Stole money from options payment. Rife with mismanagement - Senior Software Engineer Malwarebytes Employee Review

1.0
Sep 17, 2021
Recommend
CEO approval
Business outlook

Pros

Nice offices. Almost everyone in satellite offices is friendly

Cons

There were plenty of bad experiences at mb but the theft of part of the money paid for stock options tops the list. Unfortunately with a base in California, the legal system there makes no financial sense to sue them and they know it. DO NOT rely on stock options as part of your compensation package. They do not issue a formal invoice for payment. They do not consider other currencies. Their unprofessional finance dept said they want to use paid money to cover their fees that their bank charged them instead of issuing the paid-for stock options. Fees which are their responsibility (and Shareworks let them silently change the details of the payment and award without notice for any reason). Advancement is related to who you make friends with in office management. There's a reason so many reviews here use the word 'favoritism'. Much of that is based on identify politics as approved in CA. Gradually execs change so many of us held on for promised positive changes because we really believe in the message and products, but things never change for the better Mismanagement means most feedback or expert advice doesn't make it up the chain or gets ignored in favour of decisions made in california, regardless of expertise. There's a lot of fake listening and because of that big opportunities are missed while you fix the same mistakes over and over, as other reviews have noted Senior structure is the source of mismanagment - californian identity politics is their only focus and they spend a lot of time on that in mandatory company meetings at the expense of everything else. Internal hackathons, idea crowdsourcing etc are run which should be a pro, but they are always handled in california (hq) where people in the room openly say they will vote based on identity, not what was presented (Irony unseen). Since participation is incentivized this bigotry should not be tolerated, but people feel like nothing will be done since its the same from the top and reporting makes you a target. The handful of skilled employees they have hung onto in each area has dwindled

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Malwarebytes Response
3y
Thank you for your feedback. We take your comments about stock purchase very seriously. We will investigate to the best of our ability based on your post. However, if you want to provide more details, please reach out to us at employerbrand@malwarebytes.com . While advancement – or promotion – is tied into the business needs, everyone at Malwarebytes has the opportunity for development of skills to be promotion-ready. It’s not identity politics—we strive to be sure everyone has fair opportunity, with diversity, equity and inclusion are part of our core values. Again, if you’d like to talk with us, please email here employerbrand@malwarebytes.com Thank you, Elvi

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5.0
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Pros

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2.0
Apr 15, 2026
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CEO approval
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Pros

Had some great coworkers during my time at MWB/TD, manager was always very encouraging, and pay was good

Cons

Outdated technology stack. The platform is built on legacy foundations, and modernization efforts haven't kept pace with the market. Leadership lacks domain depth. Many senior leaders don't have deep cybersecurity or IT backgrounds, which makes it difficult for them to set a clear product vision, read where the market is heading, or chart a credible path to get there. This was supposed to be a cyber company, but outside of the MDR team, that expertise is thin at the top. Good ideas die quietly. I brought forward multiple product ideas that were blocked repeatedly with the rationale that the company is "device-centric, not user-centric." That framing felt disconnected from what the market actually demands. Priorities shift without communication. Strategic direction changed several times during my tenure, but product was rarely looped in ahead of those shifts. I'd learn about new priorities after the fact, with no context on why things changed. Attrition goes unaddressed. There were multiple rounds of quiet layoffs and a steady stream of voluntary departures. Leadership never paused to examine why people were leaving or to share any explanation with the remaining team. The expectation was simply to carry on as if nothing had happened. Bottom line: A challenging culture, unclear leadership direction, and a product that isn't showing up on shortlists where competitors are winning deals. I'd encourage prospective candidates to ask hard questions before joining.

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