At a glance.
- Natixis buys more stock in Rapid7, bringing the company to over $15.6 million in shares.
- Executive moves.
- Company news.
- Labor markets.
- Studies and reports.
Investments and exits.
Natixis has bought more Rapid7 shares, DefenseWorld reports. The company previously owned 459,890 shares, which has increased by 141,857 during the fourth quarter of 2022, says a Securities and Exchange Commission filing. Natixis now holds about $15.63 million shares of the company today.
Virginia-based threat intelligence provider Silent Push is fresh on the scene, launching last Wednesday with a $10 million seed funding round under their belt led by Ten Eleven Ventures, SecurityWeek reports. The company plans to provide customers with a “comprehensive view of internet-facing infrastructure.”
Belgian access management startup NineID has raised $2.6 million in funding, led by Pitchdrive, with additional investments from Comate Ventures and a slew of angel investors. The company plans to delegate the funds to product expansion and global growth.
Executive moves.
Science Applications International Corporation, or SAIC, has named Bill Edmunds as the new senior vice president of the company’s intelligence business unit.
Axio has made three new additions to its team; Felipe Bayón as a special advisor in energy, manufacturing, and infrastructure; Peter Armstrong as the company’s senior vice president of risk engineering and risk capital; and Alfredo Narez as senior vice president and head of marketing.
Suzie Smith has been promoted to chief operating officer at Trustonic.
Capitol Meridian Partners has named Tiffanny Gates as an operating partner.
Shawn Henry, chief security officer at CrowdStrike, has been added to CLEAR’s board of directors.
Francisco Donoso has been appointed as the chief technology officer at Lodestone.
Company news.
DarkReading writes that the NSO Group, the Israeli firm behind the controversial spyware tool, Pegasus, is catching the eye of one magnate, however, it wouldn’t be one that you expect. The Guardian shared that Wrigley chewing gum heir, William “Beau” Wrigley, may be interested in acquiring the company’s assets. The Israeli government’s involvement, however, could strike down any potential offers as it is selling off their own technology. Other attempts to purchase NSO Group assets have remained unsuccessful, including one from L3Harris last year that was stopped by the White House over concerns of security.
Labor markets.
In labor market news this week, the Economic Times reports that there are around 40,000 cybersecurity positions open in India. The current issue for the positions, the outlet writes, is a disconnect between the open positions and those with the skills to fill them. The workforce still needs upskilling within a broad array of areas within cybersecurity, including data privacy, cloud security, AI security, and network security, said to all be in high demand at this time.
Studies and reports.
Axiad released the findings of a Passwordless Authentication survey it commissioned. Conducted by Enterprise Research Group (ERG), the survey covers an array of vectors related to authentication: challenges, user experience, user attitudes toward authentication, and the wants and needs of organizations that implement authentication measures.
Professionals across the cybersecurity, development, and IT fields within North America were surveyed. Phishing and social engineering attacks proved to continuously be a point of concern, as 92% of the survey’s respondents reported fear over credential harvesting. Almost 60% of respondents report with confidence that they believe compromised accounts, or harvested credentials, have been the cause for a successfully implemented cyberattack within the last year. Passwordless authentication seems to be a prioritized vector for these professionals, as 82% of respondents placed a move to passwordless authentication within their top five priorities, with 85% reporting a move to passwordless authentication planned within the next 1 to 2 years. Respondents also report a belief that a move to passwordless authentication will aid IT and support teams within their organizations, with 86% of those surveyed in agreement.
OpenText Cybersecurity today shared the results of their 2023 Global Managed Security survey, detailing concerns of cyber leaders within the workforce today, and the importance of prioritizing simple and effective security solutions. Tool consolidation is a high priority, as tool sprawl has been shared as a primary concern for Managed Service Providers (MSPs) and Managed Security Service Providers (MSSPs). 86% of the respondents report a desire to consolidate their tools. A vast majority (88%) of respondents see a move toward the consolidation and merging of security and compliance tools. Customers are reporting a strong need for “comprehensive, on-demand security,” which is cited by 82% of MSPs and MSSPs surveyed as a key requirement.