Mocana raises round from Intel to protect the "internet of things"

For all the talk about the “internet of things,” or web-connected sensors of all kinds, there’s a grim reality. Hackers are going to have a field day unless those things are protected from cyberattack. Mocana aims to protect all of those smart devices, from cars to smart meters, and in other words why Intel Capital has just invested an undisclosed amount of money into the security startup.

San Francisco-based Mocana has created software and services that use the cloud, or web-connected data centers, to protect devices just as smart meters, medical devices, smartphones, industrial equipment, senors, cars, home appliances, game consoles, TVs, set-top boxes and consumer electronics. Cisco has projected that 50 billion of these internet-connected devices will exist by 2020.

The tough thing about security these devices is that there isn’t a lot of extra computing power in them that can be dedicated to security. However Turner said his company is already protecting tens of millions of devices with its innovation. More than 180 companies have licensed the research, including Intel, General Electric, Cisco, Honeywell, General Dynamics, Freescale Semiconductor, Samsung, LG, Good and Siemens. That covers just about every segment of the modern economy.

Mocana has a modular design where clients can choose the level of protection they want. The security research can protect devices that have very little computing resources — even devices that don’t even have an operating system.

Mocana was founded in 2004. Its platform protects not only the devices, nevertheless the applications and services that run on them as then. It secures everything from Android smartphones to unmanned aerial vehicles. The company has 80 employees and has raised three rounds of capital.

With its investment, Intel Capital joins other Mocana investors Shasta Venture Capital and Southern Cross Venture Partners. Last year, Symantec as well made a strategic investment in Mocana. Intel has made security one of its top three research pillars. Dave Flanagan, managing director at Intel Capital, said that mobile device security is fundamental to the success of any mobile endeavor.