The startup provides tools that organizations can use to secure business data their employees keep in software-as-a-service applications. Netskope also enables enterprises to ensure cybersecurity rules are enforced after an employee has logged into an application. It’s possible to customize the process based on a variety of other factors as well, such as whether an employee is connecting to a system from a public Wi-Fi network. A company could choose to let employees sign into the accounting system from both company-issued and personal devices, but disable their ability to download data if they’re using a personal device. For example, a company could configure Netskope’s software to authorize attempts to access its accounting system only if an employee is signing in from a company-issued device.Īdministrators can define access rules in a more granular way if needed. The startup provides features that allow administrators to reduce the risk of breaches by only enabling a user to log into an application if certain cybersecurity conditions are met. The second task Netskope helps with is logging into work applications. Moreover, it can double as an ad blocker, preventing pages from connecting to ad servers and tracking systems. The engine uses machine learning to identify web pages containing malicious code. Products in this category provide features for three different tasks: blocking malicious websites as a company’s employees browse the web, helping them securely log into work applications and securing data they transfer to and from cloud services such as Dropbox.įor the first task, blocking web-borne malware, Netskope provides a security engine that can prevent employees from connecting to insecure sites. SASE stands for secure access service edge. Netskope competes in a fast-growing part of the cybersecurity market that Gartner Inc. A number of existing backers including Lightspeed Venture Partners, Accel and Sequoia Capital contributed as well. Iconiq Growth was the lead investor in the Series H round, which Netskope announced this morning. “An IPO is definitely a possible milestone in the journey, but it’s certainly not limited to that and we’re not in a rush and have no capital needs, so we’re not commenting on timing.Netskope Inc., a startup that helps about a third of the companies on the Fortune 100 list secure their network traffic, has received a $300 million late-stage funding round valuing it at $7.5 billion. The next natural step for a company at this stage of maturity would be to look to become a public company, but Beri wasn’t ready to commit to that just yet. That’s a big leap in just two years, but it reports 80% year-over-year growth, and claims to be “the fastest-growing company at scale in the fastest-growing areas of cybersecurity: secure access server edge (SASE) and cloud security,” according to Beri. Today, it announced it has almost tripled that number, with a valuation close to $3 billion. When Netskope announced its $168.7 million round at the end of 2018, the company had a valuation over $1 billion at that time. Today’s urgent requirement is security that is fast, delivered from the cloud, and provides real-time protection against network and data threats when cloud services, websites, and private apps are being accessed from anywhere, anytime, on any device,” he explained. “Legacy products based on traditional notions of perimeter security have gone obsolete and inhibit the needs of digital businesses. “We did not necessarily need this level of capital but having a large balance sheet and a legendary set of investors like Sequoia, Lightspeed and Accel putting all their chips behind Netskope for the long term to dominate the largest market in security is a very strong signal to the industry,” Beri said.įrom the start, Netskope has taken aim at cloud and mobile security, eschewing the traditional perimeter security that was still popular when the company launched in 2012. Today’s investment brings the total raised to more than $740 million, according to Crunchbase data.Īs with so many large rounds recently, CEO Sanjay Beri said the company wasn’t necessarily looking for more capital, but when brand name investors came knocking, they decided to act. Sequoia Capital Global Equities led the round, but in a round this large, there were a bunch of other participating firms, including new investors Canada Pension Plan Investment Board and PSP Investments, along with existing investors Lightspeed Venture Partners, Accel, Base Partners, ICONIQ Capital, Sapphire Ventures, Geodesic Capital and Social Capital. Today the company announced a $340 million investment on a valuation of nearly $3 billion. Netskope has always focused its particular flavor of security on the cloud, and as more workloads have moved there, it has certainly worked in its favor.
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