Staff Backend Engineer, SOC & Threat Hunting

censys; United States; Remote; USD 172,000 - 233,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Bonus eligibility

Equity

Remote work

Job summary

censys is seeking a seasoned backend engineer to build scalable APIs and services for a cloud software platform used by security professionals. The role focuses on resilience, data-intensive workflows, and collaboration with product and frontend teams.

You will own CI/CD, testing, and deployment, with a strong emphasis on maintainability and AI-assisted tooling. The position is fully remote within the United States or Canada, with potential in-person onboarding at the team HQ.

Qualifications

• 10+ years building distributed web applications and APIs.
• Experience designing or building microservices.
• Proficiency in Go, Java, Python, or Scala, and willingness to work with Go.
• Experience with at least one major cloud platform.
• Familiarity with Docker and CI/CD.
• Focus on test coverage, maintainability, and data-driven decisions.
• Strong communication and documentation skills.
• Open to using AI tools to improve work.

Responsibilities

• Design and improve backend services supporting investigation workflows.
• Collaborate with product, design, and frontend teams to turn user needs into software.
• Own delivery from build and test automation through deployment and monitoring.
• Connect internal systems and external APIs to support data-intensive experiences.
• Contribute in an iterative engineering environment with technical collaboration.

Skills

Distributed web apps

APIs

Go

Java

Python

Scala

Cloud platforms

CI/CD

Test coverage

Communication

Tools

Docker

Kubernetes

Pub/Sub

Kafka

Redis

BigQuery

Bigtable

Postgres

Job description

Role overview

Build backend capabilities for security professionals investigating potential adversaries and responding to incidents. The work centers on resilient APIs and scalable services for a cloud software platform, helping users make sense of large volumes of internet and threat data. The position is listed as fully remote in the United States or Canada.

Responsibilities

• Design and improve backend services that support investigation workflows.
• Work with product, design, and frontend partners to turn user needs into useful software.
• Own delivery from build and test automation through deployment and ongoing monitoring.
• Connect internal systems and external APIs to support data-intensive product experiences.
• Contribute in an iterative engineering environment through technical collaboration and feedback.

Requirements

• 10 or more years building distributed web applications and APIs.
• Experience designing or building microservices.
• Professional experience with Go, Java, Python, or Scala, and willingness to work with Go.
• Experience with at least one major cloud platform.
• Familiarity with Docker and an interest in improving continuous integration and deployment.
• Focus on test coverage, maintainability, and making evidence-based technical decisions amid ambiguity.
• Strong communication and documentation skills, including explaining technical ideas to varied audiences.
• Openness to using AI tools thoughtfully to improve work.

Nice to have

• Familiarity with REST or gRPC, messaging systems such as Pub/Sub or Kafka, and databases such as Redis, Bigtable, BigQuery, or Postgres.
• Experience operating containerized services with Kubernetes.
• Familiarity with TypeScript, JavaScript, or React.
• Experience establishing test enforcement, linters, complexity checks, and sound design patterns.

Benefits and work setup

The listing gives base salary ranges of $198,000–$233,000 for certain high-cost US locations and $172,000–$216,000 for other US locations, with bonus eligibility and equity. It says actual compensation depends on factors including experience, qualifications, role scope, and location. The role is remote; the listing also mentions that in-person onboarding at the team’s headquarters may be offered.