Somerville Cybersecurity Firm Acquired In $780M Deal

SOMERVILLE, MA — A Somerville cybersecurity firm has been acquired in a $780 million deal. Recorded Future, which has 170 employees in Somerville, announced Thursday it was acquired by New York-based private equity and venture capital firm Insight Partners.

Recorded Future was founded in Somerville 10 years ago and is backed by the investment arms of Google and the CIA, according to Business Journal. The company scans the internet for cyber threats and feeds intelligence to those responsible for an organization's online security. It is the largest privately-held threat intelligence software company in the world, with more than 400 clients.

In 2017, Insight led a $25 million round of funding that brought Recorded Future's total VC funding to $58 million.

"My leadership team and I have had the privilege to work with Mike Triplett and the Insight team for a number of years, benefiting from their sage advice, industry knowledge, and relationships," Christopher Ahlberg, co-founder and CEO of Recorded Future, said in a release. "This transaction is the logical next step for Recorded Future given the opportunities in front of us, as we fully realize the potential and vision of our strategy."

Triplett, managing director of Insight, and Thomas Krane, Insight vice president, will join Recorded Future's board of directors.

"Insight's renewed investment is a testament to the vision and direction laid out by Recorded Future's leadership team," Triplett said in a statement. "They envision a world where everyone applies intelligence at speed and scale to reduce risk, remaining hyper-focused on providing clients with the threat intelligence necessary to understand their environments, manage risk, and combat malicious actors through contemporary awareness gained from the implementation of a threat intelligence-led security strategy. We are thrilled to partner with Recorded Future on this next stage of growth and look forward to what's to come."