Cerby raises $17 million to control access to ‘nonstandard’ workplace software
Former Google software developer Bel Lepe believes it is dangerous when business customers require and utilize applications. Still, IT and security departments refuse to approve them due to a lack of support for identity standards. It’s a real problem. The inability to safeguard nonstandard apps has resulted in cybersecurity incidents for 52% of organizations, according to a Ponemon Institute report.
Lepe tried to just put up with the issue while his profession carried him through many start-ups and businesses. But a few years ago, he connected with a client named Wizeline, who demonstrated a readiness to pay money to address the problem with the unusual app. With his coworker at the time, Vidal González, Lepe set out to establish a firm to control access for non-standard business-to-business apps.
As a result, the business changed its name to Cerby, which recently secured a $17 million Series A investment round with participation from several investors, including Ridge Ventures, Founders Fund, Bowery Capital, AV8, Salesforce Ventures, Tau Ventures, Okta Ventures, Incubate Fund, and Ben Johnson, co-founder of Carbon Black. Lepe has not disclosed Cerby’s current worth, although he asserts that it has increased by “double” just 18 months ago.
Cerby Objective and Future Plans:
Cerby helps security teams see and manage employee-onboarded apps by automating some processes, such as offboarding and two-factor authentication enrolment. Without divulging passwords, it enables users to share access to accounts on social media, for instance. Additionally, Cerby can identify malicious programs and direct users to safer options. Lepe claims that it can accomplish two essential goals shared by the majority of enterprises:
- Reducing a company’s dependency on human controls.
- It is preventing possible breaches.
Companies like Nudge Security and Strata Identity, the former of which just came out of stealth with an investment of $7 million, compete with Cerby. Cerby intends to use AI, incredibly huge language models like the sort powering OpenAI’s ChatGPT. It will strengthen its threat detection skills to stay one step ahead. Lepe believes an in-context tutorial might direct users toward the best way to configure an app while signing up safely.
Lepe asserts that Cerby, situated in San Francisco and employing about 60 people, has 26 active clients. It includes Colgate-Palmolive and a “major” healthcare organization. The latest fundraising round took Cerby’s total funding to $32.5 million. Cerby plans to start signing up federal clients in late 2024.
