Cyber Security Startup Safe Security Bags $50 Mn Funding From Sorenson Capital, Others

Cyber security startup Safe Security has raised $50 Mn in its Series B funding round led by Sorenson Capital. The funding round also saw participation from Fidelity Investments’ venture capital arm Eight Roads, Telstra Ventures, WTI, among others.

In a statement, the startup said it will continue to focus on innovating ahead of the market and lead the charge with its real-time, data-driven platform for managing and mitigating cyber risk.

Founded by Saket Modi, Vidit Baxi, and Rahul Tyagi in 2012, Safe Security offers AI-driven, real-time solutions for managing and mitigating cyber risk. It provides organisations with an aggregated view of enterprise cyber risk, and cybersecurity teams gain visibility across their entire attack surface, technology, people, and third parties.

It also allows Chief Information Security Officers (CISOs) to evaluate the efficacy of their cyber controls. The California-based startup claims to provide its services to over 200 enterprises worldwide, including many Fortune 500 companies.

“Tailwinds from regulators, cyber insurance, and boards to understand and quantify cyber risk in an aggregated and granular manner are propelling Safe into this exponential growth phase. Despite economic headwinds, Safe has been growing over 160% for three consecutive years,” CEO and cofounder Modi said.

Safe Security last raised $33 Mn in a funding round led by the BT group, one of the UK’s largest telecommunications and network providers, in 2021. Till date, the startup has raised total funding of over $100 Mn.

It is backed by former Cisco Systems CEO John Chambers and senior executives from Softbank, Sequoia, PayPal, SAP, and McKinsey & Co.

The fundraise comes at a time when the global economic slowdown has resulted in a sharp decline in startup funding globally, including India. The Indian startup ecosystem saw a 75% year-on-year decline in funding in the first quarter (Q1) of 2023. According to Inc42’s ‘Indian Tech Startup Funding Report Q1 2023’, Indian startups raised a total of $3 Bn in Q1 2023 as against $12 Bn in Q1 2022.

Growth stage funding dropped 76% in Q1 2023, with startups raising just $700 Mn as against $2.9 Bn in Q1 2022. Series B deals also dropped 86% YoY to 4 from 28 in the year-ago quarter.