Keeper Security has closed a US$60 million minority investment from private equity firm Insight Partners. Founded in 2011, this investment marks the first time that Keeper Security has been through an investment round. The money is intended for product development and expansion of the business. It also sees Thomas Krane, Principal and Insight Partners join the Keeper Security Board of Directors.
Darren Guccione, CEO and Co-founder of Keeper Security, said: “The past four months have resulted in history’s most pervasive cybersecurity challenge. As businesses have shifted their operations online and people have adapted to remote work and social distancing, cybercriminals have executed their attacks at record rates. It’s forcing a rapid transformation and growth in the cybersecurity industry – one that is essential to safeguard people and businesses.
“With the support of Insight Partners and the planned synergy, we’re well-positioned to bring new, unique and increasingly critical cybersecurity solutions to new and existing customers, globally.”
Who is Keeper Security?
Keeper Security is one of a growing number of companies offering password vaulting systems. As people spend more and more time online, the number of accounts that they own to connect to online services is exploding. One of the problems of this is that people regularly reuse usernames and passwords. Reusing passwords makes it easier for cybercriminals to take over user accounts, steal data and even commit more serious crimes.
Keeper Security’s solutions are available for personal, family, business, enterprise and even MSP’s. In addition to its password vaulting programme, it offers a Dark Web scan to see if passwords related to an email account are available on the Dark Web. It’s Dark Web Monitoring and Account Takeover service, BreachWatch, provides ongoing monitoring of the Dark Web for stolen credentials.
The company has also added a secure chat service, KeeperChat.
What is the money for?
In a blog, Guccione said: “After nine years of building the company from the ground up, this growth funding serves as a major validation of our product leadership and provides the accelerator to continue to develop industry-best products to help customers protect themselves, their families and their businesses from cyberthreats.”
He continued: “Working with Insight Partners, you can count on us to continue delivering on the product innovation to address and exceed our customers’ needs. We look forward to further expansion as we provide essential cybersecurity solutions to new and existing businesses, governments and consumers across the globe.”
One possibility for those new products would be to expand KeeperChat by adding both voice and video. Lockdown has shown how essential collaboration tools are to keep businesses running. Many of the tools available have had problems with security and few lack the same level of end-to-end encryption that Keeper Security offers.
Expanding its partnerships with other vendors is also something that makes sense. In February, the company signed LogRhythm as a technology alliance partner. Since then, nothing. Will it now look for more partners to drive businesses forward.
There is also the question of expansion. Guccione talks about this in both the press release and blog. What he doesn’t do is mention any areas where the company may look to expand. There are several countries, such as India, that have very high online user populations. A successful expansion here, especially for KeeperChat, would deliver very high user numbers. Europe and the Middle East are other options for Keeper Security.
Enterprise Times: What does this mean?
To date, Keeper Security has been able to bootstrap its product development and expansion through revenues earned. Taking on investment, albeit a minority one after nine years of growth, is interesting. Its current products are well integrated, and the question is, where does the company see its weaknesses? At present, Guccione is not saying, but secure chat, video and audio services are a fast-growing and lucrative market.
Expanding into new territories also makes sense, providing it is done sensibly. The company has added 120 employees in the past year. That will create its own pressure in terms of management and costs. If it is to expand, will it do that by reallocating staff or going for a fully staffed local office in new target territories?
Partnerships do not get a mention in the press release or the blog. That is a surprise. While Keeper Security has reached 1 million customers to date, it will need a lot more if it is to continue to grow. Enterprise deals are useful as they bring in blocks of customers. However, deals with partners who have large user and customer bases are always a quick win, although the costs of supporting that growth need to be considered.
Ultimately, this investment is good news for Keeper Security. If it came as a result of Insight Partners making the approach, it is even better. It demonstrates that there is interest in what it is doing and an expectation of significant growth to come.
