Principal Java Developer II - Security - Elasticsearch

We are seeking a Principal Java Developer II to lead the architecture and implementation of Elasticsearch's core authentication, authorization, and tenant-isolation primitives. As a key member of our team, you will partner with leaders across Elastic to deliver end-to-end security guarantees, ensuring our distributed data stores provide best-in-class security and identity management features at scale.

Key Responsibilities

• Lead critical initiatives from conception to delivery, defining technical strategy, roadmaps, and execution for major security architectural components within Elasticsearch.
• Develop foundational security models for intricate features, optimize security performance at massive scale within distributed systems environments, and apply cryptographic solutions to address genuine customer use cases.
• Ensure robust data isolation within shared infrastructure supporting disparate customers, drive technical excellence, and develop a culture of security awareness and high-performance engineering across the team.
• Guide senior engineers in development practices, act as a principal voice in architectural and design discussions, and drive long-term security strategy within the team and across the organization.

Requirements

• Expert Core Java and Concurrency: Deep expertise in Java internals, JVM memory management, and writing high-performance, lock-free, and thread-safe code in large OSS codebases.
• Authorization at Scale: Proven experience building scalable AuthZ systems, including RBAC/ABAC models, token validation, permission compilation, and cache invalidation strategies in distributed databases.
• Distributed Systems Fundamentals: A strong understanding of distributed systems security, including node-to-node trust, secure transport, and partition tolerance.
• Vision & Roadmap: Collaborate with engineering and product leadership to define the technical vision and roadmap for authorization and data isolation features within the Elasticsearch security domain.
• IAM & Cloud Security: Deep knowledge of edge identity protocols (OAuth 2.0, SAML).
• Cross-Team Teamwork: Act as the primary technical point of contact for security features, driving alignment and integration with search, AI, cloud, and operations teams to ensure consistent security posture across the Elastic Stack.

Bonus Points

• Applied Cryptography: Deep understanding of cipher suites, TLS handshakes, certificate management, and integrating crypto primitives without introducing latency.
• Compliance Frameworks: Hands-on experience mapping technical controls to FedRAMP (Moderate/High), FIPS, and SOC 2 standards.
• Data Store Internals: Experience working on the internals of a data store or search engine.

Benefits

• Competitive pay based on the work you do here and not your previous salary
• Health coverage for you and your family in many locations
• Ability to craft your calendar with flexible locations and schedules for many roles
• Generous number of vacation days each year
• Increase your impact - We match up to $2000 (or local currency equivalent) for financial donations and service
• Up to 40 hours each year to use toward volunteer projects you love
• Embracing parenthood with minimum of 16 weeks of parental leave