Data Protection Officer

About the Role

We are seeking a dedicated Data Protection Officer to join Coreonation Registrars. This role focuses on establishing and maintaining an Information Security Management System (ISMS) aimed at safeguarding the organization’s information assets. Success in this position ensures that the company complies with relevant legal, regulatory, and contractual data protection requirements while aligning with business risk appetite.

Key Responsibilities

• Disseminate the organization’s information security policies to relevant staff and, when appropriate, to clients.
• Coordinate the implementation of approved information security strategies and initiatives.
• Implement data protection policies, managing the full spectrum of compliance and regulatory requirements.
• Act as the primary liaison for data subjects, regulatory agencies, and internal teams for all data protection concerns.
• Carry out data protection and risk impact assessments, proactively identifying and managing risks.
• Handle data subject requests related to access, modification, or deletion of personal information.
• Regularly assess and audit compliance with data protection policies.
• Conduct periodic information security risk assessments and devise mitigation plans.
• Document security controls thoroughly and monitor security incidents, ensuring proper incident management and resolution processes are in place.
• Maintain continual improvement initiatives and compile reports on progress.
• Facilitate incident management transparency by providing access to relevant information for involved staff.
• Organize regular service review meetings and promote best practices, including the adoption of technology to enhance controls and procedures.
• Engage with external experts during vulnerability assessments, penetration testing, and IT audits.
• Analyze current and emerging information system risks, ensuring controls align with business needs throughout system development and changes.
• Enforce segregation of duties through maker-checker controls across all business systems and IT infrastructure.
• Work collaboratively across departments to develop and enforce company-wide policies safeguarding confidentiality, integrity, and availability of information assets.
• Establish and monitor database access control policies and support auditing teams with account and transaction reviews.
• Create and manage automated monitoring scripts and perform application and API testing using tools such as Oracle, ACL, Swagger, Postman, and Azure microservices.
• Perform daily application server monitoring to detect unauthorized changes and assess impact on security and service continuity.
• Implement controls to mitigate various institutional risks, including market, credit, and operational risks.
• Coordinate with business units on risk and control assessments and maintain risk registers.
• Track key risk indicators and prepare quarterly risk reports.
• Develop procedures for the early identification of emerging risks facing the business.
• Perform additional duties as assigned by the Chief Executive Officer.

Qualifications and Experience

• Bachelor of Science in Accounting, Finance, Information Technology, Computer Science, or Computer Engineering, with a minimum of Second-Class Upper Division.
• At least five years of professional experience in Data Protection and Information Security roles, preferably within the Nigerian Capital Market.
• Superior verbal, written, and visual communication skills.
• Relevant professional certifications such as CEH, CISA, CRISC, CISM, CIPP, CDPO, or ISO certifications are strongly preferred.

Skills and Competencies

• Comprehensive knowledge of information security frameworks.
• Strong analytical and problem-solving capabilities.
• Technical expertise in vulnerability assessment, cybersecurity, and risk management.
• Proficiency with Governance, Risk, and Compliance (GRC) tools for managing risk and compliance.
• Deep understanding of data protection laws, especially Nigeria Data Protection Regulation (NDPR), and their organizational application.