Highlights:

  • San Francisco-based Malwarebytes creates a well-known antivirus that can be installed on personal PCs, Chromebooks, and mobile devices.
  • The investment is anticipated to conclude before the end of the year, subject to usual closing conditions.

Malwarebytes Inc, a leading provider of cybersecurity software for the consumer and commercial industries, announced that it had raised USD 100 million. Vector Capital led the round.

The investment is anticipated to conclude before the end of the year, subject to usual closing conditions. Since its inception, Malwarebytes has raised USD 180 million in external funding.

San Francisco-based Malwarebytes creates a well-known antivirus that can be installed on personal PCs, Chromebooks, and mobile devices. The company’s antivirus software can identify and block various kinds of malware. Malwarebytes also offers a mechanism that prevents attempts by malicious apps to disable their antivirus.

According to reports, more than 3.5 million users utilize the commercial versions of Malwarebytes’ software. The company also enjoys a great presence in the enterprise sector, competing with a suite of solutions for securing corporate networks.

Malwarebytes offers a version of its consumer antivirus with additional capabilities for small companies. The product features a cloud-based dashboard that simplifies operations such as antivirus deployment and staff device security monitoring.

For bigger enterprises, Malwarebytes offers a cloud-based platform that can be used to identify malware on staff devices and servers. In addition, the platform can detect malware in businesses’ cloud-based data storage settings. Malware offers its threat detection capabilities alongside an automated solution that can stop specific forms of attacks without administrator intervention.

The current investment round comes one month after the business revealed intentions to lay off 125 employees. Malwarebytes indicated that time that the decision was largely motivated by a shift in its business strategy. The software developer is modifying its go-to-market approach to give emphasis to small and midsized firms and midmarket organizations with less than 1,000 people.

Malwarebytes asserts that its income has increased yearly since its inception in 2008. The firm has not published exact sales figures, but it stated today, in connection with the fundraising announcement, that it has a positive cash flow.

The current capital round was funded by Vector Capital, a private equity firm that specializes in backing established technology businesses. Previously, the company has invested in several other software companies, including NoSQL database supplier MarkLogic Corp. and Corel Corp., the producer of the popular WinZip file compression utility.

Marcin Kleczynski, co-founder and Chief Executive Officer of Malwarebytes, said, “Vector Capital shares our mission to protect those most vulnerable to cyberattacks through cutting-edge technologies and the power of community. We believe Vector Capital’s collaborative approach and proven ability to help build global software businesses make them ideal partners in our ongoing efforts to build a safer digital world.”

Following the fundraising round, Malwarebytes wants to strengthen its consumer and enterprise product lines. The firm will also expand its partner ecosystem. Malwarebytes intends to increase its collaboration with managed service providers and its worldwide channel partner program.