Greenhouse ·
full-timeStaff Backend Software Engineer, Secureai
Okta · Toronto, Ontario, Canada
Okta is a provider of identity and access management solutions that is extending its expertise to the emerging field of AI agent security through its Okta Secures AI team. The team is building an Identity Security Fabric designed to govern and protect non‑human actors such as AI agents as they interact with enterprise tools and data. As a Staff Backend Software Engineer on this team, you will help shape the technical direction of the fabric, design and implement the runtime policy decision point that evaluates every agent request, and integrate policy engines like Cedar with admin‑console outputs. You will develop authorization logic for delegated agents, work on MCP and OAuth token exchange specifications, and create comprehensive audit logging that records allow/deny decisions with rationale. The role also involves driving AI‑native development practices and collaborating with product, design and security partners to turn standards into scalable backend services. This position suits engineers with deep experience in distributed systems, backend services, and security‑focused architecture who are comfortable owning ambiguous problems, driving cross‑functional initiatives, and applying rigorous engineering to novel identity challenges in the agentic era.
Secure Every Identity, from AI to Human Identity is the key to unlocking the potential of AI. Okta secures AI by building the trusted, neutral infrastructure that enables organizations to safely embrace this new era. This work requires a relentless drive to solve complex challenges with real-world stakes. We are looking for builders and owners who operate with speed and urgency and execute with excellence. This is an opportunity to do career-defining work. We're all in on this mission. If you are too, let's talk. About Okta Secures AI Team The Okta for AI Agents Team is building the future of digital identity management. The way companies are using agents and allowing them access is undergoing a fundamental shift, enabling teams to move fast while staying secure. Our North Star is clear: To get AI right, you have to get identity right. We are not just managing identities; we are building the industry's first Identity Security Fabric for the agentic era. As organizations rapidly deploy AI, these non-human entities are acting with access to critical tools, often bypassing traditional perimeters and creating a 'Shadow AI' crisis. Our mission is to move identity from a reactive gatekeeper to a unified control plane, transforming AI risk into business ROI. We are tackling this by implementing a comprehensive four-pillar maturity model: Discover, Onboard, Protect, and Govern. We are driving innovation by defining the standards for Agentic Identity—including pioneer work with securing AI Agents and support for protocols like MCP. You will be helping us build the infrastructure that allows enterprises to scale AI safely, ensuring every access decision—whether made by a human or an automated agent—is authenticated, authorized, and audited at scale. We are a diverse team of engineers, product managers, and designers who are bringing Okta’s expertise in identity to define the future of Agent Identity management, focusing on enablement while staying secure. About the role As a Staff Software Engineer on the Okta Secures AI team, your mission is to build the industry's first Identity Security Fabric for the agentic era. You will be working on the designs and driving of our unified control plane features, ensuring that we operationalize our North Star: "To get AI right, you have to get identity right." As a staff engineer, you will actively design, build, and maintain robust backend services. This role requires deep expertise in distributed systems and a commitment to AI-native engineering as our standard. You will rethink backend design, validation, and delivery through AI-augmented workflows, ensuring our platform provides secure, interoperable, and scalable access—enforcing the principle of least privilege for every agent action. What you’ll be doing Proactively shape the technical strategy of the Identity Security Fabric, partnering with leadership to prioritize the work streams for securing AI Agents. Build the Runtime Policy Decision Point (PDP). Implement the request-time authorization engine at the Agent Gateway and at the agent to resource connection level to intercept and evaluate every agent request against per-agent, per-tool, and per-resource rules. Design and support authoring from a policy engine like Cedar, schema validation, and evaluation—connecting the admin console's no-code UI builder output with direct API-published policies. Develop the logic to validate which users a delegated agent is permitted to represent and securely forward the acting user's identity to downstream resources. Track and shape MCP, OAuth token exchange, and agent identity specifications. Feed lessons learned from production back into the specs and their reference implementations. Develop Comprehensive Audit Logging. Build secure logging mechanisms to record the outcome of every request (allow or deny) along with the specific rule or reason behind the decision. Drive continual evolution in the adoption of AI-native development practices, helping the team rethink how we design, review, and ship software with AI as a core part of the workflow. Proactively identify and prioritize tech debt; drive improvements in areas beyond feature work - CI/CD, observability, documentation, reliability, and support processes. Partner with Product and Design to understand and own the desired customer outcome, not just the technical deliverable. Actively invest in the growth of peer engineers, taking responsibility for raising the technical bar of the team as a whole. What you’ll bring to the role Operates well beyond basic AI tool usage - understands how to apply AI meaningfully across the full software development lifecycle, can evaluate and adopt new AI tooling with good judgment, and is able to establish practices and bring a team along. Proven experience defining scalable backend architectures and integrating complex APIs with modern web technologies - including the ability to make and defend architectural decisions with lasting org-wide impact
| Role | Staff Backend Software Engineer, Secureai |
|---|---|
| Company | Okta |
| Location | Toronto, Ontario, Canada |
| Type | full-time |
| Compensation | Not disclosed |
| Posted | 2026-10-06 |
| Deadline | Rolling |
Typical process for this type of role
A general guide — the exact steps for this specific listing may vary; check the original posting for details.
- 1ApplicationSubmit your resume through the apply link.
- 2ScreeningRecruiter reviews your background against the role.
- 3AssessmentA technical test, assignment, or coding round, depending on the role.
- 4Interview(s)One or more rounds with the hiring team.
- 5OfferOffer letter with compensation and start date.
Before you apply
0/4About Okta
Okta, Inc. is an Identity-as-a-Service (IDaaS) company founded in 2009 and based in San Francisco. The company provides identity and access management solutions for workforces, customers, and AI agents. Its offerings include the Okta Platform for governance and the Auth0 Platform for authentication. Okta’s services are designed to secure human and machine identities, helping organizations manage access across their digital ecosystems. The company serves a diverse client base, including major government agencies and two-thirds of the Fortune 100, supporting thousands of organizations globally in securing their business operations and digital infrastructure.
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