Top 8 Cybersecurity Companies & Startups to Watch in 2024

Cybersecurity is one of the fastest-growing markets in the tech and security spaces, as people are understanding more and more about the risks of cybercrime. 

Today there are more cybersecurity strategies and policies available than ever before: currently valued at over $172.32 billion, the cybersecurity market is expected to grow to $424.97 billion in 2030, rising at a CAGR of 13.8%.

From threat detection systems to IoT security, cybersecurity companies are evolving to meet demand and provide businesses of all sizes with bulletproof cloud security. 

For small and medium-sized businesses who don’t typically have IT or cybersecurity departments, investing in proper protection is essential.

It’s often overlooked by smaller companies who may have a smaller budget or resources, but any company, no matter the size, is vulnerable to a cybersecurity attack. 

To hit the ground running in 2024, we’ve teamed up with some SME experts to deliver an all-you-need-to-know briefing about the companies and technology shaping the cybersecurity world today.

8 cybersecurity companies & startups to watch out for in 2024

First, let’s take a look at some of the industry leaders and disruptors influencing the cybersecurity landscape.

From the cybersecurity giants to the less-known players, here are some of the most influential and innovative cybersecurity businesses to keep an eye on.

1. Sekoia.io: a fast-growing European startup

To kick off our list we’ve got the B2B SaaS startup Sekoia, a cybersecurity platform with around 100 employees.

Sekoia is a European firm based in Paris, with a mission to develop top protection capabilities against cyber attacks, specifically real-time cyber threat detection. 

Having raised $37.5 million in Series A funding round, they’re a serious go-getter.

The company addresses a gap in the market for effective alert correlation tools available to operational security teams. 

With a record 250% growth in turnover from 2022-23, Sekoia aims to safeguard over 3.5 million employees within the next two years.

2. Palo Alto Networks: a cloud-based powerhouse

Palo Alto is an industry-leader, protecting the digital domains of 80,000 customers around the world.

A favorite cybersecurity provider among Fortune 100 Companies, the cybersecurity powerhouse specializes in Next-Generation Firewalls and cloud-based security solutions, for which it has won countless awards. 

2023 was an important year for the company, seeing the development of their new Prisma Cloud platform with “code to cloud” intelligence, and their Cortex XDR platform, which enables companies to integrate data from across the security landscape.  

Last year, the firm also acquired Orca Security and Dig Security, both specializing in cloud security for cloud-native infrastructure.

3. CrowdStrike: an established cybersecurity giant

CrowdStrike is a big name in the sector, providing pioneering cybersecurity solutions combining world-class expertise and strong industry experience.

Since CrowdStrike burst onto the scene in 2011, the American firm has gone from strength to strength. 

Today, CrowdStrike offers an advanced cloud-native platform for endpoint security, essentially a single-agent solution to breaches, ransomware and cyberattacks. 

CrowdStrike’s offering is attractive to companies as a streamlined and simplified way of staying secure.

Their legendary Falcon Prevents framework is constantly evolving: CrowdStrike is poised to expand the existing product to include advanced features, partly in response to emerging cyber threats, as outlined in their 2023 Global Threat Report.

4. Abnormal Security: the go-to for email protection

Founded in 2018, Abnormal Security has seen exponential growth over the last five years, hitting a five-year search growth rate of 3,300%. 

Abnormal offers a cloud-based email security platform that protects against targeted attacks, operating within Office 365 and G Suite environments.

Powered by AI, it learns the behavior of every identity in your cloud email environment and analyzes the total risk of attack, including business email compromise, phishing, malware, ransomware, social engineering, spam and graymail (or bulk emails).  

Analyzing over 4,500 signals to detect anomalies, Abnormal offers a level of protection above traditional security solutions.

It is highly sought-after by businesses looking to shield themselves from modern email threats on all levels.

5. Cisco: a cybersecurity giant across the board

Cisco is another frontrunner, leading the SASE (secure access service edge) charge into the foreground of the cybersecurity industry.

Cisco specializes in providing ‘strong, simple solutions’ in line with specific tech markets. For example, the Internet of Things (IoT), domain security, videoconferencing and energy management. 

Boasting an industry-leading portfolio of tech innovations, its extensive array of security solutions meets needs across the sector.

