SDE I Backend Engineer

Astra Security; Bengaluru; Hybrid; INR 900,000 - 1,300,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Hybrid work model

Health insurance

Annual team off-sites

Job summary

Astra Security, a cybersecurity SaaS company, seeks a Backend Engineer (SDE 1) to build and improve backend systems powering its AI-driven platform. You will develop APIs, backend services, and database components, collaborating with engineers, product managers, DevOps, and QA to ship reliable features at scale.

You will gain hands-on experience taking features from development to production, debugging real-world issues, and learning distributed backend systems.

Qualifications

• 1–3 years of experience building backend applications in a product-based or SaaS environment.
• Strong proficiency in at least one backend programming language such as Java, Python, PHP, or C++.
• Good understanding of OOP, data structures, algorithms, and core software engineering principles.
• Experience building or working with RESTful APIs.
• Good understanding of relational databases such as PostgreSQL or MySQL.
• Ability to write efficient SQL queries and understand basic database design.
• Basic understanding of asynchronous processing, queues, events, or background jobs.
• Familiarity with ORM, dependency injection, data validation, caching, logging, and error handling.
• Strong debugging and problem-solving skills.
• Good understanding of writing maintainable, testable code.
• Exposure to cloud platforms such as AWS is a plus.
• Experience using AI coding tools such as GitHub Copilot, Cursor, Claude Code, or similar tools is a plus.
• Strong communication skills and ability to work effectively with cross-functional teams.
• A strong learning mindset and willingness to take ownership of problems.

Responsibilities

• Build backend services and RESTful APIs powering Astra's platform.
• Write clean, maintainable, reusable code following software engineering best practices.
• Work with databases to design tables, write queries, and improve performance.
• Develop asynchronous workflows using queues, events, and background processing.
• Debug production and development issues and identify root causes.
• Write unit and integration tests to ensure reliability and quality.
• Collaborate with frontend, product, DevOps, and QA teams to deliver features.
• Participate in code reviews and apply feedback to improve engineering practices.
• Contribute to improving system reliability and engineering processes.
• Learn and work with modern backend and distributed-system technologies.

Skills

Java

Python

PHP

C++

OOP

Data structures

Algorithms

Software engineering principles

RESTful APIs

Relational databases

PostgreSQL

MySQL

Asynchronous processing

ORMs

Dependency injection

Data validation

Caching

Logging

Error handling

AWS

AI coding tools

Communication skills

Ownership

Learning mindset

Tools

GitHub Copilot

Cursor

Claude Code

Job description

Astra is a cybersecurity SaaS company that makes otherwise chaotic pentests a breeze with its one-of-a-kind Pentest Platform. Astra's continuous vulnerability scanner emulates hacker behavior to scan applications for 9,300+ security tests. CTOs & CISOs love Astra because it helps them fix vulnerabilities in record time and move from DevOps to DevSecOps with Astra's CI/CD integrations.

Astra is loved by 650+ companies across the globe. In 2023, Astra uncovered 2 million+ vulnerabilities for its customers, saving customers $69M+ in potential losses due to security vulnerabilities.

We've been awarded by the President of France, Mr. François Hollande, at the La French Tech program and the Prime Minister of India, Shri Narendra Modi, at the Global Conference on Cyber Security. Loom, MamaEarth, Muthoot Finance, Canara Robeco, ScripBox, etc. are a few of Astra's customers.

Role Overview

At Astra Security, we are building the future of AI-driven cybersecurity, including Autonomous Pentesting — an experience that helps teams automatically discover, test, and secure Web & Mobile applications, Cloud, and APIs at scale.

As a Backend Engineer (SDE 1), you will work on building and improving the backend systems that power Astra's cybersecurity platform. You'll develop APIs, backend services, database components, and asynchronous workflows that support our core product.

You'll work closely with experienced backend engineers, frontend engineers, product managers, DevOps, and QA to build reliable and scalable features. You'll get hands-on experience taking features from development to production, debugging real-world issues, and learning how distributed backend systems are designed and operated at scale.

This is an opportunity to work on challenging engineering problems, contribute to 0-1 product initiatives, and grow your backend engineering skills in a fast-paced product environment.

Here's what's in it for you

• Build and maintain backend services and RESTful APIs for Astra's platform.
• Develop clean, maintainable, and reusable code following sound software engineering principles.
• Work with databases to design tables, write queries, and improve application performance.
• Build and work with asynchronous workflows using queues, events, and background processing.
• Debug production and development issues and identify the root cause of problems.
• Write unit and integration tests to ensure reliability and code quality.
• Work with AI-assisted development tools to improve engineering productivity while reviewing and validating generated code before it reaches production.
• Participate in code reviews and incorporate feedback to continuously improve your engineering practices.
• Collaborate with frontend, product, DevOps, and QA teams to deliver features.
• Contribute to improving system reliability, developer productivity, and engineering processes.
• Learn and work with modern backend and distributed-system technologies.

What we're looking for

• 1- 3 years of experience building backend applications in a product-based or SaaS environment.
• Strong proficiency in at least one backend programming language such as Java, Python, PHP, or C++.
• Good understanding of OOP, data structures, algorithms, and core software engineering principles.
• Experience building or working with RESTful APIs.
• Good understanding of relational databases such as PostgreSQL or MySQL.
• Ability to write efficient SQL queries and understand basic database design.
• Basic understanding of asynchronous processing, queues, events, or background jobs.
• Familiarity with concepts such as ORMs, dependency injection, data validation, caching, logging, and error handling.
• Strong debugging and problem-solving skills.
• Good understanding of writing maintainable, testable code.
• Exposure to cloud platforms such as AWS is a plus.
• Experience using AI coding tools such as GitHub Copilot, Cursor, Claude Code, or similar tools is a plus.
• Strong communication skills and ability to work effectively with cross-functional teams.
• A strong learning mindset and willingness to take ownership of problems.

Why Astra?

• Opportunity to work on products that solve challenging real-world cybersecurity problems.
• Work on backend systems powering an AI-driven cybersecurity platform.
• Learn from experienced engineers and work closely with founders and product teams.
• Exposure to distributed systems, asynchronous processing, cloud infrastructure, and modern backend architecture.
• Ownership of features from development through production, with the right level of guidance and mentorship.
• Fast release cycles with the ability to ship code frequently.
• Collaborative engineering culture with a strong focus on learning and innovation.
• Join a team of builders and problem-solvers who thrive on first-principles thinking, move fast without breaking trust, and take pride in shipping products that matter.
• Opportunity to contribute to products from the ground up and grow rapidly as an engineer.
• Flexible hybrid work environment.
• Comprehensive health insurance for you and your family.
• Annual team off-sites and regular team events.
• A supportive, high-growth environment where your ideas and contributions can have a real impact.

Location

This is a hybrid role in Bengaluru and requires a regular in-office presence to collaborate closely with Engineering and Product teams. Being in-office helps foster deep collaboration, faster decision-making, and the shared energy of building together — values that define how we operate at Astra.