Backend Engineer, Security
Hum was founded in 2019 to make rail transportation safer and smarter. Our products provide railroads, rail shippers, and railcar owners with the most advanced sensors for applications like predictive railcar maintenance, live railcar weights as accurate as a scale, and next generation fleet monitoring tools. Hum is now entering a growth phase as it seeks to meet the needs of its customers across multiple continents. Hum is looking for the right people to join our team as we work to create incredible products that modernize rail transportation. Hum is hiring a Backend Engineer with a security focus to lead our scaling efforts. Rail transportation is the backbone of the Global economy where security and reliability are critical. We are building the next generation of rail data infrastructure and need someone to make sure our work is built to last.
What you'll be doing:
Secure by Design – Every railcar sensor we ship sends data to our cloud. You'll own the backend that receives it and the security practices that protect it, from the device to the customer's screen. Best-In-Class Engineering – Hum aims to be the premier engineering firm in the transportation telematics space. Our customers come to us to solve their challenges because our depth of expertise far surpasses anything our competitors can do. We don't cut corners. We're not building products for the Walmart bargain bin. We're building best-in-class hardware and software that pushes the envelope on what's possible.
What we're looking for:
Fundamental Thinkers – No situation is the same and no two projects or customers are alike. We start from basic principles of physics and mechanics to engineer best-in-class products. MacGuyver Genes – There's no book with answers in the back to solve our customers' challenges. Our team of engineers are experts in resourcefulness and creativity to unlock the best path forward. Never Satisfied – There's always something more to improve. Even after we deliver for our customers, we're constantly integrating the latest technology developments to get better every day.
Responsibilities:
Design, operate, and monitor backend services and data pipelines that ingest telemetry from IoT devices deployed on freight railcars.
Oversee secure device-to-cloud communication, including device identity, authentication, encryption, and key management.
Build and maintain the APIs and data layer behind Hum's web platform, keeping them reliable as the customer base scales.
Manage our SOC2 program including regular documentation, updates, and oversight of 3rd party contractors and testing.
Implement and document security practices aligned with NIST guidance across devices, applications, and cloud infrastructure.
Run and manage vulnerability scanning, logging, monitoring, and incident response for our systems.
Keep up on the latest advancements in the field and incorporate them into Hum's systems.
Ideal qualities 5+ years of professional backend development experience, ideally building and operating production services end to end.
Strong experience with Python, Node.js/TypeScript, and with building REST APIs.
Strong SQL skills, including Postgres schema design, row-level security, and query optimization. Supabase experience is a plus.
Hands-on experience with application and cloud security: authentication and authorization, secrets management, TLS/PKI, and secure coding practices.
Working knowledge of NIST frameworks (e.g., CSF, SP 800-53, SP 800-171) and how to apply them in practice.
Experience with IoT or telemetry data ingestion, message queues, and real-time data handling (e.g., MQTT, WebSockets). InfluxDB experience is a plus.
Proven experience deploying and operating cloud applications (AWS, Azure, or similar), with CI/CD and Docker.
Experience with observability platforms, such as Posthog and Grafana.
Comfort with version control (Git), agile workflows, and configuration management practices.
Excellent communication skills to articulate technical and security concepts to diverse stakeholders.
This position is located in Austin, TX. On site.
Candidate must be a US citizen or authorized to work in the United States.