SAN FRANCISCO–(BUSINESS WIRE)–
Lookout
Mobile Security, the leader in smartphone security, today announced
the closing of a $40 million funding round led by Andreessen
Horowitz. Jeff Jordan from Andreessen Horowitz will join the
company’s Board of Directors. Current investors Khosla Ventures, Accel
Partners and Index Ventures also participated in the round. The new
investment will be used to broaden the company’s product offerings, fuel
global expansion and continue building a world-class team.
Lookout protects over 12 million smartphone and tablet users worldwide
from malware, spyware and phishing attempts. Lookout also backs up
personal data and can quickly locate a lost or stolen device. The
easy-to-use Lookout app is powered by Lookout’s Mobile
Threat Network, which constantly analyzes global threat data to
identify and quickly block new threats with over-the-air app updates.
Threat detection that would have taken days now happens in minutes;
effectively protecting users before they even know a threat exists.
“Mobile is rapidly becoming the dominant computing platform and as users
do more with these devices, security is essential to keep them safe,”
said Jeff Jordan, general partner at Andreessen Horowitz. “Lookout
understood from the beginning that mobile security would require a
dramatically different approach. By moving security detection and
analysis to the cloud, they have delivered a great user experience while
building the fastest and most robust security infrastructure. Its
tremendous growth is a testament to its success.”
According to Gartner Group, mobile phone manufacturers are expected to
increase shipments to more than a billion devices in 2015, far outpacing
PC shipments. As mobile device usage expands from calls and text
messaging to social apps, banking and shopping, the incidence of malware
and web-based threats is rapidly increasing. Threats once limited to PCs
including phishing, payment fraud and malicious software are now also
affecting mobile devices.
“Andreessen Horowitz has helped build and scale some of the best
companies in the world, and Jeff will be a valuable partner in our next
stage of growth,” said John Hering, CEO and co-founder, Lookout. “Our
user-friendly approach to security has already made Lookout the choice
of millions of smartphone users worldwide. This investment will allow us
to accelerate our growth in new markets, giving smartphone users
everywhere the confidence to do more with mobile.”
Lookout created its mobile threat protection to meet the unique needs
and challenges of mobile devices and networks. Balancing computing power
between the device and the cloud, Lookout provides always-on protection
that doesn’t interfere with device performance. Lookout’s Mobile Threat
Network scans hundreds of thousands of apps a month and is the largest
database of smartphone applications available. Lookout has also extended
the protection available to mobile devices to any app store or download
site through the newly released Lookout
API.
For additional commentary on Andreessen Horowitz’s investment in
Lookout, visit Jeff
Jordan’s blog post.
About Lookout Mobile Security
Lookout is a mobile security company dedicated to making the mobile
experience safe for everyone. Lookout delivers award-winning protection
from the growing threats facing mobile users today, including malware
and spyware as well as data and device loss. Cross-platform and
cloud-connected, Lookout is designed from the ground up to provide
advanced mobile protection while remaining lightweight and efficient on
the phone. With 12 million users across 400 mobile networks in 170
countries, Lookout is the world leader in smartphone security.
Headquartered in San Francisco, Lookout is funded by Accel Partners,
Andreessen Horowitz, Index Ventures, Khosla Ventures and Trilogy Equity
Partners. For more information and to download the application, please
visit www.mylookout.com.
About Andreessen Horowitz
Andreessen Horowitz is a stage-agnostic venture capital firm that
provides seed, venture and growth-stage funding to the best new
technology companies. Founded by Marc Andreessen and Ben Horowitz,
Andreessen Horowitz helps entrepreneurs become successful CEOs and build
important and enduring companies. Its general partners are Marc
Andreessen, Ben Horowitz, John O’Farrell, Scott Weiss, Jeff Jordan and
Peter Levine, all widely recognized experts in the creation, scaling and
operation of high growth technology companies. The firm has $1.2 billion
under management across two funds. Among its 60 investments are Airbnb,
Facebook, Foursquare, Groupon, Skype, Twitter and Zynga. The firm was
established in June 2009 and is located in Menlo Park, California. www.a16z.com
Article source: http://biz.yahoo.com/bw/110921/20110921005580.html?.v=1
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