Social SafeGuard Raises $11M in Series B

Social SafeGuard, a leading provider of software for digital risk protection, today announced that it has raised $11 million in new funding from AllegisCyber and NightDragon Security. The Series B investment will help Social SafeGuard expand its platform and go-to-market activity to help businesses stop the spread of fake accounts, fake news, brand impersonation, social phishing, malware, spam and other threats across digital and social channels.

The need for digital risk protection becomes more obvious by the day:

Facebook recently disclosed it shut down 583 million fake accounts and 837 million pieces of spam in three months, while moderating 2.5 million pieces of hate speech, 1.9 million pieces of terrorist propaganda and 21 million pieces of sexual content.
Hackers earlier this year hijacked the Twitter accounts of several high-profile individuals to spread Turkish political propaganda.
The Washington Post and New York Times reported last month about the prevalence of fake accounts and online scams, which can significantly impact consumer confidence and brand reputation.
The FBI's Internet Crime Report says social media attacks quadrupled over five years.
Additional sources show 43 percent of people accept friend requests from people they don't know; 66 percent of online spear phishing attacks are opened by their intended targets; and the typical company encounters 61 fraudulent brand impersonations that damage their digital presence.
Officials in the U.S., Europe and Asia are adopting new regulations for digital privacy and data management, including large potential fines for companies that don't rigorously manage their online interactions.
"Digital and social channels are the new battleground in cybersecurity, and businesses need to build up their defenses," said Jim Zuffoletti, founder and CEO of Social SafeGuard. "This is quickly becoming a priority for security leaders, risk managers and digital marketers at every company. We're thrilled to have AllegisCyber and NightDragon as experienced partners, as we scale our business to meet customer needs and market demand."

"As one of the few dedicated cybersecurity venture firms, we know how big this challenge has become for today's security executives," said Spencer Tall, managing director of AllegisCyber. "This is no longer a fringe need that can be ignored or deferred. Digital risk protection should be on the shortlist of corporate security priorities for the next decade."

As part of this funding announcement, Tall will now join the Social SafeGuard board, which also includes Dave DeWalt, founder of NightDragon and managing director at AllegisCyber. DeWalt is an icon in the cybersecurity industry, having previously served as CEO of FireEye, McAfee and Documentum. He recently joined the Social SafeGuard board as vice chair.

"There's currently a massive dislocation between what attackers can do and what defenders can prevent. It's a big vulnerability for companies, all of whom need to protect the integrity of their data, their people and their brands," said DeWalt. "We're impressed with the technology Jim and Otavio and team have built, and more importantly, the results customers have already seen with Social SafeGuard. We're excited to invest and help them grow the business."

Social SafeGuard was founded in 2014 and provides cloud-based software to manage the full life cycle of digital risk protection, so enterprises can detect, analyze and prevent attacks in real time – while automating governance and compliance. The Social SafeGuard platform helps security, risk, compliance and brand leaders protect their company's presence across more than 50 digital and social channels, including:

External social platforms (e.g. Facebook, LinkedIn, Twitter, Instagram, YouTube);
Mobile chat platforms (e.g. WhatsApp, WeChat);
Unified communications platforms (e.g. Skype for Business, Jabber); and
Cloud applications (e.g. Salesforce, Veeva, Office365);
Internal collaboration platforms (e.g. Slack, Yammer, Chatter, FB Workplace IBM Connections);
News and blog sites (e.g. RSS, Mashable, Reddit); and
Dark web threats (e.g. dark web, app stores, paste bins sites, etc.).
"We are incredibly excited to work with Dave DeWalt and Spencer Tall to take Social SafeGuard to the next level," said Otavio Freire, president and chief technology officer. "Our platform is already analyzing millions of data points from digital and social channels, and using machine learning algorithms to look for anomalies that indicate malicious activity. The news regarding online risks continues to be fast and furious – from Cambridge Analytica to Twitter takeovers to cloud break-ins – all of which serve as cautionary tales to the level of exposure, risk and protection needed as we build a 'new' perimeter for companies."

For more information on digital risk protection, please follow the Social SafeGuard blog and/or download the company's overview, Without Fear: Managing & Securing New Digital Risks to Drive Business Forward.

About Social SafeGuard
Social SafeGuard delivers software to manage the full life cycle of digital risk protection, so enterprises can detect, analyze and prevent attacks in real time – while automating governance and compliance. Customers and partners include Johnson & Johnson, Sun Life Financial, McAfee and other leading brands across 18 industries and 20 countries. For more information, please visit http://www.socialsafeguard.com/.