Mocana Raises $25 Million To Address Mobile App And Smart Device Security Market

Mocana has raised $25 million in new funding from Trident Capital for the provider’s mobile app and smart security solutions. The Series D round gives Mocana $47 million in total investment.

Mocana’s goal is to be the next major global security franchise — addressing the mobile market — which is estimated at $3 to $5 billion in size.

Mocana executives see two major business markets evolving in the enterprise market. There is the need  to protect mobile devices. And separately is the market to protect apps and the data on them.

But there is also an intersection in the market that is occurring. For instance, cars are increasingly smart.  They are integrating with smart phones and apps that are available through car manufacturer app stores.

This marks the emergence of the Internet of Things. That’s a world where everything has some connection. Mocana sees the need for security with the cars we drive, the devices we use, the apps and the flow of data in orthogonal ways we never imagined could be possible.

Security is built into IT policy. Mocana offers geofencing, which manages permissions based upon geographic location.  Time fencing allows the enterprise to manage when an app can be used.

Data is protected with Mocana’s technology that essentially wraps an envelope around individual apps.

To succceed, Mocana needs to continue building out a network of third-party providers such as mobile device makers (MDM) and corporate app stores.

Mocana is addressing the needs of IT that wants control over apps with security built into their own way of doing things. It faces competition from internal development and third-party app providers such as VMware.

The thing is – IT is changing so fast. It is actually going away. Infrastructures are getting mor automated. IT is becoming a service. How Mocana adapts to that changing market will determine its success. Mocana addresses a real need in the market but success will be determined by the way it adapts to the changing IT landscape.