Earlier this morning, San Francisco-based mobile app security provider Appthority announced that it has raised $6.25 million in a Series A financing round led by Venrock and US Venture Partners. Gunderson Dettmer also participated in this round. Venrock’s Ray Rothrock and US Venture Partners’ Steve Krausz will join the Appthority board.
The company’s product helps businesses manage the risks involved in having their employees bring their own mobile devices to work. Appthority specifically focuses on the apps installed on these devices and screens them for malware and other security threats.
As more businesses move to a BYOD policy, mobile apps, says Appthority, are becoming a major security threat for these companies. Appthority’s algorithms can automate the manual app review process by scanning apps for malware, privacy and security concerns. The service then builds whitelists and blacklists based on app behavior and a given IT department’s needs.
Appthority was named the most innovative company at the most recent RSA Conference.
The company was funded last June. The team, including the company’s founders CEO Anthony Bettini and CTO Kevin Watkins, has a strong background in the enterprise and security business and its members previously worked for companies like Intel, McAfee, Applied Materials, Brocade, Netect, and SecureSoft Systems. The company has already partnered with a number of large players in the mobile application management and security space, including BoxTone, Apperian, Appcelerator and the health care-focused Happtique.
Appthority plans to use this additional funding to scale its business to meet market demand and expand its operations in San Francisco.