Interview Experience | Crowdstrike | SDE-III
Summary
I went through a comprehensive interview process for an SDE-III role at CrowdStrike, which included multiple technical rounds focusing on data structures, algorithms, system design, and behavioral aspects, ultimately resulting in an offer.
Full Experience
I recently went through the interview process for the Falcon Exposure Management team at CrowdStrike. Overall, the process was technically strong and focused heavily on problem-solving and system design.
Here’s a breakdown of each round:
Round 1 : DSA
This round consisted of two coding questions:
Meeting Rooms II
LeetCode: https://leetcode.com/problems/meeting-rooms-ii/description/
Server–Node Distribution Problem
Given n servers and m nodes, distribute the servers uniformly across nodes such that no node is overwhelmed.
Since, we still have 15 minutes left so interviewer asked me to code for Singleton class.
The round primarily evaluated algorithmic thinking, time complexity optimization, and coding clarity.
Round 2 : Technical Round (Senior Engineer)
This was originally supposed to be the final round, but due to panel availability, it was scheduled earlier in the process.
Coding Question:
Given a list of numbers, generate any permutation such that every permutation has equal probability.
We also had a discussion around security fundamentals, including:
How to store user credentials securely
Password hashing mechanisms
Salting
Why plain hashing is not sufficient
General best practices for password management
Round 3 : System Design
Problem:
Design a system that can read files and perform threat detection.
The focus was on requirement clarification, architectural thinking, scalability, and trade-offs.
Round 4 : Hiring Manager Round
This round involved a deep discussion about my current project.
Be prepared to explain:
Architectural decisions
Trade-offs considered
Scaling strategies
Database choices
Caching
Failure handling
The discussion went deep into reasoning behind technical decisions rather than surface-level explanations.
Toward the end, there were a few behavioral questions around ownership, conflict resolution, and handling challenging situations.
Follow-up Round : Additional System Design
About a week later, I received feedback from HR and was asked to attend another System Design round.
Problem:
Design a system that accepts files from users and generates security findings or malicious threat detection using a third-party service.
This round focused more on:
API design
Asynchronous processing
Integration with external systems
Reliability and failure handling
Observability and monitoring
Verdict: Offer Extended
Compensation Details: https://leetcode.com/discuss/post/7584024/is-crowdstrike-worth-joining-by-anonymou-xa4f/
Interview Questions (9)
Meeting Rooms II
Server–Node Distribution Problem
Given n servers and m nodes, distribute the servers uniformly across nodes such that no node is overwhelmed.
Implement Singleton Class
I was asked to code for a Singleton class.
Generate Permutation with Equal Probability
Given a list of numbers, generate any permutation such that every permutation has equal probability.
Secure User Credential Storage
How to store user credentials securely
Password Hashing and Salting
Discussion around Password hashing mechanisms, Salting, and Why plain hashing is not sufficient.
Password Management Best Practices
General best practices for password management.
Design System for File Threat Detection
Design a system that can read files and perform threat detection.
Design System for File Threat Detection via Third-Party Service
Design a system that accepts files from users and generates security findings or malicious threat detection using a third-party service.