The 5 Startups Disrupting Cybersecurity

Cyberattacks are escalating each year. No matter who you are, some of your personal information was probably compromised in 2018. Businesses have lost tens of millions. Data for billions of consumers is no longer secure. The security gaps in the online world are growing. Luckily, there are a number of startups putting a stop to the online thievery. Here are five companies changing the cyber security space. Okta – Zero Trust Model If you watch cybersecurity trends, you’ve heard of the zero-trust model. Essentially, the zero-trust model is what it sounds like: it’s a cybersecurity approach wherein a network trusts no one and will not give access to any data whatsoever until a user is authorized. Okta is one of Gartner’s leaders in access management thanks to their modern approaches to network access, including the zero-trust model. Their products range from single-sign-on to multifactor authentication, lifecycle management and more. If you’re looking for an architecture that trusts no one, there’s a good chance Okta can help. Area 1 Security – Pay-by-the-PhishBy now, phishing sounds like an old-hat tactic for swiping credentials, yet it’s still effective and costs business $500M a year. Area 1 Security is putting a stop to phishing. They recently reeled in $32M in funding for their unique “pay-per-phish” model. For each phishing email they stop, a business pays $10. It’s that simple. This performance-based model holds Area 1 more accountable for sniffing out phishing emails and ensures that businesses only pay when real threats are prevented. Area 1 is currently reporting a 99.997 percent catch rate on phishing emails. Ziften – Understanding the Cyber Kill ChainZiften prevents cyberattacks by understanding the cyber kill chain, which is a process sophisticated hackers follow to achieve their goals. Ziften uses end-point agents to track user behavior, apps, and devices, which gives user real-time insight into where and how a hacker might be trying to infiltrate a system. According to a Ziften blog piece, the more carefully users can manage end-points, the easier it is to stop hackers, “The more sensitive the detection capability, the more caution and stealth the attackers must exercise in perpetrating their kill chain sequence, and the more time and labor and talent they must invest. The defenders need but observe a single attacker footfall to uncover their foot tracks and unwind the attack kill chain. Now the defenders become the hunter, the attackers the hunted.” By understanding the behaviors and methodologies of hackers, Ziften makes it easier for IT pros to address a range of attacks. ObserveIT – Squashing Insider Threats Many IT admins focus on attacks from the outside, but according to Verizon, 25 percent of all security incidents involve insiders. IT admins need to account for threats outside and inside their own doors. ObserveIT prevents insider threats by tracking user behavior and identifying policy violations. They allow for real-time monitoring of network access and usage for everyone from employees (IT teams, developers) to third parties (contractors, vendors, etc.). This makes it easy for IT professionals to see who is accessing what and set policies for access, so they can put a stop to insider leaks before they happen. Empow – AI-Powered CybersecurityEmpow positions themselves as a smarter alternative to traditional SIEM (security information and event management). Their solutions use a layer of artificial intelligence to understand threat types, identify an attack’s ultimate intent, and defuse it, all without any static rules. With a vast database of threats along with AI, they dynamically create threat responses in real time. This allows admins to adapt to various attack types, without layering on new, costly applications each time new threats materialize. Companies considering or already invested in SIEM can calculate the ROI of an Empow solution using a simple calculator.

Conclusion

Criminals are swiping data from all angles, inside and outside organizations. Luckily, there are dozens of intuitive startups developing innovative, cost-effective solutions that fortify businesses against nearly any threat. As you look to 2019, consider how some of the latest pioneers in cybersecurity can keep you and your clients safe from even the most sophisticated cyberattacks.