Zscaler

Zscaler is a global cloud-based information security company that provides Internet security, web security, next generation firewalls, sandboxing, SSL inspection, antivirus, vulnerability management and granular control of user activity in cloud computing, mobile and Internet of things – centric environments.[1] As of 2015, Zscaler provides automated threat forensics and dynamic malware protection against advanced cyber threats, such as advanced persistent threats and spear phishing for more than 6,000 corporate, government and military organizations with more than 15 million paying users. It provides a cloud-based integrated-platform approach to Internet security, in contrast to many individual on-premises security appliances offered by vendors such as Palo Alto Networks, FireEye, Blue Coat Systems, Cisco, Check Point and Websense. The company often refers to itself as “the salesforce.com of information security, drawing a parallel to how Salesforce’s cloud-based CRM platform massively disrupted the formerly dominant on-premises CRM software vendors such as Siebel, SAP, Vantive and Scopus.

History, Fundraising, and Valuation

The company was founded in 2008 by Jay Chaudhry, a serial security entrepreneur that previously founded and later sold AirDefense, CipherTrust, CoreHarbor and SecureIT[2] and Kailash, the former chief architect of NetScaler. The company is unique among the private technology company “unicorns” in that it is almost entirely self-funded, has significant recurring revenue, is cash-flow positive, and is more than doubling its business year over year. In 2012, Zscaler raised $5 million in venture capital from Lightspeed Venture Partners plus received a strategic investment from EMC Corporation as part of a $38 million expansion round.[3] Zscaler has a reported company valuation of “well north of $1 billion.” [4] On August 3, Zscaler announced a $100 million pre-IPO fundraising led by TPG Capital Growth. On September 23, 2015, Zscaler announced that the $100MM round had been oversubscribed and has been raised to $110 million including a $25 million investment from Google Capital.

Jay Chaudhry is a seasoned entrepreneur with a track record of success. He is an innovator and trendsetter who has founded and funded several successful companies including Zscaler, AirDefense, CipherTrust, CoreHarbor, Air2Web, and SecureIT. Chaudhry’s 25 years of sales, marketing and engineering experience also includes leadership roles at leading companies such as IBM, NCR and Unisys.

Chaudhry was honored as Entrepreneur of the Year in the US Southeast and as a finalist for the US National by Ernst & Young. He was named an Innovator & Influencer by Information Week magazine and “Who’s Who” by the Atlanta Business Chronicle. He was recognized as a Market Entrepreneur by SC Magazine. He won Entrepreneur of the Year award from Catalyst magazine three times and has appeared in Atlanta’s “Top 50 Names to Know” many times.