💰 Security, Funded #119 - Navigating the Cyber Seas: Funding Ebb, M&A Flow 🌊

Hey there,

Happy Monday, and I hope you had a great weekend. In this week’s issue, we’ve got:

• 📉 Funding's Dip, M&A's Grip

• 💰 $93.5M raised from 15 companies

• 🌍 Global Cyber Moves: From USA to UAE

• 📚 From Cyber Caricatures to AGI Futures: A Reading Adventure

The cybersecurity landscape continues to evolve in the face of global macroeconomic shifts.

While some companies wrap up their spending for the year, others are actively seeking year-end deals. This cautious spending behavior suggests a mindful approach in a recovering economy. The industry is also witnessing a notable decline in funding compared to previous weeks, yet mergers and acquisitions remain strong, indicating a strategic consolidation in the market.

Even still, as the industry navigates through these changes, the focus remains on adopting advanced technologies like AI, balancing security needs with economic realities. Let’s get this bread 🥖

Onward to this week's issue.

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Last week’s vibe check:
As the year winds down, are you looking to spend excess budget now, or are you already pushing to next year?

Last week 60% of people said that they were done spending for the year, but that still leaves a healthy 40% that is still looking for year-end deals. Companies are still spending cautiously and need to make sure their investments are worth the trouble, but there are signs of a broader economic rebound(ish) coming into 2024. Your move cyber vendors 😤

📸 YTD Snapshot

A rolling 12-week chart to compare funding and acquisitions each week between 2022 and 2023.

💰 Funding Summary

• 15 companies raised $93.5M across 12 unique product categories

• 6 companies were acquired or had a merger event across 5 unique product categories

🧩 Funding By Product Category

• $35.0M for Data Protection across 1 deal

• $20.1M for Software Supply Chain Security across 3 deals

• $8.0M for Managed Security Services Provider (MSSP) across 1 deal

• $6.8M for Threat Detection and Response (TDR) across 2 deals

• $5.0M for Threat Informed Defense (TID) across 1 deal

• $4.3M for Brand Protection across 1 deal

• $4.0M for Artificial Intelligence (AI) Security across 1 deal

• $4.0M for Artificial Intelligence (AI) Privacy Assurance across 1 deal

• $3.6M for Attack Surface Management (ASM) across 1 deal

• $2.4M for Threat Intelligence across 1 deal

• $336.3K for Hardware Security across 1 deal

• An undisclosed amount for Professional Services across 1 deal

🏢 Funding By Company

• CAST AI, a United States-based AI-driven cloud cost optimization and disaster prevention platform, raised a $35.0M Series B from Creandum, Uncorrelated Ventures, and Vintage Investment Partners. (more)

• Sequretek, an India-based managed security services provider (MSSP), raised an $8.0M Series A from Omidyar Network India. (more)

• Risk Ledger, a United Kingdom-based third-party supply chain security platform, raised a $7.7M Series A from Mercia Ventures. (more)

• TestifySec, a United States-based software supply chain security platform, raised a $6.4M Seed from Mucker Capital. (more)

• Myrror Security, an Israel-based software supply chain security platform, raised a $6.0M Seed from Blumberg Capital and Entrée Capital. (more)

• Tidal Cyber, a United States-based threat-informed defense (TID) platform, raised a $5.0M Seed from Squadra Ventures. (more)

• Method Security, a United States-based threat detection and response (TDR) platform, raised a $4.5M Seed. (more)

• GREYSCOUT, an Ireland-based brand infringement protection platform, raised a $4.3M Seed from Act Venture Capital and Tribal.vc. (more)

• HydroX AI, a United States-based artificial intelligence (AI) security and safety platform, raised a $4.0M Seed from  Vitalbridge Capital. (more)

• Protecto, an India-based platform focused on data privacy for AI workflows and training pipelines, raised a $4.0M Seed from Together Fund. (more)

• Cavelo, a Canada-based attack surface management (ASM) platform, raised a $3.6M Seed from Inovia Capital. (more)

• Intrusion, a United States-based cyber threat intelligence platform, raised a $2.4M post-IPO equity round. (more)

• Cognna, a Saudi Arabia-based threat detection and response (TDR) platform, raised a $2.3M Seed from Impact46. (more)

• SecurWeave Research, an India-based hardware enforced security solution provider, raised a $336.3K Seed from the Indian Angel Network. (more)

• Synergy ECP, a United States-based professional services firm focused on software engineering and cybersecurity for the US intelligence community, raised an undisclosed Private Equity Round from Falfurrias Capital Partners. (more)

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🌎 Funding By Country

• $57.3M for United States across 7 deals

• $12.3M for India across 3 deals

• $7.7M for United Kingdom across 1 deal

• $6.0M for Israel across 1 deal

• $4.3M for Ireland across 1 deal

• $3.6M for Canada across 1 deal

• $2.3M for Saudi Arabia across 1 deal

🤝 Mergers & Acquisitions

• 4it, a United States-based managed security services provider (MSSP), was acquired by Thrive for an undisclosed amount. (more)

• ActiveState, a Canada-based secure open-source library management platform, was acquired by VERTU Capital for an undisclosed amount. (more)

• Krebs Stamos, a United States-based professional services firm focused on cybersecurity advisory, was acquired by SentinelOne for an undisclosed amount and formed a new company named PinnacleOne. (more)

• Spade Technology, a United States-based professional services firm focused on , was acquired by IT Solutions Consulting for an undisclosed amount. (more)

• ThreatDown (formerly Malwarebytes for Business), a United States-based threat detection and response (TDR) platform, was divested from Malwarebytes to be run as a separate entity. (more)

• Trustmatic, a Slovakia-based identity verification and Know Your Customer (KYC) platform, was acquired by Certn for an undisclosed amount. (more)

📚 Great Reads

• Caricatures of Security People - Phil Venables provides a tongue-in-cheek exploration of different caricatures within the security industry, outlining 16 distinct types of security roles, from a self-appointed thought leader to a cyber-savvy board member, each with its own humorous descriptions and typical sayings.

• *The Critical Interplay of Cyber Resilience and IAM Resilience - In an age of increasing digital threats, understanding and differentiating between Cyber Resilience and Identity and Access Management (IAM) Resilience becomes paramount.

• Why We'll Have AGI by 2025-2028 - Daniel Miessler talks about why he believes we will have Artificial General Intelligence (AGI) much sooner than many people think and what it may mean.

• The Importance of Key Rotation - Olivia Gallucci talks about how key rotation enhances the security of application programming interfaces (APIs)—emphasizing the necessity of key rotation alongside the conventional practice of identifying and deleting leaked secret keys—to mitigate security risks and ensure the long-term integrity of digital systems.

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📆 Events

• VantaCon - San Franciso, CA on December 5th, 2023 - See the future of trust in an AI world at Vanta’s annual user conference - use code VC23100 for early bird pricing

🧪 Labs

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