bigger picture
• making effective decisions
• working together
• technical competency

We’ll also be assessing your experience and specialist technical skills against the following skills defined in the Government Cyber Framework role: Cyber Security Governance and Risk Management

• information risk assessment and risk management - expert
• applied security capability - practitioner
• protective security - expert
• threat understanding - practitioner

Want to know more about who Government Digital and Data are? Click Here

Recruitment Timeline

Sift completion: Thursday 3rd September 2026

Panel interviews: Thursday 10th September 2026 and Friday 11th September 2026

Candidates that do not pass the interview but have demonstrated an acceptable standard may be considered for similar roles at a lower grade.

A reserve list will be held for a period of 12 months, from which further appointments can be made.

The Civil Service is committed to attract, retain and invest in talent wherever it is found. To learn more please see the Civil Service People Plan and the Civil Service D&I Strategy.

Please note that this role requires SC clearance, which would normally need 5 years’ UK residency in the past 5 years. This is not an absolute requirement, but supplementary checks may be needed where individuals have not lived in the UK for that period. This may mean your security clearance (and therefore your appointment) will take longer or, in some cases, not be possible.

For meaningful checks to be carried out, you will need to have lived in the UK for a sufficient period of time, to enable appropriate checks to be carried out and produce a result which provides the required level of assurance. Whilst a lack of UK residency in itself is not necessarily a bar to a security clearance, and expectation of UK residency may range from 3 to 5 years. Failure to meet the residency requirements needed for the role may result in the withdrawal of provisional jobs offers.

Sponsorship

DSIT cannot offer Visa sponsorship to candidates through this campaign. DSIT holds a Visa sponsorship licence but this can only be used for certain roles and this campaign does not qualify.

Feedback will only be provided if you attend an interview or assessment.