MassMutual Backed Startup Makes An Exit
Mimecast, an email and data security company, announced it has acquired security software developer Solebit for ~$88m net of cash acquired.
The Tel Aviv-based startup, established in 2014 and led by Boris Vaynberg, is engineered to provide a fast, accurate and computationally efficient approach for the identification and isolation of zero-day malware and unknown threats in data files as well as links to external resources. It has raised $13m to date from several investors including MassMutual Ventures.
According to research Mimecast conducted with Vanson Bourne, more than 80% of organizations have seen both targeted and untargeted phishing attacks increase or stay the same over the last year. Additionally, cybercriminals are constantly adapting their attack methods, looking for new ways to bypass security solutions that look for specific behaviors or signature matches.
Solebit has developed a differentiated approach that is engineered to preclude the need for signatures and sandboxes. It is designed to help customers find advanced threats by recognizing when there is malicious code embedded within active content and data files. Solebit is built to scan content as it enters an organization’s systems to determine whether it is infected with malware in a transient way, avoiding the need for extra hardware and processing time typically required to isolate and detonate content presumed ‘risky.’ Solebit currently provides Mimecast and its customers insight into what was detected and why it was categorized as a threat.
“Security methods like signature-based antivirus and sandbox detonation are too limited when it comes to today’s most advanced threats . It’s time for a more capable, efficient and durable approach. We’re excited to welcome Solebit into the Mimecast family, as it helps us to offer customers a new approach that fundamentally improves their cybersecurity and resilience efficacy in the most efficient way on the market.” – Peter Bauer, chief executive officer at Mimecast.
Solebit’s threat detection capabilities are already integrated into Mimecast Targeted Threat Protection products. Combined with the recent acquisition of Ataata in the security awareness and training space, and the recently previewed early adopter web security program, Solebit brings another important set of microservices to the Mime|OS platform that all of Mimecast’s unified services are built upon.
