Security awareness training and simulated phishing expert KnowBe4 of Clearwater, Florida, has acquired CLTRe, a Norwegian company focused on security posture tools and frameworks, the two companies have confirmed. Financial terms were not disclosed.
CLTRe (pronounced "Culture") offers a Toolkit and the Security Culture Framework, which help organizations gather evidence about their security culture. The tool measures seven dimensions of security culture: behavior, responsibilities, cognition, norms, compliance, communication and attitudes.
Leveraging CLTRe's tools, customers can:
- Create a baseline for their security posture;
- measure progress and effectiveness over time;
- mitigate risk; and
- influence culture changes where needed across the company, CLTRe asserts.
CLTRe will operate as an independent subsidiary, and the acquired company's tools will be available to KnowBe4 customers later in 2019.
KnowBe4 Acquires CLTRe: Executive Perspectives
Describing the deal, KnowBe4 CEO Stu Sjouwerman said:
“Today’s announcement brings KnowBe4 very valuable tools to help our customers measure what matters – their security culture – so they can make decisions about how to improve. We’re excited to welcome Kai and the CLTRe team to the KnowBe4 family and to enhance our European presence while supporting more global customers.”
Added Kai Roer, CEO, CLTRe:
“KnowBe4 is a leader in innovation and has a wonderful track record for growing quickly but with a very specific focus on improving security at the human-level. This is a natural fit for our evidence-based analytics and measurement tools, as KnowBe4 customers will now be able to measure their security cultures, benchmark against their industry sectors, and pinpoint exactly what kind of security culture they have. With KnowBe4 and CLTRe, organizations can gain true insight into their security culture, improve their security with pinpoint accuracy, report their progress to their board of directors, and educate their users to make smarter security decisions.”
KnowBe4 Security Awareness Training: Business Growth
KnowBe4 has been one of the cybersecurity industry's fastest-rising stars. The company in March 2019 raised money from KKR and Ten Eleven Ventures at an $800 million valuation. More than 25,000 organizations worldwide now leverage KnowBe4's tools. The company ranked No. 96 on the Inc. 5000 list for 2018. KnowBe4 revenues were $64.5 million in 2017, representing a three-year growth rate of 3,726 percent, Inc. reports.
Still, profit figures have not been disclosed and the company faces a growing list of rivals -- including these top providers of security awareness training tools. Demand for such tools grew about 40 percent to $490 million in 2018, Gartner estimates.