In 2023, Cisco reinforced its arsenal by acquiring Opsani, providing cloud-native security observability solutions, and Splunk, also specializing in data observability and security software. 

Cisco is growing in leaps and bounds, and 2024 promises to be another year full of innovation for their team.

6. Snyk: the top security choice for developers

Occasionally working together with Cisco, Synk is another AI-powered developer security platform, centered on securing the world of open-source software.

Headquartered in Boston, the firm has seen exceptional growth in 2022 and 2023, with over 2.2 million developers currently using their product. 

Snyk offers developer-first tools combined with best-in-class security intelligence.

Their solution automatically fixes vulnerabilities in code, open-source dependencies, containers, and infrastructure as code.

In 2023, the firm launched Snyk AppRisk to help developers and teams collaborate and monitor cybersecurity issues.

7. Venafi: world-class machine identity management

Venafi is the world leader in machine identity security, trusted by some of the world’s largest organizations.

Venafi technology plays a vital role across the world, used by Global 5000 companies including T-Mobile, Bank of America, Southwest Airlines, and BP. 

Addressing the global shift to cloud infrastructures, Venafi helps their customers to manage machine identities both on-premises and in the cloud, using centralized, controlled management. 

Venafi boasts an intellectual portfolio of over 30 patents, as well as the market’s most vibrant ecosystem of innovative solutions.

Their open-source project, cert-manager, is downloaded over 1.5 million times a day.

8: WALLIX: an emerging French PAM specialist

Born in France, one of the world’s leading cybersecurity hotspots, WALLIX provides Privileged Access Management (PAM) solutions, protecting privileged accounts from unauthorized access and minimizing the risk of data breaches.

WALLIX solutions also facilitate risk management and compliance with the latest IT security standards, for example the General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR). 

2023 was a bumper year for WALLIX: the company raised 10.5 million euros as part of its “Unicorn 25” plan.

Already the European leader in the privileged access market, it aims to increase its sales to 100 million euros by 2025.

The rise of cybersecurity

As the business world grows increasingly tech-reliant and cloud-dependent, adequate cybersecurity measures have become non-negotiable for businesses of all sizes, across all sectors. 

Security services are not a one-size-fits-all solution; the security measures each company takes will depend on multiple factors specific to their business needs and operations.

Outsourcing cybersecurity measures has become the norm for most businesses, as it’s time-effective, streamlines costs, and simplifies the process. 

Cybersecurity isn’t just about minimizing the threat of external cyber attacks, it’s also used to: 

• Protect against a disruption of your online services and extended downtime
• Reduce detrimental insider risks by centralizing data 
• Protect sensitive client and company information, particularly financial records and intellectual property 

The constant evolution of cyber threats means that companies need to be making sure their cybersecurity measures are addressing these new threats.

Mandiant indicates that 67% of businesses believe their senior leadership team underestimates the cyber threat to their company: the bottom line is, you can never be too safe.

This is particularly true for smaller businesses: in fact, SMBs with 11 to 100 employees are 15 times more likely to be attacked than smaller and larger organizations according to the Verizon Data Breach report.

For many companies, reducing the risk of cyber attacks starts from within the company.

“Our primary focus is quarterly employee training sessions encompassing cybersecurity best practices. This initiative also incorporates ongoing monitoring and regular security assessments. 

With this proactive approach, we can stay informed about the latest threat intelligence and trends to leverage methodologies to address possible cyber threats.”

Kirill Chabanov, Chief Operating Officer at Aqua Cloud

Cybersecurity firms are moving fast to adapt to increasing demand, and are facing increased scrutinization by buyers looking for maximum protection.

It’s important to carry out your due diligence before signing onto a cybersecurity provider, as we’ll discuss further down. 

How do you choose the right cybersecurity company for your business?

Choosing the right cybersecurity providers is an important decision, and there is plenty of choice.

Creating a list of criteria in qualifying and selecting cybersecurity companies can be a real help in narrowing it down. 

Here are some factors to bear in mind:

Your unique business needs

First, you’ll need a strong definition of your specific business wants and needs.

It’s important to know what your core risks are, and how your information is currently stored and protected.

Identify and document all the data your company uses, categorizing it by customer data, financial records and any other sensitive information.

It’s helpful to earmark data critical to your business operations.

