Cobalt.io, a US-based cybersecurity technology developer backed by internet company Digital Garage, secured $29m on Thursday in a series B round led by venture capital firm Highland Europe.
Private investors including Scott Belsky and Chris Eng also participated in the round, which increased the total raised by the company to $36.5m.
Founded in 2013, Cobalt has built a software platform that connects more than 500 clients to vetted cybersecurity specialists who help stress test their applications for software bugs and vulnerabilities, a function known as pentesting.
Pentesters log issues encountered through the platform and can also contact peers with expertise in specific areas, accelerating the process so it can be conducted more frequently. Cobalt certifies applications for stability once the bugs have been fixed and keeps a log of the procedure in its online repository.
The series B funding will fund product improvements as Cobalt aims to expand internationally. Gajan Rajanathan, a technology investor at Highland’s London office, has joined its board of directors in conjunction with the round.
The company raised $5m in a mid-2018 series A round led by VC fund ByFounders that included Digital Garage subsidiary DG Incubation, Plug and Play Ventures and existing investors eLab Ventures and Draper Associates. Its earlier backers include Kima Ventures and Draper Associates founder Tim Draper.