Sr Principal Software Engineer (Posture Security)

Our Mission

At Palo Alto Networks® everything starts and ends with our mission:

Being the cybersecurity partner of choice, protecting our digital way of life.
Our vision is a world where each day is safer and more secure than the one before. We are a company built on the foundation of challenging and disrupting the way things are done, and we’re looking for innovators who are as committed to shaping the future of cybersecurity as we are.

Who We Are

We believe collaboration thrives in person. That’s why most of our teams work from the office full time, with flexibility when it’s needed. This model supports real-time problem-solving, stronger relationships, and the kind of precision that drives great outcomes.

Your Career

Architect/Sr. Principal Engineer, Backend - Cortex Cloud (Posture Security)

Team: Cortex Cloud - Posture Security

Palo Alto Networks is the industry leader in cybersecurity, dedicated to protecting our digital way of life. We are innovators at our core, challenging the status quo and committed to building the next generation of security products. We are looking for a seasoned and visionary Architect/Sr. Principal Engineer to join our dynamic backend engineering team, specifically focused on our Cortex Cloud Posture Security solutions. In this role, you will be instrumental in designing and developing robust, scalable, and high-performance backend systems that power our cutting-edge cloud security posture management capabilities.

Your Impact

• Lead the architectural vision and design for complex, large-scale backend systems and microservices that form the backbone of our Cortex Cloud Posture Security offerings.

• Develop and implement high-quality, resilient, and scalable backend services primarily using Go and Python.

• Drive system design discussions and decisions, ensuring solutions meet current Posture Security needs while being adaptable for future growth and technological advancements in cloud security.

• Collaborate closely with cross-functional teams, including product management, frontend engineers, security researchers, and SRE, to define, design, and ship new features and platform enhancements for Cortex Cloud Posture Security.

• Mentor and guide senior and junior engineers, fostering a culture of technical excellence, innovation, and continuous learning within the Posture Security team.

• Define and evangelize best practices for backend development, testing, and deployment within the organization, particularly as they apply to cloud-native security solutions.

• Analyze and resolve complex technical challenges and production issues, ensuring the reliability and performance of our Cortex Cloud Posture Security services.

• Contribute to and lead code reviews, design reviews, and architectural reviews related to Posture Security components.

• Stay abreast of emerging technologies and industry trends in cloud security, backend development, and posture management, evaluating and recommending their adoption where appropriate.

• Optionally, leverage your understanding of UI development and user experience to contribute to a more holistic product design and improved collaboration with frontend teams working on the Cortex Cloud interface.

Your Experience 

• 10+ years of experience in backend software development, with a proven track record of designing and delivering complex, distributed systems, preferably in a cloud security context.

• Deep expertise in Go and/or Python for backend development.

• Strong understanding of software architecture principles, including microservices, event-driven architecture, and distributed systems patterns.

• Proven experience with system design, data modeling, and API design (RESTful, gRPC).

• Experience with various database technologies (SQL and NoSQL), message queues (e.g., Kafka, RabbitMQ), and caching solutions.

• Solid understanding of cloud platforms (GCP, AWS, or Azure) and containerization technologies (Docker, Kubernetes), with a strong emphasis on security best practices within these environments.

• Demonstrated ability to lead technical projects and mentor engineers.

• Excellent problem-solving, analytical, and troubleshooting skills.

• Strong communication and collaboration abilities, with a knack for explaining complex technical concepts to diverse audiences.

• Bachelor's or Master's degree in Computer Science, Engineering, or a related field, or equivalent practical experience.

Nice to Have

• Understanding of UI technologies (e.g., React, Angular, Vue.js) and how backend systems support frontend applications for displaying complex security data.

• Deep experience with cybersecurity, specifically Cloud Security Posture Management (CSPM), Cloud Workload Protection Platforms (CWPP), or related cloud security domains.

• Contributions to open-source projects related to cloud security or backend infrastructure.

• Experience with Infrastructure as Code (IaC) tools like Terraform.

• Familiarity with compliance frameworks (e.g., CIS, NIST, SOC2) and their implications for cloud security products.

The Team

Our Cortex Cloud engineering team is at the core of our products, directly connected to our mission of preventing cyberattacks by providing best-in-class cloud security. We are constantly innovating and challenging the way the industry thinks about cybersecurity. Specifically, the Posture Security team is responsible for developing and maintaining the critical backend infrastructure that enables our customers to identify, prioritize, and remediate security risks across their multi-cloud environments. We’re looking for individuals who are comfortable with ambiguity, excited by a challenge, and empowered by the unknown risks we work to solve. You’ll be part of a team that is crucial in delivering comprehensive cloud security posture management, helping organizations secure their cloud workloads, data, and infrastructure.

Compensation Disclosure

The compensation offered for this position will depend on qualifications, experience, and work location. For candidates who receive an offer at the posted level, the starting base salary (for non-sales roles) or base salary + commission target (for sales/commissioned roles) is expected to be between $225,000 - 250,000. The offered compensation may also include restricted stock units and a bonus. A description of our employee benefits may be found here.

Our Commitment

We’re problem solvers that take risks and challenge cybersecurity’s status quo. It’s simple: we can’t accomplish our mission without diverse teams innovating, together.

We are committed to providing reasonable accommodations for all qualified individuals with a disability. If you require assistance or accommodation due to a disability or special need, please contact us at  [email protected].

Palo Alto Networks is an equal opportunity employer. We celebrate diversity in our workplace, and all qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard to age, ancestry, color, family or medical care leave, gender identity or expression, genetic information, marital status, medical condition, national origin, physical or mental disability, political affiliation, protected veteran status, race, religion, sex (including pregnancy), sexual orientation, or other legally protected characteristics.

All your information will be kept confidential according to EEO guidelines.