Senior Systems & Reliability Engineer (VPN)

Join Proton and build a better internet where privacy is the default

Proton was founded in 2014 by scientists from CERN on a simple truth: privacy is a fundamental human right. Since then, we’ve built the world’s largest encrypted email service (Proton Mail) and expanded into Proton VPN, Proton Drive, Proton Pass, and Proton Calendar—tools used by millions globally to protect their freedom, fight censorship, and keep their data safe. In some situations, Proton has literally helped save lives!

We are profitable, independent (no VC control), and selectively hire from the top ~1% of applicants. Our 500+ team members across 50+ countries come from leading organizations and elite academic backgrounds. We move fast, keep hierarchy light, and prioritize impact over optics. If you want to do meaningful work with exceptionally high-caliber people, this is it. Join us and do work you can truly be proud of. Check our open-source projects here!

Purpose of the role:  

At ProtonVPN, we're on a mission to provide secure, private internet access to everyone—even in the most restrictive environments. Our infrastructure spans thousands of servers worldwide, operating on a distributed architecture that connects our suite of applications across platforms.

As a Systems and Reliability Engineer on the VPN Infrastructure team, among several areas, you'll be at the forefront of our battle against censorship regimes worldwide. You'll help design, implement, and maintain the robust systems that keep our users connected when they need privacy and security most.

What you will do:

• Infrastructure Management: Oversee and optimize our rapidly expanding global network of thousands of servers
• Automation & Reliability: Design and implement automation systems that ensure 99.95%+ uptime across our infrastructure
• Problem Solving: Serve as an active member of the on-call rotation, troubleshooting complex technical challenges across different network environments and censorship scenarios
• Monitoring Excellence: Develop and enhance sophisticated monitoring and alerting systems that provide real-time visibility into our global infrastructure
• Technical Implementation: Engineer solutions to improve connectivity, stability, performance, scalability, security, and resilience—particularly in adversarial network environments

Job requirements:

• Linux Expertise: Knowledge of Debian/Linux operating system in