E-Security Inc. had already raised $30 million from venture capitalists, but when a new investor came knocking, it didn’t say no.
Today the Vienna-based security software company plans to announce a $5 million investment from Advanced Technology Ventures Inc. (ATV), a Massachusetts venture capital firm.
“Adding an ‘A’ player to your team is always something you want to take advantage of,” said e-Security chief executive Joseph P. Payne. “They have good security experience, and they’re a very large and well-respected venture capital firm.”
E-Security, founded in 1999, makes software that detects security threats by examining all the different computer security systems in a business. For example, an alert from virus-protection software might not set off alarm bells by itself, but if it’s considered with data from firewalls or other programs, the virus alert can be a signal of something far more threatening. When it was founded in Florida, e-Security was one of the first companies to develop this kind of technology, according to Brian Hanson, an ATV partner.
“The key is they were one of the early pioneers,” Hanson said. “They’ve got a number of early customers that have tested their product and given them feedback.”
E-Security customers include such large firms as Verizon Communications Inc., Lockheed Martin Corp. and Fannie Mae. Earlier this year, e-Security moved its headquarters to Virginia to be closer to its customers, as well as this region’s pool of software executives.
Payne said the company’s annual revenue is less than $20 million but declined to be more specific. The company sales doubled last year from 2001, and Payne said sales in the first three months of this year have been 50 percent of 2002’s total.
This $5 million investment brings the company’s fundraising total to $35 million. It should also be e-Security’s last outside investment.
“We are absolutely fully funded to break even,” Payne said. “And that will happen this year.”
Reported By TechNews.com, http://www.TechNews.com
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