Cisco Investments Backs Israeli Cybersecurity Firm Zafran Following Co-Founder Departure

Zafran Security, an Israeli cybersecurity startup, announced a strategic investment from Cisco Investments, the venture arm of technology giant Cisco. This marks Zafran's second major funding round in six months, following American Express's recent investment. Although the exact amount was not disclosed, the new funding is expected to raise Zafran's total capital from approximately $130 million to over $140 million. The investment comes shortly after co-founder and Chief Product Officer Shnir Havdala left the company for a managerial role at Nvidia. Havdala was one of Zafran's three founders and a key technological figure.

Founded in 2022 by co-founders Snez Yashar, Shnir Havdala, and Ben Seri, all former members of Israel's security apparatus, Zafran has been recognized as one of Israel's hottest cybersecurity startups. Yashar, the CEO and co-founder, has a notable background including 15 years in Unit 8200 and leading international cyber investigations at FireEye-Mandiant. Her personal story inspired a character in the Israeli hit series "Tehran." Despite challenges in accelerating growth in a highly competitive market, Zafran continues to attract significant strategic investors.

Existing investors include Sequoia Capital, Cyberstarts, Menlo Ventures, PSP Growth, Vintage Investment Partners, and Amex Ventures. Jane Ho, Vice President at Cisco Investments, highlighted the increasing complexity of cyberattacks in the AI era and expressed confidence in Zafran's technology to help organizations better address these challenges. Zafran develops software that integrates with existing security tools to analyze and prioritize vulnerabilities, enabling security teams to focus on the most critical risks without replacing current defense systems.

CEO Snez Yashar emphasized the company's mission to help organizations maximize the value of their installed security infrastructure and improve their response to rapidly evolving cyber threats in the AI age.