The 10 Coolest IoT Security Companies: The 2023 Internet Of Things 50

As part of CRN’s 2023 Internet of Things 50 list, here’s a look at the tools and vendors leading the way in IoT security.

The need for better IoT security capabilities is greater than ever before, and that isn’t expected to change any time soon.

This ongoing necessity to monitor and protect against threats to a wide range of connected devices was recently underlined by the U.S. Government Accountability Office, which said in December that the country’s 16 critical infrastructure sectors “face increasing cybersecurity threats.”

It’s not just individual agencies that see the problem. In early March, the Biden administration called for a greater focus on developing secure IoT devices as part of its new National Cybersecurity Strategy, building on previous legislation and other government efforts addressing the issue.

“Too often they have been deployed with inadequate default settings, can be difficult or impossible to patch or upgrade, or come equipped with advanced—and sometimes unnecessary—capabilities that enable malicious cyber activities on critical physical and digital systems,” the White House said in its strategy outline. “Recent IoT vulnerabilities have shown just how easily bad actors can exploit these devices to construct botnets and conduct surveillance.”

As part of CRN’s 2023 Internet of Things 50 list, here’s a look at the tools and vendors leading the way in IoT security.

Armis

Yevgeny Dibrov, Co-­founder, CEO

Armis monitors and protects against security threats posed by IoT devices and operational technology with its asset intelligence platform, which uses artificial intelligence to detect abnormal behavior. The San Francisco-based company in February appointed former Forescout executive Brian Gumbel as its president. Armis recently said it had grown its business to a $100 million annual run rate.

Claroty

Yaniv Vardi, CEO

Claroty takes on a wide range of IoT security threats with capabilities for asset discovery and management, threat detection and secure remote access, among others. The New York-based company recently unveiled integrations with ServiceNow, giving organizations a centralized inventory of all their connected assets, and CrowdStrike, simplifying deployment of network security controls.

Finite State

Matt Wyckhouse, Founder, CEO

Finite State tackles IoT security with a platform that analyzes the software bill of materials from a variety of devices, assigns risk scores and provides remediation guidance for security threats. The Columbus, Ohio-based company recently unveiled its next-generation platform, which can take in and aggregate information from more than 120 external data sources.

Forescout

Barry Mainz, CEO

Forescout seeks to neutralize IoT security threats with network access control, threat monitoring and security automation tools. In recent months, the San Jose, Calif.-based company appointed Barry Mainz, a former CEO of MobileIron, as its new CEO, and it launched Forescout XDR, which is designed to help organizations detect, investigate and respond to advanced threats.

Ordr

Jim Hyman, CEO

Ordr aims to help organizations uncover and secure every connected device on their network with a platform that has zero trust network segmentation capabilities. The Santa Clara, Calif.- based company recently appointed former Zscaler executive Jim Hyman as its new CEO and unveiled a partnership with GE HealthCare to expand sales opportunities in the health-care space.

Palo Alto Networks

Nikesh Arora, Chairman, CEO

Palo Alto Networks is taking on IoT and OT security challenges with a zero-trust platform that uses artificial intelligence and single pass architecture to passively discover connected devices and then recommend segmentation policies to reduce risk. The Santa Clara, Calif.-based company recently said that it has added IoT security capabilities to existing Prisma SD-WAN appliances, eliminating the need to deploy additional appliances or sensors.

Phosphorus Cybersecurity

Chris Rouland, Founder, CEO

Phosphorus Cybersecurity is making a splash in IoT security with a fully automated system that discovers assets, remediates vulnerabilities and monitors for threats. Last year, the Nashville, Tenn.-based company raised a $38 million Series A funding round from investors, and it recently launched a feature that has the ability to identify devices deemed a security risk by the U.S. government.

Shield-IoT

Udi Solomon, Co­founder, CEO

Shield-IoT is looking out for threats against IoT networks with an agentless platform that analyzes device-to-cloud traffic for anomalous behavior and recommends mitigations. The Kfar Saba, Israel-based company last year launched a new IoT security service that will help Brazilian mobile virtual network operator Dataro Telecom monitor and secure cellular devices at scale.

TXOne Networks

Terence Liu, CEO

TXOne Networks is a joint venture between security vendor Trend Micro and industrial networking vendor Moxa that is focused on protecting operational technology environments. The Taipei City, Taiwan-based company recently unveiled the new EdgeIPS 103 intrusion prevention system, a device that is designed to secure mission-critical machines, including legacy systems and unpatched devices.

Xage Security

Duncan Greatwood, CEO

Xage Security seeks to neutralize threats to operational technology, IT and cloud operations with a zero trust platform that enables granular access control and multifactor authentication for old and new industrial systems. The Palo Alto, Calif.-based company last year raised $36 million in Series B funding from investors, and it recently landed a customer deal with oil firm Kinder Morgan.