ZeroFOX raises $27 million Series B

ZeroFOX closed a $27 million funding round, the Federal Hill-based cybersecurity company announced Thursday.
The Series B round was led by Silicon Valley venture firm Highland Capital. Along with the new money, Highland Capital general partner Corey Mulloy is joining ZeroFOX’s board.
Additional investment from the Bay Area came in the form of Tim Eades, CEO of Mountain View-based vArmour, and former Palo Alto Networks CEO Lane Bess, who also joined the company’s board earlier this year.
Avi Rubin, the technical director of the Information Security Institute at Johns Hopkins University, also invested, along with previous investors NEA, Genacast Ventures and Core Capital.
ZeroFOX recently hired two new execs: Vice President of Commercial Sales Scott O’Rourke and VP of Business Development Alex Abey. The company is looking to ramp up sales and marketing efforts, as well as “increasing M&A activities,” a release states.
The company previously raised an $11 million Series A, which was led by NEA. ZeroFOX makes social media cybersecurity software, which helps companies detect threats on social channels.
ZeroFOX’s round is the latest in a year of big Series B rounds for Baltimore-area cybersecurity companies. RedOwl, which is located in the same Federal Hill building as ZeroFOX and Betamore, closed on $17 million over the summer. LookingGlass, which was founded in Baltimore and maintains a Canton office, raised $20 million. Then, Columbia-based Tenable Network Security set a national record with a $250 million round.
The concentration of companies in the area and national rise in attention to cybersecurity amid headline-grabbing hacks is fueling a renewed effort to make Maryland a cybersecurity hub.