RAD Security, a platform designed to address Kubernetes security issues through automated remediation and implementation of least privilege access control, has successfully raised $6 million in seed funding.
The funding round was led by .406 Ventures, with significant contributions from Vertex Ventures US and Gula Tech Adventures. This financial boost is set to enhance RAD Security's product development and expand its sales and marketing initiatives. Influential angel investors play a pivotal role in the growth of RAD Security, including Andrew Peterson, Carol Meyers, Jim Manico, and Grant Miller.
Emerging challenges in cloud-native architectures
As enterprises increasingly adopt cloud-native infrastructures, managing and securing containerized environments has become complex.
While Kubernetes is expected to streamline developers' management of microservices architectures, including human and machine identities, it inadvertently increases the enterprise attack surface. According to the Cloud Native Computing Foundation, there were approximately 5.6 million developers worldwide using Kubernetes by the end of 2023. However, the security challenges that accompany this rapid growth cannot be overlooked.
Impact on development speed
However, the security challenges that accompany this rapid growth cannot be overlooked
Jimmy Mesta, Co-founder and CTO of RAD Security, has highlighted that while Kubernetes is transformative, it can also pose significant security risks for developers lacking the necessary expertise. Mesta, drawing from his experience with Kubernetes training, identified best practices that allow for agile development without compromising an organization's safety or financial performance.
RAD Security's platform empowers development, security, and operations teams to automatically manage clusters, remediate misconfigurations, and control access entitlements across Kubernetes infrastructures. With Brooke Motta leading as CEO and Mesta's expertise, the company is positioned to assist enterprises in securely scaling Kubernetes without hindering development progress.
Growth and investment in Kubernetes security
As RAD Security customer Kim Green, CISO at World Market, observes, the company's platform seamlessly integrates with existing DevOps workflows to enhance security with minimal operational impact. According to CEO Brooke Motta, Kubernetes is experiencing exponential growth, making security a priority for scaling teams. The platform introduces modern solutions for Kubernetes Detection and Response (KDR) and Kubernetes Infrastructure Entitlements Management (KIEM).
Chase Roberts from Vertex Ventures sees RAD Security as a category-defining company
Greg Dracon, Partner at .406 Ventures, believes RAD Security is establishing a significant presence in Kubernetes security, likely to expand further. He joins the board of directors and emphasizes the importance of solutions like RAD Security's that incorporate security by design. Ron Gula from Gula Tech Adventures supports this perspective, highlighting fast remediation as crucial in fast-paced innovation. Similarly, Chase Roberts from Vertex Ventures sees RAD Security as a category-defining company pivotal for security and software teams, underscoring the significance of the company’s leadership and technology.
A new era of cloud-native solutions
On the board as an observer, Roberts will collaborate closely with RAD Security to fulfill its objectives. Zane Lackey, Co-founder of Signal Sciences and an investor in RAD Security, emphasizes the necessity of security controls for successful Kubernetes transitions in enterprises. Protecting against potential threats requires adequate measures like least-privilege access and cluster hardening, effectively addressed by RAD Security through its novel approach of integrating security at the code level.
RAD Security is now part of the Cloud Native Computing Foundation's Security TAG, continuing its dedication to advancing security and scalability within the cloud-native ecosystem. A webinar scheduled for March 1 at 10:00 a.m. PST will offer attendees insights into securing modern Kubernetes environments, focusing on identifying and resolving misconfigurations and vulnerabilities in cloud infrastructures.
RAD Security, an event-driven SaaS platform built to automatically remediate Kubernetes security risks and enforce least privilege access control across distributed cluster infrastructures, today announced it has raised $6 million in seed funding.
Led by .406 Ventures with participation from Vertex Ventures US and Gula Tech Adventures, this infusion of capital will enable RAD Security to accelerate product development and grow its sales and marketing efforts. Notably, the following individuals have contributed to RAD Security’s growth through angel investments and mentorship: Andrew Peterson, Founder, Signal Sciences; Carol Meyers, Former CMO, Rapid7; Jim Manico, Founder, Manicode, and Grant Miller, Founder, Replicated.
