Facebook parent Meta Platforms has named a company vice president as chief information security officer (CISO), the first person to fill that role at the social media company.

Guy Rosen, who has been at Facebook since 2013 and most recently led the company’s product safety and integrity efforts, said on Twitter in his new role he “will continue to oversee and look across the breadth of safety & security risks the people who use our services, our company and industry face.”

This is the first CISO Facebook has had. Facebook was renamed Meta Platforms in October 2021 but it kept the name “Facebook” for its social media app.

Meta Chief Executive Mark Zuckerberg said in a memo seen by Reuters that he had asked Rosen to assume the job and said the move was “another step to elevate this security work in our DNA – and strengthen our leadership and governance on security issues.”

In his expanded role, Rosen “will have overall accountability for safety and security around on-platform abuse as well as the security of our products, infrastructure and company information – focused on both internal and external risks,” Zuckerberg wrote.

Facebook’s previous chief security officer, Alex Stamos, left in 2018.

Recently, Meta veteran Javier Olivan was announced to be taking over as the company’s chief operating officer after playing a crucial but largely behind-the-scenes role stoking the social media company’s explosive growth for 15 years.

The Spaniard will replace Sheryl Sandberg, who announced on last Wednesday she was stepping down from Meta.

The move comes as Meta struggles with slowing growth and rising costs. It is transforming from a social media company to one focused on building the metaverse, a collection of virtual worlds that could be a decade away.

© Thomson Reuters 2022