Industry expertise

It’s very important to carry out due diligence when considering cybersecurity firms, particularly as the market is growing fast and the options can seem endless.

Certifications are a good indicator of company expertise, and it’s helpful to look out for these during your search. 

There are two key certifying organizations to be aware of: 

1. ISC2: the International Information System Certification Consortium has over half a million accredited members, and its certificates are some of the most recognized in the industry. 

Their CISSP certification is highly sought-after by businesses, requiring five years of experience across at least two cybersecurity domains. Their CCSP designation also denotes highly advanced skills and knowledge of cloud security. 

2. CompTIA: the Computing Technology Industry Association is a leading voice and advocate for the world’s information tech ecosystem. It offers 15 certifications including Cloud+, CySA+, PenTest+, ISACA and CASP+. 

Most importantly, the CISA (Certified Information Systems Auditor) certification is incredibly sought-after in the cybersecurity industry, held by over 151,000 professionals.

It is globally-recognized as a standard of achievement for those who audit, control, monitor and assess organizations’ IT systems.

“Brand trust is often a key consideration for customers in any market, so cybersecurity measures that demonstrate concern for consumer privacy often tell a better brand story.

When done right, this often leads to increased revenue.”

Dr. Todd A. Jacobs, Founding Board Member at Theia Institute

Compliance with relevant regulations

For regulated industries, compliance is key. There are multiple regulatory bodies, and a few to specifically look for: 

• SOX: Sarbanes Oxley compliance, specific to the Banking and Finance industries, which protects clients and the public from accounting errors and fraudulent practices.
• PCI DSS: Payment Card Industry Data Security Standards, used for any company that accepts credit cards.
• GDPR: Europe’s General Data Protection Regulation; EU law on data protection and privacy for all individuals within the EU and the EEA.
• NIST: compliance with the National Institute of Standards and Technology may apply to public sector and federal services.

Accommodating your scalability

Scalability is an important consideration, as not all security providers offer the same levels of protection.

It’s important to pick a solution that addresses all company locations, employees, systems and processes to ensure all-round protection for your business. 

Having a clear vision of how you’re planning to grow your business is also important: you’ll need a security partner that can accommodate your changing needs.

Considering early on how you plan to budget for these changes is an important step.

Cybersecurity trends for 2024

The cybersecurity landscape is always changing, adapting with tech advancements and emerging cyber threats.

This makes for an exciting industry, and 2024 will be no exception. Generative AI has come to the forefront of security operations, presenting both huge opportunities for innovation, and concerns about confidential data risks.

The cybersecurity industry has been wrestling with how to effectively leverage generative AI.

The hype hit early last year, but now the real questions are about its practical application: when and where should it (not) be used?

“The stakes are high for any business that isn’t taking cybersecurity seriously.

Increased opportunities and complexity, along with potentially business-ending fines for non-compliance makes thorough cybersecurity business-critical in 2024, but more so, effective training.

Eight-in-ten cyber-attacks occur due to human error, so providing people with regular cybersecurity training can make a significant difference to your cyber resilience. 

Cybersecurity training is too important to leave people just to consume content about it.

Instead, simulated cyber-attacks and testing key concepts and processes needs to be done to ensure everyone has a good enough grasp of their role in protecting your organization from a cyber-attack.”

Frank Gartland, Chief Product and Technology Officer at Skillable

AI is no longer the future of cybersecurity, but the present, and cybersecurity firms are tasked with harnessing its powers and uncovering its practical potential. 

However, with the rise of AI comes concerns about increased vulnerability to attacks.

Faced with these concerns, cybersecurity firms must think multilaterally about how to combat diverse cyberthreats.

A single tool is not a feasible solution to all the potential threats, and so many companies are employing a ‘defense in depth’ strategy: a multi-layered approach to fortifying systems against a range of threats.

What’s next? The future of cybersecurity

The future of cybersecurity certainly holds an increased focus on artificial intelligence and machine learning technologies, developments which many security providers are already embracing.

The ability of AI and ML algorithms to analyze large amounts of data and detect patterns can result in much more effective security scans. 

We can expect to see further diversification as cybersecurity providers cater to evolving threats and more complex demands.

Companies will need to implement holistic cybersecurity measures to protect against future threats, while keeping an eye on the news and reports from some of the leading firms in the cybersecurity space.