Job: Senior Front-End Engineer (Drive) at Proton

A better internet, where privacy is the default, is possible. Building this better internet might seem daunting or even unthinkable, but at Proton, this is what we do every day.

Proton was founded in 2014 by a group of scientists who met at the European Organization for Nuclear Research (CERN). Our first product, Proton Mail, is now the world’s largest encrypted email service. Subsequent Proton products, such as Proton VPN, Proton Calendar, and Proton Drive, give our users full control over how and with whom their data is shared.

Today, Proton makes privacy universally accessible. Journalists from outlets like The Guardian and The New York Times, some of the world’s largest organizations, and people in more than 180 countries have signed up for over 70 million accounts. Our diverse and dynamic team is made up of more than 400 members representing over 40 different nationalities. While we are based in Geneva, Switzerland, we have offices in Zurich, Prague, London, Vilnius, Skopje, Taipei, and many more employees working remotely around the world.

Join one of Europe’s fastest-growing companies to help us solve challenging problems and build new products that will reach hundreds of millions of people. We want to create more than just one of the world’s most impactful tech companies; we want to create a new internet that serves the interests of all people. We need you, your voice, your ideas, and your ambition to make it happen.

Purpose of the role

You will be responsible for designing, building, maintaining and evolving features of the Proton Drive Web client. Your goal is easy to understand, but hard to master: bring all of Proton Drive's best features to everyone with access to a browser.

Proton Drive offers a uniquely creative space for any Front-End Engineer: the nature of our product means that the Web client has to do a lot of work to encrypt, validate and decrypt files - work that less-private products would defer to the back-end. As such, you'll have the opportunity to do some of the things usually reserved for back-ends, while also building a world-class front-end.

Our Web client is the oldest and most mature Proton Drive client, as it was the first to be developed. You'll work in a well-established team with a lot of pre-existing technology which will need to be understood and extended.

What you will do

• Work closely with our team of Web Front-End engineers to build resilient, performant web-based implementations of all of Proton Drive's best features.
• Work across the front-end - TypeScript to write logic, and semantic HTML to build the page.
• Collaborate with our back-end team and architect to ensure that we develop solutions that are compatible with the unique strengths and weaknesses of the Web environment.
• Collaborate with our other client teams (Windows, Mac, iOS and Android) to ensure that solutions are interoperable.
• Be on the cutting edge of Proton Drive client development: Web clients don't get slowed down by mobile app store approval processes or heavyweight client downloads, so they're a natural fit for rapidly developing and deploying the latest features.
• Debug and repair operational issues for the Web client. You're not an SRE, but you think like one as you maintain a system responsible for giving millions to billons vital access to private information storage.

Job requirements

• Strong grasp of web development fundamentals: REST, HTML, CSS, and JavaScript.
• A passion for functional-style web development and the web in general.
• A general understanding of back-end and database fundamentals.
• Hands-on experience developing with the React framework and JavaScript or TypeScript.
• Strong teamwork and communication skills.

Bonus points for:

• Solid understanding of TypeScript's type system.
• Solid understanding of the browser & HTTP security model (CSP, CORS, sandboxing, etc).
• High-level understanding of cryptography concepts such as key exchange and the difference between symmetric and asymmetric encryption.
• Experience testing Web applications, preferably with Playwright. * Experience with performance profiling of web applications
• Experience with full-stack development including at least some back-end development, and at least some web-specific front-end development.

Why should you join Proton?

• Be part of a movement - Proton is not just a product or service but a community-driven movement united by a shared vision of online freedom. Our services are open source, audited, and supported by community contributions. We give back to our community by maintaining core encryption libraries and by supporting other organizations furthering the same goals as us. Proton is free, open source, neutral, independent, and community first, while remaining financially sustainable.
• Work with smart and dedicated people - Our team is diverse, collaborative, and tight-knit with people coming from all walks of life, including many of the world’s top academic institutions and organizations, such as MIT, Harvard, Stanford, Caltech, Cambridge, and ETH.
• Join a strong brand - Our encrypted email service - Proton Mail - has grown to be a staple of online security and privacy. Proton has been featured in multiple popular television and film productions, such as Mr. Robot, Knives Out, Sounds of Metal, and more.
• Grow with us - We’re one of Europe’s fastest-growing startups, doubling in size every year. Our growth gives you limitless career and educational opportunities as well as the opportunity to work side-by-side with many world-leading experts in their fields.
• Have your voice heard - We value your opinion and encourage you to speak up and share your ideas and thoughts. At Proton, no problem is someone else’s problem. We collectively strive to do the right thing and be the undisputed best in the world at everything we do.
• Benefits – these vary by location and type of contract but expect support on your vacation, parental leave, refreshment if working from the office, learning and development opportunities, equity for shared success, flexible working hours and remote work, company events and team building activities.

Proton does not accept unsolicited resumes from any sources other than directly from a candidate. Proton will not pay a fee for any placement resulting from the receipt of an unsolicited offer, even in a situation when the relevant candidate is employed by Proton.