https://www.channelfutures.com/wp-content/themes/channelfutures_child/assets/images/logo/footer-new-logo.png
  • Home
  • Technologies
    • Back
    • Analytics
    • Artificial Intelligence
    • Cloud
    • Data Centers
    • Desktop
    • IoT
    • Mobility
    • Networking
    • Open Source
    • RMM/PSA
    • Security
    • Virtualization
    • Voice/Connectivity
  • Strategy
    • Back
    • Best Practices
    • Business Models
    • Channel 101
    • Channel Programs
    • Channel Research
    • Digital Transformation
    • Diversity & Inclusion
    • Leadership
    • Mergers and Acquisitions
    • Sales & Marketing
    • Specialty Practices
  • MSSP Insider
    • Back
    • Business of Security
    • Cloud and Edge
    • Endpoint
    • Network
    • People and Careers
    • Training and Policies
  • MSP 501
    • Back
    • 2020 MSP 501 Rankings
    • 2020 Hot 101 Rankings
    • 2020 MSP 501 Report
  • Intelligence
    • Back
    • Our Sponsors
    • From the Industry
    • Content Resources
    • COVID-19 Partner Help
    • Galleries
    • Podcasts
    • Reports
    • Videos
    • Webinars
    • White Papers
  • EMEA
  • Awards
    • Back
    • Excellence in Digital Services
    • 2020 MSP 501
    • Top Gun 51
  • Events
    • Back
    • CP Conference & Expo
    • Channel Partners Evolution
    • Channel Evolution Europe
    • Channel Partners Event Coverage
    • Webinars
  • Channel Mentor
    • Back
    • Channel Market Intelligence
    • Channel Educational Series
Channel Futures
  • NEWSLETTER
  • Home
  • Technologies
    • Back
    • Analytics
    • Artificial Intelligence
    • Cloud
    • Data Centers
    • Desktop
    • IoT
    • Mobility
    • Networking
    • Open Source
    • RMM/PSA
    • Security
    • Virtualization
    • Voice/Connectivity
  • Strategy
    • Back
    • Best Practices
    • Business Models
    • Channel 101
    • Channel Programs
    • Channel Research
    • Digital Transformation
    • Diversity & Inclusion
    • Leadership
    • Mergers and Acquisitions
    • Sales & Marketing
    • Specialty Practices
  • MSSP Insider
    • Back
    • Business of Security
    • Cloud and Edge
    • Endpoint
    • Network
    • People and Careers
    • Training and Policies
  • MSP 501
    • Back
    • 2020 MSP 501 Rankings
    • 2020 Hot 101 Rankings
    • 2020 MSP 501 Report
  • Intelligence
    • Back
    • Our Sponsors
    • From the Industry
    • Content Resources
    • COVID-19 Partner Help
    • Galleries
    • Podcasts
    • Reports
    • Videos
    • Webinars
    • White Papers
  • EMEA
  • Awards
    • Back
    • Excellence in Digital Services
    • 2020 MSP 501
    • Top Gun 51
  • Events
    • Back
    • CP Conference & Expo
    • Channel Partners Evolution
    • Channel Evolution Europe
    • Channel Partners Event Coverage
    • Webinars
  • Channel Mentor
    • Back
    • Channel Market Intelligence
    • Channel Educational Series
    • Newsletter
  • REGISTER
  • MSPs
  • VARs / SIs
  • Digital Service Providers
  • Cloud Service Providers
  • CHANNEL PARTNERS ONLINE
 Channel Futures

Business Models


Shutterstock

Email Security

KnowBe4 IPO Could Be An ‘Interesting,’ ‘Logical’ Move

  • Written by Edward Gately
  • September 4, 2020
An IPO would raise KnowBe4's profile significantly.

KnowBe4 reportedly is preparing for a U.S. initial public offering (IPO) valued at more than $2 billion.

According to Reuters, KnowBe4 is planning the IPO, citing people familiar with the matter. The company has engaged investment banks to help with preparations for the IPO. It could come later this year or early next year, the sources said.

KnowBe4 isn’t commenting.

Rik Turner is principal analyst at Omdia. He said a KnowBe4 IPO could be interesting and logical.

KnowBe4 might still face an uphill battle to expand its customer base even after the IPO, he said. But the move will “certainly raise its profile significantly.”

And it may even put it on the radar of larger players, Turner said. They may want to add products for awareness training to their portfolio through a partnership.

Last year, KnowBe4 got a $300 million investment led by global investment firm KKR, with significant participation from existing investors Elephant and TenEleven Ventures. The investment raised the company’s value to $1 billion.

KnowBe4 planned to use the funding for global growth initiatives and platform development.

Email Security Market Changing

Turner said the whole email security awareness training market segment has undergone considerable change. For instance, Proofpoint acquired Wombat.. Also, PhishMe went private and changed its name to Cofense.

Cofense still offers awareness training and reporting. But it removed “phish” from its name to move to a broader email security offering, he said.

Ovum's Rik Turner

Omdia’s Rik Turner

“Meanwhile, one of Proofpoint’s most important competitors in email security – Mimecast – also bought a smaller awareness training vendor, Ataata,” Turner said. “All this activity raised the question in analysts’ minds whether awareness training technology was really destined to be a standalone business, or would ultimately become a branch of the products/services offered by broader security players, and particularly those offering email security in the form of secure email gateways like Proofpoint and Mimecast.”

Cashing In

Through all this, KnowBe4 has remained a dedicated provider of email security awareness training technology, Turner said. With the IPO, KnowBe4 likely hopes to cash in on the heightened concern for security generally, and email security in particular. The pandemic and the move to work from home has intensified this concern.