Enabling rapid development
As enterprises expand their cloud-native architectures, it becomes monumentally complex to manage and secure containerised infrastructure. Businesses adopt Kubernetes expecting it will support developers in managing microservices architectures, including the human and machine identities they are tasked with owning. The Cloud Native Computing Foundation estimates that 5.6 million developers worldwide use Kubernetes^1.
Kubernetes is transformational and enables rapid development. However, the rise of Kubernetes has increased the enterprise attack surface and made security the top concern for organizations moving towards containers in production, as well as the most in-demand skill today^2. Jimmy Mesta, Co-founder and CTO, realized early that at times Kubernetes could be more of a hindrance than a help as many developers lack the security depth and expertise to adequately secure their workloads.
Impacting development velocity
Informed by his work training Kubernetes early adopters, Mesta identified the best practices for Kubernetes security that still enabled companies to achieve fast, agile development without putting the enterprise environment or business bottom line at risk.
RAD Security gives development, security and operations teams the ability to automatically discover clusters, remediate misconfigurations, and securely manage access entitlements across any Kubernetes infrastructure. Led by Brooke Motta, a recognized high-growth, go-to-market leader, and Mesta, a pioneer in Kubernetes security, RAD Security is poised to be the security partner of choice for enterprises looking to adopt, scale, and secure Kubernetes across their business without impacting development velocity.
Undergoing exponential growth
“RAD Security empowers our development teams to own the security outcomes of our applications and infrastructure with minimal operational overhead. RAD Security's platform is a perfect fit for our existing DevOps workflows,” Kim Green, CISO at World Market and RAD Security customer.
“Kubernetes adoption is undergoing exponential growth and security is quickly becoming a primary concern as teams look to scale. I'm excited to bring the RAD Security platform to market and deliver a modern approach to Kubernetes Detection and Response (KDR) as well as Kubernetes Infrastructure Entitlements Management (KIEM),” said Brooke Motta, Co-founder and CEO.
Cybersecurity-focused venture investing
“RAD Security is defining a market space within Kubernetes security that is primed to explode in the coming years,'' said Greg Dracon, Partner, .406 Ventures. “We are thrilled to partner with Brooke and Jimmy and believe RAD Security will change the way enterprises secure their cloud-native infrastructure.”
Dracon will join the RAD Security board of directors, bringing with him over 25 years of cybersecurity-focused venture investing and technology operating. “RAD Security stood out for many reasons–not the least of which is because their solution exemplifies security by design, which is one of the key tenets we believe in at Gula Tech Adventures. Fast remediation allows developers to spot and fix misconfigurations and vulnerabilities and is critical when working to keep pace with the speed of innovation,” said Ron Gula, President, Gula Tech Adventures.
Cloud-native solution
"In this noisy and rapidly-growing Kubernetes environment, RAD Security’s cloud-native solution puts security on auto-pilot so developers can focus on application building,” said Chase Roberts, Principal at Vertex Ventures US. “We’re confident that RAD Security, with its strong leadership and sorely-needed technology, will produce a category-defining company that’s indispensable for security and software teams alike. We couldn’t be more excited to join them on this journey."
Roberts will join RAD Security as a board observer and will partner closely with the team to help them realize their mission. “Businesses cannot move applications to Kubernetes and expect to transform into a DevOps shop,” said Zane Lackey, Co-Founder of Signal Sciences and RAD Security angel investor. “Without the proper security controls, including least-privilege access and hardened cluster configurations, attackers can wreak havoc in an enterprise's cloud environment. RAD Security addresses these challenges head on by allowing development and security teams to meet at the source – the code itself.”
Modern Kubernetes environment
“We are thrilled to have RAD Security join and support the CNCF and Security TAG,” said Chris Aniszcyk, CTO of the Cloud Native Computing Foundation. “The cloud native community requires the work of dedicated individuals and organizations to continue pushing the boundaries of scalability and security, and we are glad to count RAD Security in these ranks.”
RAD Security will be hosting a webinar on March 1 at 10:00 a.m. PST to discuss the fundamentals of securing a modern Kubernetes environment. Attendees will learn how RAD Security enables security teams to discover and remediate Kubernetes misconfigurations and vulnerabilities across any cloud. Register today.
