The cybersecurity industry is “coming dangerously close to being complicit in cybercrime,” according to TJ Jermoluk, co-founder and CEO of security vendor, Beyond Identity.
Jermoluk directed the comment at vendors of “password managers, phishable MFA, and outdated VPN technologies.”
“Truckloads of VC and PE money for legacy authentication technology will not protect companies. By throwing money at security ‘controls’ that criminals consistently evade, in an attempt to inexplicably protect and preserve the gaping hole that is passwords, is not only funding failure, it’s knowingly failing companies and customers,” he said.
“Password managers, phishable MFA, and outdated VPN technologies are not the answer, and will not close the wide-open door that criminals waltz through every day.”
Jermoluk was speaking as the company today announced a $100 million Series C funding.
The round raises the company’s total funding to date to $205 million. Evolution Equity Partners led the round, with existing investors New Enterprise Associates (NEA) and Jim Clark participating. Potentum Partners, Expanding Capital, and HBAM joined the round.
The investment will be used to expand research and development and extend the company’s footprint and resources into Asia Pacific and Latin America.
The CEO said that “today’s announcement sends a loud message that failure is no longer an option.”
Record revenues
Beyond Identity noted that in its report on emerging technologies and trends for 2022, Gartner designated passwordless multi-factor authentication as a critical technology for “ubiquitous and transparent security” that should be adopted as soon as possible.
The firm’s own MFA solution cryptographically binds a user’s identity to their devices. The system uses public/private key technology and X.509 certificates, removing passwords from the authentication and account recovery process. The core architecture combined with the company’s modern authenticator and advanced policy engine means that only authorised users and devices are granted access and that every device complies with security policies before and after the authentication process.
Today’s funding announcement comes Beyond Identity’s annual recurring revenue (ARR) rose by 330 percent from 2020 to 2021. Its roster of customers grew 640 percent, and the company now says it has more than 180 employees across North America and Europe – including an engineering team with more than 100 developers.
The company has also announced that industry veteran Taher Elgamal will be joining the Beyond Identity Board of Directors.