“My take on the awareness training market is that it is not really a technology sector at all, but rather a media market,” he said. “Vendors compete on the excellence of their content, i.e. the films, how engaging they are and how well they promote involvement from the trainees. Some companies even use Hollywood writers to script them.”

Tags: MSPs VARs/SIs Business Models Security Strategy

Related


  • Priority Dial
    As Threats Soar, Biden Administration, CompTIA Prioritize Cybersecurity
    Also, Netwrix says a lot of organizations faced cloud security incidents in 2020. And the problem’s not going away.
  • Distribution
    HPE Appoints Longtime HPE/HP Vet as Worldwide Distribution Head
    More than 80% of HPE's indirect business goes through distribution.
  • Hungry Businessman
    Acquisition-Hungry Sapphire Systems Powers Ahead with US Expansion
    The newly appointed GM shares plans for U.K. SI Sapphire Systems’ U.S. growth.
  • Woman Thumbs Up
    Industry Experts Laud Biden Proposal for Increased Federal Cybersecurity Spending
    The plan includes increasing Cyber Security and Information Security Agency (CISA) funding.

Leave a comment Cancel reply

-or-

Log in with your Channel Futures account

Alternatively, post a comment by completing the form below:

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

Related Content

  • Cyberattacks: Threat Hunters Conquer Unpredictability with 3 Measures
  • Legal Experts: VMware's Lawsuit Against Nutanix's New CEO Lacks Weight
  • SolarWinds Hackers Hit Malwarebytes, But Impact Limited to Internal Email
  • Citrix to Acquire Wrike for $2.25 Billion, Expand SaaS Portfolio

Galleries

View all

New, Changing Partner Programs: AWS, Tech Data, Avaya, Verizon

January 11, 2021

Industry Perspectives

View all

The Rise in Remote Work Increases the Need for Patch Management

January 27, 2021

Partners Share Their 2021 Goals—and Plans for Achieving Them

January 26, 2021

The Importance of Being Security-Centric

January 22, 2021

Webinars

View all

Your Network Perimeter Has Changed

February 18, 2021

In Case of Emergency: The Importance of Proactive Critical Event Management

February 23, 2021

How Managed Hosting Providers Thrive with the Alternative Cloud

February 24, 2021

White Papers

View all

Product Brief: Kaseya VSA Integrated Workflows with BMS and IT Glue

January 26, 2021

Why Subscription Business Model

January 15, 2021

The Ultimate MSP Guide to Sales Efficiency

January 14, 2021

Upcoming Events

View all

Channel Partners Virtual

March 2, 2021 - March 4, 2021

Channel Partners Conference & Expo

November 1, 2021 - November 4, 2021

Videos and Fastchats

View all

FASTCHAT: How SOAR Eliminates Security Challenges and Elevates Service Provider Revenues

January 6, 2021

Happy Holidays from Channel Partners & Channel Futures!

December 21, 2020

FASTCHAT: How Old, Unpatched Technologies Are Creating New Security Threats for MSPs and Their Customers

December 3, 2020

Twitter

ChannelFutures

Building an efficient and profitable #patchmanagement practice in 2021 @ConnectWise #cybersecurity #endpoint #MSP… twitter.com/i/web/status/1…

January 28, 2021
ChannelFutures

International effort takes down #Emotet botnet, but @Netenrich, @digitalshadows, @Vectra_AI say it will be back.… twitter.com/i/web/status/1…

January 28, 2021
ChannelFutures

.@Microsoft @Azure’s Tyler Bryson, new U.S. channel head, talks priorities at @GetNerdio’s #NerdioCon… twitter.com/i/web/status/1…

January 27, 2021
ChannelFutures

.@CryptoStopper hires @GetChanneled to build partner program, act as virtual channel chief. #ransomware… twitter.com/i/web/status/1…

January 27, 2021
ChannelFutures

MSSPs, check for this ‘novel’ social engineering threat from North Korea. #Google. dlvr.it/RrTS9J https://t.co/2mDcnNvkHz

January 27, 2021
ChannelFutures

.@keepersecurity report shows financial sector heavily targeted by #cybercriminals. dlvr.it/RrTBPz https://t.co/joTBNeb2MT

January 27, 2021
ChannelFutures

.@Trustwave unveils new global referral partner program. #cybersecurity dlvr.it/RrT9Td https://t.co/amXCw33UsF

January 27, 2021
ChannelFutures

Ecosystem security provider Cyberpion launches first #partnerprogram. dlvr.it/RrSnxK https://t.co/g7Po3jq8iw

January 27, 2021

MSSP Insider

Newsletters and Updates

Sign up for The Channel Report, Channel Futures Update, MSP 501 Newsletter and more.

Live Channel Events

Get the latest information on the next industry-leading Channel Partners event.

Channel Partners Online

Want more? Find more channel news and analysis on our sister site, Channel Partners.

Media Kit And Advertising

Want to reach our audience? Access our media kit

DISCOVER MORE FROM INFORMA TECH

  • Channel Partners Online
  • Channel Partners Events
  • MSP 501
  • MSSP Insider
  • IoT World Today
  • Webhostingtalk

WORKING WITH US

  • Contact
  • About us
  • Advertise
  • Newsletter

FOLLOW Channel Futures ON SOCIAL

  • Privacy
  • CCPA: “Do Not Sell My Data”
  • Cookie Policy
  • Terms
Copyright © 2021 Informa PLC. Informa PLC is registered in England and Wales with company number 8860726 whose registered and Head office is 5 Howick Place, London, SW1P 1WG.
This website uses cookies, including third party ones, to allow for analysis of how people use our website in order to improve your experience and our services. By continuing to use our website, you agree to the use of such cookies. Click here for more information on our Cookie Policy and Privacy Policy.
X