Staff Network Security Engineer

DigitalOcean•Denver, CO

9h•$168,800 - $211,000•Remote

About The Position

We are looking for a Staff Network Security Engineer to play a critical role in securing our global network infrastructure. As a Staff Network Security Engineer at DigitalOcean, you will join a dynamic team dedicated to revolutionizing cloud computing and AI. In this role, you will act as a key technical leader, responsible for securing our global network infrastructure by partnering with engineering teams to advise on secure architecture. This position, which reports to the Manager, Security Defense Engineering, involves architecting and building automated security tools and championing best practices to ensure our network remains resilient against evolving threats across our edge, backbone, and datacenter environments.

Requirements

8-10 years of experience in network security engineering, network penetration testing, or security-focused infrastructure roles
Excellent communication skills to effectively collaborate with both technical and non-technical stakeholders, explaining complex security concepts and advocating for security best practices
Deep understanding of Layer 2/3/4 networking protocols (BGP, OSPF, IS-IS, VRRP, LACP) and their security implications
Deep understanding of distributed denial-of-service (DDoS) attack vectors and mitigation strategies, including packet filtering, rate limiting, and scrubbing services
Extensive experience in designing and building secure networks from the ground up
Experience leading projects and providing technical guidance to cross-functional teams
Proficiency in scripting/programming languages such as Python or Go for automation and tooling
Familiarity with Corero, Cloudflare, Juniper, Arista, or Ciena network platforms
Strong Linux experience and familiarity with firewall, routing, and DNS security
Understanding and experience with Network Intrusion Detection principles and tooling
Knowledge of MPLS, BGP-LU, and SDN architectures from a security perspective
Hands-on experience with observability tools like Prometheus, Grafana, and ELK stack
Comfortable with Git-based workflows and collaborative development

Nice To Haves

Open-source contributions related to network security
Background in security incident response or red/blue team operations

Responsibilities

Define and enforce network security architecture standards and principles to ensure our networks are architected with security as a foundational element
Provide technical leadership and mentorship to security and network engineering teams, serving as a subject matter expert on network security-related matters
Lead network security assessments, including threat modeling, intrusion detection, and protocol-level analysis to identify and mitigate sophisticated attack vectors
Develop and deploy advanced security automation, tooling, and infrastructure-as-code to continuously validate security posture and enforce compliance at scale
Collaborate with network engineers to integrate security controls and telemetry within SDN, BGP/MPLS, and network automation platforms
Participate in incident response efforts related to network security incidents
Drive the security review process for all network infrastructure or product changes, ensuring designs adhere to established security standards and best practices before deployment
Promote security best practices through documentation, tooling, and cross-team collaboration