Netskope (NASDAQ: NTSK) is a leader in modern security and networking for the cloud and AI era. We secure and accelerate cloud, data, and AI in real time, everywhere. Thousands of customers, including more than 30 of the Fortune 100, trust the Netskope One platform, its Zero Trust Engine, and the powerful NewEdge network to gain full visibility and control without performance trade-offs.
At Netskope, our technology is driven by our greatest strength: our people. We believe that belonging powers innovation, and success is both personal and organizational. We embrace differences in gender, ethnicity, beliefs, ability, and identity, creating an environment where every voice is heard and respected. We empower our employees to bring their authentic selves to work, grow their careers through continuous education and mentorship, and lead with transparency and curiosity. Join a team where you belong, where you are encouraged to be an entrepreneur, and where together, we continue to redefine the landscape of security.
Visit Careers at Netskope to learn more. Follow us on LinkedIn and Instagram.
About the role
Please note, this team is hiring across all levels and candidates are individually assessed and appropriately leveled based upon their skills and experience.
Netskope Cloud Data Plane engineers architect and design one of the most scalable, high-performance cloud data planes in the world, processing 10+ Gbps of traffic, performing deep inspection using state-of-the-art techniques like AI/ML to detect activities and apply advanced policies like DLP, Threat and UEBA protection, all at line rate.
What’s in it for you
In this role you will be a key member of the Secure Web Gateway team supporting our in-line CASB and SWG products, both of which have been recognized by Gartner as market leaders in their Magic Quadrant reports:
Netskope SWG in Gartner 2023 SSE Magic Quadrant
Netskope CASB in Gartner 2023 SSE Magic Quadrant
Key Responsibilities
- Design, develop, and analyze features for the cloud data plane.
- Utilize advanced data structures and algorithms in C, C++, Go and Python to optimize performance.
- Perform real-time content analysis to ensure robust security measures.
- Conduct deep inspection of traffic to detect and mitigate threats in near real-time.
- Develop and implement DLP and threat protection solutions.
- Create sophisticated key management algorithms to enhance data security.
- Write and maintain product or system development code, ensuring high standards of quality.
- Write 100% of code, unit tests, and test automation using AI coding tools (e.g., Claude Code, GitHub Copilot, Cursor, or similar), driving measurable gains in velocity, coverage, and quality.
- Use AI tools efficiently across the entire SDLC — requirements refinement, design exploration, implementation, debugging, code review, test generation, documentation, and CI/CD automation.
- Critically evaluate AI-generated code and tests for correctness, security, performance, and maintainability, upholding the same quality bar as hand-written code.
- Continuously evaluate emerging AI tools and agentic workflows, and drive their adoption across the team to improve engineering productivity.
- Develop and maintain comprehensive documentation for software design, implementation, and processes.
- Build and maintain services capable of inspecting various network protocols, such as HTTP, at line rate.
- Review and provide feedback on code developed by other team members to ensure adherence to best practices, including style guidelines, code accuracy, testability, and efficiency.
- Contribute to the architecture and design of distributed systems, focusing on scalability, reliability, and efficiency.
- Through understanding of the SDLC process.
- Collaborate with cross-functional teams, including software engineers, system architects, and product managers, to deliver high-quality software solutions.
Required skills and experience
- 7-10 years of industry experience building high-performance data plane services.
- AI-native developer: proven track record of writing 100% of production code, unit tests (UT), and automation using AI tools — hands-on expertise with AI coding agents and assistants such as Claude Code, GitHub Copilot, Cursor, or similar.
- Well-versed with the AI tooling landscape and its efficient usage across the SDLC — effective prompting and context management, agentic workflows, AI-assisted debugging, code review, and test generation.
- Ability to validate AI-generated output for correctness, security, and performance — essential when building a security product.
- Proven expertise in network and web security technologies (firewalls, web security, IDP/IPS, DNS-based security, etc.).
- In-depth knowledge of IP, TCP, TLS, HTTP and Web Socket protocols is essential.
- Significant experience with HTTP Proxy.
- In-depth knowledge of tunnelling protocols like GRE, IPSec, SSL, VxLAN is essential.
- Programming mastery in C/C++, Go and Python.
- Strong expertise in RESTful Web Service, Data Yang Modelling.
- Expertise in message protocols like KAFKA, NATS, gRPC etc.
- Expertise in capturing the packets using Wireshark, tcpdump etc. and analyzing the packets captured.
- Strong expertise in cloud technologies like Docker, Kubernetes, Helm etc.
- Strong understanding of computer architecture, including multi-threading, CPU scheduling, and memory management.
