LatamList – Cerby, a cybersecurity startup, recently raised a $3.5M seed round led by Bowery Capital. Other investors include AV8 Ventures, Global Founders Capital, and the Incubate Fund US.
Cerby is a stealth security company that helps security teams and end-users tackle Shadow IT. The startup was founded this year by Belsasar Lepe, CEO, and Vidal González, CTO.
Shadow IT refers to the problem of employees acting on their own against official company policy, like for example, through unauthorized access to enterprise applications or social media accounts.
“Shadow IT has emerged because enterprise users are able to onboard apps faster than IT staffers can discover and secure them,” said Lepe. “If social media has taught us anything, it is that we as humans like to share. Unfortunately, when it comes to sharing sensitive data and identities in an enterprise context, it is rarely done safely.”
According to Verizon, 67% of data breaches are caused by credential theft, errors in handling accounts, and social media attacks. Cerby will initially launch with a focus on how employees share login information for brand social media accounts at news organizations and political campaigns, just in time for the US elections in November.
“In a world where what we read on social media has the potential to be an influential news source, ensuring only trusted actors have access to the accounts behind those posts is critical,” said Cerby advisor and Chief Security Officer of Public Cloud at Palo Alto Networks, Matthew Chiodi. “Cerby provides a unique way to ensure the entire chain of custody for access is secure and completely auditable.”
Cerby’s software lets employees share access to accounts without sharing passwords or using password managers. Instead, they share a collaborative tool that allows each employee to access accounts securely while the company oversees access.
Cerby is currently in closed beta with select Fortune 1000 customers.
Read more on Business Insider.