Dataplane)

Zscaler•San Jose, CA

8h•Hybrid

About The Position

Zscaler accelerates digital transformation to ensure our customers can be more agile, efficient, resilient, and secure. As an AI-forward enterprise, we are constantly pushing the envelope, leveraging the world’s largest security data lake to power our cloud-native Zero Trust Exchange platform. This innovation protects our customers from cyberattacks and data loss by securely connecting users, devices, and applications in any location. Here, impact in your role matters more than title and trust is built on results. We say, impact over activity. We seek innovators who actively use AI to amplify their impact and who thrive in an environment where we leverage intelligent systems to stay ahead of evolving threats. We believe in transparency and value constructive, honest debate —we’re focused on getting to the best ideas, faster. We build high-performing teams that can make an impact quickly and with high quality. To do this, we are building a culture of execution centered on customer obsession, collaboration, ownership, and accountability. We value high-impact, high-accountability with a sense of urgency where you’re enabled to do your best work and embrace your potential. If you’re driven by purpose, thrive on solving complex challenges, and want to be part of the team that’s helping to secure the AI age, we invite you to bring your talents to Zscaler and help shape the future of cybersecurity. We are looking for a Senior Staff Software Engineer (C / Networking / Dataplane) to join our Engineering Team. This is a Hybrid (San Jose, CA 3 days a week in office) role, reporting to the Senior Director, Software Development Engineering. The Senior Staff Software Engineer (C / Networking / Dataplane) will design and implement high-performance data path features for load balancing and L7 protocols, directly enhancing the scalability and security of global networking infrastructure. By leveraging deep C programming expertise and autonomous ownership, they will drive complex architectural projects from initial concept to large-scale deployment.

Requirements

Demonstrated curiosity and active exploration of AI tools, with a proven history of integrating new technologies to enhance daily workflows and augment problem-solving
8+ years of experience building large-scale commercial networking and security applications with proficiency in programming languages C or C++
Strong foundational knowledge in data structures and algorithms
Working experience in Linux, Unix, or similar operating systems
BS or MS degree in CS/CE or equivalent experience

Nice To Haves

Exposure to AI-assisted software development tools and workflows, with the ability to apply them to improve engineering productivity and delivery quality
Advanced knowledge of networking protocols and services, specifically DNS, HTTP, TCP/IP, and SSL/TLS

Responsibilities

Design and implement Datapath features related to Load Balancer, Firewall rules and L7 Protocol implementations
Apply deep knowledge of C programming, data structures, and algorithms to build high-performance systems
Independently drive moderately complex projects from conception to deployment with full ownership
Utilize expert knowledge of networking protocols and services including DNS, HTTP, TCP/IP, and SSL/TLS
Leverage Unix or Linux operating systems knowledge to optimize networking and security applications