Expert Engineer, Security - Central Technology (Anti-Cheat)

Location: Vancouver, Canada

Salary: 115,060–227,010 CAD annual base pay

Company

Activision develops and publishes interactive entertainment franchises, including Call of Duty. Central Tech supports development studios through security, systems programming, infrastructure, optimization, graphics, data, and online services.

What you will do

• Design and implement advanced anti-cheat technologies for Call of Duty game clients.
• Analyze, update, and enhance protection frameworks against emerging threats.
• Investigate, develop, and deploy cheat detection mechanisms that preserve fair gameplay.
• Collaborate with engineers across multiple studios to integrate systems and maintain performance.
• Debug, optimize, and tune complex systems while contributing to scalable engineering practices.

Requirements

• 8+ years of relevant professional software development experience.
• Experience working on large-scale, complex systems.
• Deep familiarity with C++ codebases and refactoring.
• Experience in an engineering organization focused on CI/CD, scalability, and automation.
• Expertise in debugging, optimization, and performance tuning.
• Advanced knowledge of algorithms and data structures.
• Passion for low-level systems work, including reading and debugging compiled code at the assembly level.
• Curiosity and drive to understand systems under the hood, analyze their behavior, break them down, and improve them.
• Clear and effective written and verbal communication skills, with a strong commitment to high-quality products.

Nice to have

• Experience working on the internals of a multiplayer game engine.
• Experience in reverse engineering software analysis.
• DevOps experience.
• Background in mathematics and/or cryptography.
• Deep understanding of C++ compilation, linking, and toolchains, including diagnosing compiler and linker failures and optimizing build performance.
• Deep understanding of or hands-on experience in the anti-cheat domain.

Culture & Benefits

• Full-time employment with medical, dental, vision, insurance, and spending-account benefits, subject to eligibility.
• 401(k) with company match, tuition reimbursement, and charitable donation matching.
• Paid holidays and vacation, sick time, floating holidays, bereavement and parental leave.
• Mental health, wellbeing, and fitness programs, plus free and discounted games.
• Relocation assistance may be available if the company requires a geographic move for the role.
• Inclusive, diverse, and collaborative environment supporting knowledge sharing across studios.