- Advanced understanding of algorithms and data structures for real-time in-line data processing.
- Extensive knowledge of Linux at a systems level.
- Exceptional analytical and troubleshooting skills, proficient in using debuggers like gdb and tools like Valgrind.
- Advocate of Test-Driven Development (TDD), with comprehensive knowledge of various unit testing frameworks.
- Demonstrated ability to lead and mentor engineering teams, providing technical guidance and fostering a culture of continuous improvement.
- Experience with performance optimization and scalability of complex systems.
- Excellent communication and collaboration skills, capable of working effectively with cross-functional teams and stakeholders.
Education
- BSCS or equivalent required, MSCS or equivalent strongly preferred
#LI-JB3
Netskope is committed to implementing equal employment opportunities for all employees and applicants for employment. Netskope does not discriminate in employment opportunities or practices based on religion, race, color, sex, marital or veteran statues, age, national origin, ancestry, physical or mental disability, medical condition, sexual orientation, gender identity/expression, genetic information, pregnancy (including childbirth, lactation and related medical conditions), or any other characteristic protected by the laws or regulations of any jurisdiction in which we operate.
Netskope respects your privacy and is committed to protecting the personal information you share with us, please refer to Netskope's Privacy Policy for more details.
The application window for this position is expected to close within 50 days. You may apply by filling out the below information, or visiting our Netskope Careers site.
Skills Required
- 7-10 years of industry experience building high-performance data plane services
- Proven experience writing production code, unit tests, and test automation using AI coding tools such as Claude Code, GitHub Copilot, Cursor, or similar
- Experience with AI-assisted development across the SDLC, including prompting, context management, agentic workflows, debugging, code review, and test generation
- Ability to validate AI-generated output for correctness, security, performance, and maintainability
- Expertise in network and web security technologies, including firewalls, web security, IDP/IPS, and DNS-based security
- In-depth knowledge of IP, TCP, TLS, HTTP, and WebSocket protocols
- Significant experience with HTTP Proxy
- In-depth knowledge of GRE, IPSec, SSL, and VXLAN tunneling protocols
- Programming mastery in C/C++, Go, and Python
- Strong expertise in RESTful web services and Yang Data Modeling
- Expertise with Kafka, NATS, gRPC, or similar messaging protocols
- Experience capturing and analyzing packets using Wireshark, tcpdump, or similar tools
- Strong expertise with Docker, Kubernetes, Helm, or similar cloud technologies
- Strong understanding of computer architecture, multithreading, CPU scheduling, and memory management
- Advanced understanding of algorithms and data structures for real-time inline data processing
- Extensive systems-level Linux knowledge
- Exceptional analytical and troubleshooting skills, including proficiency with gdb and Valgrind
- Knowledge of test-driven development and unit testing frameworks
- Experience leading and mentoring engineering teams
- Experience optimizing performance and scaling complex systems
- Excellent communication and cross-functional collaboration skills
- Bachelor’s degree in Computer Science or equivalent
- Master’s degree in Computer Science or equivalent
Netskope Compensation & Benefits Highlights
The following summarizes recurring compensation and benefits themes identified from responses generated by popular LLMs to common candidate questions about Netskope and has not been reviewed or approved by Netskope.
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Fair & Transparent Compensation — Pay is considered competitive in U.S. technical roles, with indications that total compensation benchmarks strongly versus peers. Employees are generally pleased with total compensation that includes pay, stock, equity, and benefits.
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Healthcare Strength — Health coverage offers multiple medical plan choices alongside dental, vision, disability, HSA/FSA, and EAP, and is often characterized as very good. Employer-verified plan options and regional choices reinforce the breadth and quality of coverage.
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Leave & Time Off Breadth — Time off includes flexible/unlimited PTO, paid holidays, and quarterly wellness days that support rest and flexibility. Paid parental leave is available, commonly cited at 12 weeks for birth parents and 8 weeks for non‑birth parents.
Netskope Insights
What We Do
Netskope, the SASE leader, safely and quickly connects users directly to the internet, any application, and their infrastructure from any device, on or off the network. With CASB, SWG, and ZTNA built natively in a single platform, the Netskope Security Cloud provides the most granular context, via patented technology, to enable conditional access and user awareness while enforcing zero trust principles across data protection and threat prevention everywhere. Unlike others who force tradeoffs between security and networking, Netskope’s global security private cloud provides full compute capabilities at the edge. Netskope is fast everywhere, data-centric, and cloud-smart, all while enabling good digital citizenship and providing a lower total-cost-of-ownership.
