Netcraft, the British company known for its anti-phishing and cybercrime disruption tools, has raised a whopping $100 million in funding and announced the hiring of a new chief executive to pursue global expansion plans.
The company said the $100 million financing was led by Spectrum Equity, a growth equity firm focused on internet-enabled software and data services companies.
In a note announcing its first-ever outside investment, Netcraft said it is turning control of the company over to Ryan Woodley, a veteran corporate executive who will now assume the CEO Office.
Woodley previously served as chief executive at Progressive Leasing, a financial technology firm that grew from approximately $220 million to $2.5 billion in revenue and went public during his tenure. Netcraft said Woodley has previous cybersecurity experience, having worked as COO and CFO at DigiCert, the high-assurance digital security certificate authority that roughly tripled in size during his tenure.
WIth major capital in hand, Woodley will be tasked with expanding Netcraft’s enterprise business, which includes Internet data mining, anti-fraud and anti-phishing data feeds and technologies.
The company called out global expansion plans among Woodley’s priorities, nothing that the investment from Spectrum Equity “will help accelerate the company’s strategic plans to drive growth and expand globally.”
Founded in 1995 by Mike Prettejohn, Netcraft sells tools and services for cybercrime countermeasures and disruption services. The company’s data and technologies are often used to allow brands to disrupt or take down cybercrime online in an automated manner.
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Ryan Naraine is Editor-at-Large at SecurityWeek and host of the popular Security Conversations podcast series. He is a security community engagement expert who has built programs at major global brands, including Intel Corp., Bishop Fox and GReAT. Ryan is a founding-director of the Security Tinkerers non-profit, an advisor to early-stage entrepreneurs, and a regular speaker at security conferences around the world.
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