JumpCloud has announced the acquisition of Stack Identity, a next-generation identity security and access visibility platform. Stack Identity was founded in June 2020 and emerged from stealth in 2022. The co-founders are Venkat Raghavan (CEO), Ambrish Deshpande(COO), and Sanjay Kale (CISO and head of R&D). In 2023, they completed a seed funding round co-led by WestWave Capital and Benhamou Global Ventures, with participation from Plug and Play Tech Center.
The firm is headquartered in the US and has an R&D centre in India. The Stack Identity platform provides a live data attack map that reveals a prioritized view of Shadow Access vulnerabilities. It enables continuous access reviews to prevent data exfiltration, rogue access, or unauthorized data sharing.
What is Stack Identity?
The solution enables Cloud SecOps, DevOps and Compliance teams to have an integrated approach to CIEM, ITDR and Cloud IGA. Its data attack map provides a visible representation allowing employees to quickly assess, review, remediate, and refine their cloud identity and access controls.
Importantly, it reduces the risk of unauthorised access, especially where workers are remote or hybrid working. The platform highlights all pathways, including those rarely monitored, for unauthorised access.
For JumpCloud, this acquisition strengthens and extends its capabilities in areas such as:
- Identity Governance and Administration (IGA)
- Privilege Access Management (PAM)
- Identity Security Posture Management (ISPM)
- Identity Threat Detection and Response (ITDR)
- Cloud Infrastructure Entitlement Management (CIEM)
Greg Keller, Co-Founder and Chief Technology Officer of JumpCloud, commented, “Mastering data is key to providing secure, frictionless access to corporate resources.
“Stack Identity’s world-class team and advanced data analytics technology will accelerate our ability to productize the billions of data signals our platform generates each month. This will enable new forms of access control, improved identity visibility, and assurance that the right people have the correct access and entitlements every time.”
Key benefits Stack Identity will bring
With Stack Identity within its portfolio, Jumpcloud can now offer to customers:
- Enhanced visibility and control over access across IT, cloud infrastructure, and SaaS applications.
- The streamlined deployment of least privilege access across the organization.
- Assurance that only the right individuals access the necessary resources.
- Accelerated delivery of just-in-time (JIT) access to cloud, SaaS, and on-premises resources.
- Tools that enable IT admins to provide just enough access (JEA) to prevent over-entitlement.
- Advanced detection capabilities that help identify and mitigate access anomalies.
Sanjay Kale, Co-Founder of Stack Identity, commented, “Joining JumpCloud is an exciting step as we reshape the future of identity security. Together, we are creating a unified way to protect organizations in today’s complex security landscape. By combining our strengths, we aim to help businesses streamline security and stay ahead of threats.”
What is next?
None of the parties involved disclosed the terms of the deal, which has already closed. However, BGV posted on LinkedIn noting, “We are excited to announce that our portfolio company, Stack Identity, has been acquired by JumpCloud, marking a significant milestone in their journey to redefine identity security!
“Congratulations to Venkat Raghavan, Ambrish Deshpande, and Sanjay Kale on this incredible achievement. We’re proud to have been part of your journey.”
For JumpCloud, the acquisition is another step on its journey to meet the needs of organisations around the world. Security is a key topic in the board room, and this latest acquisition strengthens the JumpCloud platform, delivering identity and security that covers more gaps. The acquisition follows that of Resmo, an asset management and SaaS security solution for modern, cloud-native IT and SecOps teams, which it acquired in March 2020.
Enterprise Times: What does this mean
This is another additive acquisition for JumpCloud as it looks to extend its platform. However, several questions remain unanswered. Enterprise Times contacted JumpCloud but has received no responses.
It is unclear what is happening to the Stack Identity leadership team. It seems likely that Sanjay Kale will join from his comment. However, after the transition, Venkat Raghavan, who has been an operating partner at BGV since 2020, could move on to another BGV portfolio firm.
The biggest question that remains unanswered is what will this mean for customers. It is unlikely that Stack Identity will continue to operate as a separate brand (Resmo has been subsumed into JumpCloud).
Finally, what is the roadmap for the product? How long before it is fully integrated into the JumpCloud platform, and what does the future development roadmap look like?
Many of these answers will shake out in the coming weeks, notably as LinkedIn profiles become updated, customers are informed, and the website is updated.
