SpiderOak raises $16.4M for space cybersecurity tech to protect ‘soft underbelly’ of satellites

A Lenexa-based company’s industry-leading technology is taking orbit with new investments that validate SpiderOak’s end-to-end cybersecurity efforts — a “mission critical” platform that reduces the attack surface of satellites and damages the ability of adversaries to jam and disrupt space communications.

“Today, space-based assets are mission essential in all civil and military operations and rapidly becoming mission critical for all national and corporate infrastructure,” said Charles Beames, executive chairman of SpiderOak. “The Space Force and the space industry consensus is that a cyber-attack is the most likely and most damaging threat to these assets.”

SpiderOak — a leader in zero-trust cybersecurity solutions for next-generation civil, military and commercial space operations — on Thursday announced a $16.4M Series C round led by Empyrean Technology Solutions, a space technology platform backed by funds affiliated with Chicago-based private equity firm Madison Dearborn Partners.

As a result of the round, the company will move its headquarters to Reston, Virginia, allowing a complete build out of SpiderOak Mission Systems’ program and engineering teams. 

“Space is a demanding environment in many ways and SpiderOak’s proven zero-trust solution, using its patented distributed ledger tech, is well positioned to address these cyber threats head-on,” said Beames, noting additional investment participation by Method Capital and OCA Ventures. “This oversubscribed Series C round by true industry leaders highlights their trust in our ability to solve this problem for both government and commercial customers.”

SpiderOak also is a portfolio company of locally managed KCRise Fund.

The latest funding for SpiderOak will allow the company to complete on-orbit testing and achieve flight heritage of OrbitSecure 2.0 — a project intended to demonstrate end-to-end cybersecurity for the Department of Defense’s future Hybrid Space Architecture, an initiative the U.S. Congress has begun referring to as the “Outernet” through legislation.

“Warfighters have identified cyber-attacks as the ‘soft underbelly’ of the satellites on which we depend for our defense and modern life,” said John Moberly, senior vice president for space at SpiderOak.

RELATED: SpiderOak announces contract with U.S. Defense Innovation Unit to demonstrate OrbitSecure zero-trust protocol on-orbit

SpiderOak’s OrbitSecure.

Additionally, SpiderOak will also develop a unique space cybersecurity laboratory for hardware in the loop qualification testing for OrbitSecure and custom mission partner solutions.

“SpiderOak’s software solution begins by securing every data record, both in transit and at rest,” added Dave Pearah, CEO of SpiderOak. “We have designed it to be backwards compatible with legacy space systems, to allow current on orbit systems to take the step to much higher cybersecurity protections. With its ultra-low storage and processor needs, OrbitSecure is the ideal solution for the next generation of mesh networks in proliferated LEO.”

SpiderOak is a 100-percent U.S.-owned and operated software company.

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