Staff Security Engineer, IAM at Coinbase

Ready to be pushed beyond what you think you’re capable of? At Coinbase, our mission is to increase economic freedom in the world. It’s a massive, ambitious opportunity that demands the best of us, every day, as we build the emerging onchain platform — and with it, the future global financial system. To achieve our mission, we’re seeking a very specific candidate. We want someone who is passionate about our mission and who believes in the power of crypto and blockchain technology to update the financial system. We want someone who is eager to leave their mark on the world, who relishes the pressure and privilege of working with high caliber colleagues, and who actively seeks feedback to keep leveling up. We want someone who will run towards, not away from, solving the company’s hardest problems. Our work culture is intense and isn’t for everyone. But if you want to build the future alongside others who excel in their disciplines and expect the same from you, there’s no better place to be. While many roles at Coinbase are remote-first, we are not remote-only. In-person participation is required throughout the year. Team and company-wide offsites are held multiple times annually to foster collaboration, connection, and alignment. Attendance is expected and fully supported. At Coinbase, identity and access controls are foundational to protecting customer funds, sensitive data, and the trust that underpins our position as the world's most trusted crypto platform. The Identity and Access Management (IAM) program, housed within Security, is a cross-functional team that designs, builds, and governs workforce identity services, privileged access controls, and automated governance across a complex and rapidly evolving technology ecosystem and regulatory landscape. This role serves as a senior technical leader within the IAM program, partnering with Engineering, IT, Platform, and business teams to architect and deliver identity solutions that balance zero-trust security with workforce enablement, reduce insider risk, and satisfy global regulatory requirements. What you’ll be doing (ie. job duties): • Lead the architectural vision and security engineering execution for Coinbase’s Identity and Access Management (IAM) and workforce security platforms across our multi-cloud infrastructure, extensive third-party SaaS ecosystem, and internally developed applications. • Evaluate, design, and implement "build, buy, or hybrid" strategies for workforce Identity Governance and Administration (IGA), integrating commercial tools with custom middleware and machine learning or AI models to automate complex access lifecycles and maximize ROI. • Write high-quality code to build scalable automation, custom integrations, and self-service guardrails that embed intelligent identity controls directly into CI/CD pipelines, SaaS provisioning workflows, and internal enterprise tooling. • Conduct comprehensive threat modeling and security architecture reviews for foundational identity systems and critical SaaS integrations, utilizing automated threat intelligence and AI-assisted analysis to proactively identify attack vectors and design resilient mitigations. • Partner with Engineering, IT, HR, AI/ML, and Product teams to align security initiatives with business goals, balancing robust zero-trust security with developer velocity and seamless workforce enablement. • Act as the directly responsible individual (DRI) for complex, cross-team security initiatives, mentoring junior and mid-level engineers, and influencing senior leadership on risk tradeoffs and next-generation workforce security strategies. What we look for in you (ie. job requirements): • 7+ years of proven experience in software engineering, security engineering, or systems architecture, with a deep, Staff-level focus on Identity and Access Management and enterprise workforce security. • Must be proficient in at least one programming language (e.g., Python, Go) and be able to effectively leverage AI-assisted development tools to build security tooling, automate workflows, and accelerate code review. • Demonstrated track record of successfully implementing complex hybrid IAM infrastructures, integrating a massive footprint of third-party SaaS applications alongside internally developed microservices. • Deep operational and architectural understanding of Identity Governance and Administration (IGA) processes, including automated provisioning/deprovisioning (JML workflows), continuous access reviews, and privileged access management (PAM) across a diverse enterprise fleet. • Extensive expertise in modern identity protocols (SAML, OAuth2, OIDC, SCIM), cloud IAM (AWS and GCP), and dynamic access control frameworks (RBAC, ABAC, ReBAC) that adapt based on behavioral context and AI-driven risk scoring. • Strong background in applied risk management, automated threat modeling, and zero-trust architecture principles applied to high-growth distributed systems and globally distributed workforces. • An execution-focused mindset with the ability to navigate ambiguity, drive alignment without direct authority, and communicate highly technical risk concepts to business stakeholders. • Experience driving security and engineering outcomes across decentralized or federated organizational structures, where the ability to build consensus, influence without direct authority, and coordinate delivery across multiple contributing teams is essential to success. Nice to haves: • Experience operating in a hyper-growth tech, FinTech, or crypto environment, navigating strict regulatory landscapes (e.g., SOX) specifically regarding workforce access, logging, and auditing. • Experience governing non-FTE workforce populations (such as BPO, contractors, and M&A) at scale, including birthright access design, role-based access control for high-risk personas, and timely deprovisioning across complex identity lifecycles. • Hands-on experience with Policy-as-Code paradigms (like Open Policy Agent) and integrating machine learning to automate policy generation, detect permission anomalies, or streamline IGA certification campaigns. • Experience managing identity boundaries for AI/ML workloads, including securing workforce access to large language models, training data pipelines, and inference infrastructure. Job #: P76467 Pay Transparency Notice: Depending on your work location, the target annual salary for this position can range from $218,025 to $256,500 + target bonus + target equity + benefits (including medical, dental, vision and 401(k)). #LI-Remote Pay Transparency Notice: Depending on your work location, the target annual base salary for this position can range as detailed below. Total compensation may also include equity and bonus eligibility and benefits (including medical, dental, vision and 401(k)). Annual base salary range (excluding equity and bonus):$218,025—$256,500 USDPlease be advised that each candidate may submit a maximum of four applications within any 30-day period. We encourage you to carefully evaluate how your skills and interests align with Coinbase's roles before applying. Commitment to Equal Opportunity Coinbase is proud to be an Equal Opportunity Employer. All qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard to race, color, religion, creed, gender, national origin, age, disability, veteran status, sex, gender expression or identity, sexual orientation or any other basis protected by applicable law. Coinbase will also consider for employment qualified applicants with criminal histories in a manner consistent with applicable federal, state and local law. For US applicants, you may view the Employee Rights and the Know Your Rights notices by clicking on their corresponding links. Additionally, Coinbase participates in the E-Verify program in certain locations, as required by law. Coinbase is also committed to providing reasonable accommodations to individuals with disabilities. If you need a reasonable accommodation because of a disability for any part of the employment process, please contact us at accommodations[at]coinbase.com to let us know the nature of your request and your contact information. 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The tool simulates realistic interview scenarios and engages in dynamic conversation. A human recruiter will review your interview responses, provided in the form of a voice recording and/or transcript, to assess them against the qualifications and characteristics outlined in the job description. For select roles, Coinbase is also piloting an AI interview intelligence platform to transcribe and summarize interview notes, allowing our interviewers to fully focus on you as the candidate. The above pilots are for testing purposes and Coinbase will not use AI to make decisions impacting employment. To request a reasonable accommodation due to disability, please contact accommodations[at]coinbase.com