As massive cyber attacks hit worldwide headlines, cybersecurity has swiftly made its way to the top of corporate agendas and budget plans. Last month, a ransomware attack named WannaCry infected over 300,000 computers in 150 countries around the globe. As old guard tech players fail to keep up with next-gen technology such as the Internet of Things, a wave of new startups has emerged to compete for a slice of the high growth market.
Boston-based cybersecurity company Cybereason has secured $100 million in Series D funding from SoftBank Corp. for its endpoint protection platform. SoftBank, a subsidiary of Japanese telecommunications firm SoftBank Group, is one of the startup’s largest customers and distribution partners. The latest round brings total funding to $189 million from investors including Charles River Ventures, Lockheed Martina and Spark Capital.
Cybereason offers behavioral analytics to detect and respond to end-point digital security breaches. The five-year-old company, founded by former operatives in Israel’s elite Unit 8200 military intelligence group, Lior Div, Yossi Naar, Yonatan Striem-Amit, has declined to disclose its valuation. Bloomberg reports its valuation as north of $850 million after factoring in its latest cash infusion, citing an individual close to the matter.
The software provider aims to help companies mitigate the amount of time and resources spent by IT departments on hacks, productivity loss from employees affected, reputational damage and the loss of sensitive data.
"Our focus on behavioral data means that we look beyond just the ones and zeros of what the data is — we constantly correlate data to understand what the attacker is doing, and their motives," said Div. "We know how to spot potential attacker activities and we can accurately distinguish between good and bad behavior."
CEO Lior Div says the new capital will enable the firm to expand its products, hire additional talent and increase the size of its offices in Boston, Tel Aviv, London and Tokyo, and throughout the broader EMEA and APAC regions.
Over the last year, the firm reportedly grew its revenue by 500% as it increased its staff by nearly 200%.
