Cyber security startup Nozomi Networks backed with $100m investment

San Francisco-based industrial cyber security startup, Nozomi Networks, has raised $100 million from its customers and technology partners to help build new products and expand sales.

There has been increasing interest in cyber security startups over the past year with big investments following a sharp rise in high-profile cyber-attacks. Nozomi Networks reports that “the number of attacks has more than doubled year on year.”

“We’ve gone from having a malicious insider here and there, somebody that didn’t like how he or she got fired, to now these ransomware folks that want to shut you down.”

Nozomi Networks specialises in protecting critical infrastructure such as oil, gas, and water, as well as manufacturing facilities. The software monitors machines, including valves and pipelines, to see if there are any anomalies and then alerts companies about where urgent fixes are needed to protect the facilities from hackers. It also tracks down the different machines and devices that are connected to the internet to monitor them.

Investors include Honeywell Ventures, an investment arm of Honeywell International Inc, as well as In-Q-Tel, the venture capital fund backed by the CIA.